How can I manually trigger an off-camera flash from a distance during a long exposure?
Asked 6/25/2013
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I want to make long-exposure photos where the flash fires multiple times to freeze movement, including when I’m in the frame myself. I already know I can press the flash’s own test button, but that doesn’t help if I’m away from the camera and flash.
My gear is a Canon 550D, two Cactus V5 transceivers, and an older Starblitz BTZ-2000 flash. Can I trigger the flash manually from a distance with this setup, or do I need to build some kind of custom switch/timer? A repeating trigger every few seconds would also work.
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
13y ago
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Yes—using your existing Cactus V5 transceivers, you can manually fire the off-camera flash remotely. The V5 has a test button, so if one transceiver is attached to the flash and the other is in your hand, pressing the test button on the handheld unit should trigger the flash.
Another possibility is the flash itself: some flashes have a stroboscopic/repeat mode that lets you set multiple flashes with a chosen interval. If your Starblitz supports that, it may be the simplest way to get repeated bursts during one long exposure.
If not, a basic manual trigger works by momentarily closing the hot-shoe sync circuit (center contact to ground), which is essentially what a test button does. So an off-the-shelf solution does exist in your case: your radio triggers already provide it.
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