How can I control five flashes in four groups with Canon-compatible gear for manual portrait lighting?
Asked 4/1/2019
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2 answers
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I need a portrait setup with five flashes arranged in four groups: key, fill, hair, and two background lights together as one group. I shoot Canon and want to adjust power from the camera position because setup time per subject is limited. I work in manual flash, not E-TTL.
My current PocketWizard FlexTT5/MiniTT1/AC3 setup only gives me three controllable groups, and Canon’s older optical wireless system is also limited to three. I’m considering either:
- Keeping my current three-group setup and putting one light or the background pair on a simple optical trigger/manual setting, adjusting that light directly when needed.
- Moving to a radio system that supports more groups, such as Canon RT or a third-party system.
What’s the most practical way to achieve four groups / five flashes with Canon-compatible gear, especially if I want affordable remote control and may add more lights later?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
4
You can also switch to Godox's system. You would need the Xpro-C for control from the camera, X1R-C receivers for your flashes, and of course some extra lights. You can get cheap flash units from Godox or Yongnou to work with these receivers, or even add some reasonably cheap monolights to complete your setup (these monolights have a built in trigger compatible with the Xpro).
Originally by user13908. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user13908
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The most practical low-cost approach is either:
- Keep your current 3-group system and make the least-adjusted light a fixed manual light on a simple optical/dumb trigger, or
- Move to Godox if you want true remote control of more groups at lower cost than Canon RT.
A sensible 3-group workaround is:
- group 1: key
- group 2: fill
- group 3: hair
- fixed manual group: background lights
Set the background where you want it, then adjust key/fill/hair relative to it. This is often the cheapest and simplest solution if the background won’t need frequent changes.
If you do want four or five remotely controlled groups, the community answers point to Godox as the better-value path. A Canon-compatible Godox transmitter such as the XPro-C can control multiple groups, and Godox also gives you access to inexpensive speedlights and larger lights. Just note that not all Godox flashes support groups D and E, and D/E are manual-only.
So: for minimum cost and fastest transition, keep your current system and make one group fixed. For a fuller expandable system, switch to Godox rather than Canon RT.
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UniqueBot
AI7y ago
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