Toronto Photography Meetup Group

Woo.. this is fun!

http://www.phottix.com/wireless-remotes ... emote.html

I can use this...instead of bending way down.

I have the aputure version originally from ebay, bought from tpmg member Bicanic when he went to Canon, and it is identical to the Phottix TR-90.

I like it. Just read the manual once to know how to use it. Only thing it's missing is an on-off switch, but the consumption is so low anyway, and i can just take the batteries out it or put a paper shim in to the battery compartment when not being used for long periods.

I got this:
http://www.phottix.com/wireless-remotes ... on-ii.html
&
http://www.phottix.com/batteries/phottix-bp-511a.html

From:
http://stores.shop.ebay.com/Hong-Kong-Supplies

I'm a happy camper.

I've also got the Cleon II for my D200 and it's worked as expected. The tiny screws are easy to strip but I haven't done it yet. Order off ebay as well.

PhotoGlobe Online (http://www.photoglobeonline.com) is a good option for phottix gear in Toronto.

Pocketwizard is suing Phottix currently:

http://www.pocketwizard.com/news_events/news/patent/

Better buy soon!

Based on your post count, I'm not sure if that sounds like an advertisement to me.

Can the Atlas triggers be used to trigger Pocket Wizard Plus IIs and vice versa?

he has transferred already to doing pick-ups in Mavis / 401 ... bought some of my equipments from him like the wireless triggers and others, so far they all work perfectly... I am planning to buy some of his softbox for flash gun kit....

guys, anyone also tried/bought Phottix ballheads like the one below? i was wondering the difference between this and the more expensive options like Arca Swiss, Kirk, etc.

thanks.

for one thing the phottix sticker isn't on straight

Seriously thought. I have not used a phottix. But i do have a RRS BH-40.

You see the plate on the phottix? It's a generic plate. So it will not fit your camera precisely. A precisely mattched plate to your camera body will ensure that when you lock your ballhead, there will NOT be any further movement of your camera. Not even a tiny millimetre. Why does it matter? Depends on how much you care about your image. For macro it makes a huge difference.

I dont see any spirit level on that model. Pretty important if you are going to do pano's. Of course, you can buy additional spirit levels and attach to your flash hot shoe.

It has a screw type quick release. Not as fast as a lever system , if you really want speed.

The load capacity is pretty small. If you use big lenses and a heavy camera with battery grip and flash etc. , it may not hold the weight and will droop.

How smooth is the ballhead? , do the screw knobs fall out if you turn them out too much or are they anchored in securely. How much droop does this ballhead have once you load all your equipment on it? Is the paint going to chip and you get corrosion? I bet you will. What is the tripod socket mount size?

Regarding the ballhead, I can't knock something I haven't: seen/handled: read about other people using; or hasn't been around for long.

But having said that, I'm not willing to save a chunk of change without the above noted points and risk having my camera and lens fall on concrete or into water. I'm not saying you get what you pay for, because sometimes everything works out fine. However, I much prefer a bit of piece of mind from good ratings, track record and having touched the item. I probably went a bit overboard with my ball head, but when its locked in place, it doesn't budge ... and it is ever so smooth to use.

thanks for the response.

The spirit level on the tripod unfortunately is not going to help you if you are going to shoot single row pano's with that ball head. It's the ball head + clamp + camera combination that needs the spirit level on it. So in other words, it doesn't matter if the tripod is not perfectly level. what you need to level is the ball head with the camera on it. That's why it's good to have a level on the clamp. Then , all you would do is rotate the ball head and it would be level.

Of course the way around this is to simply by a spirit level that fits into the camera hot shoe , and level your camera while it's attached to the ball head that way.

I guess for $50 you can take a chance and see. If the big model has the secured locking pin, you may need to remove that to use other OEM's plates. The large unit supports 12kg (26lbs), that's quite a bit of weight still.

I agree that personally if I'm sitting $5000+ worth of camera gear on a tripod/ballhead I'm buying something that's proven/reliable with a solid track record.

Another thing to keep in mind is the load capacity of 12lbs for that ballhead. I think that's the one you are talking about. There apparently is no real standard measure for that. Companies can almost say whatever they want for the load capacity. Some good companies test their ballheads and then provide a 'conservative' number. The last thing you would want is to put your camera on the ballhead and then watch it droop down. That would be a shame.

That's like saying I haven't driven a Tata, but I do have a Ferrari.

I have bought quite a few things off of the local Phottix supplier...He is a great guy and backs up all his product with good service.

ya me too. I bought a wired shutter trigger.

I can't speak to this ball head but I can say this about the Phottix reseller in Mississauga. I bought about $400 stuff from him, cash at timmies last summer, and when one of the grips didn't seem to work,he immediately offered to exchange. turned out to be our mistake, but i was impressed by his customer dealings. i would buy from him again.

battery grip and enel3 for nikon d300 bought month ago. both work perfect

I have also bought wireless triggers, flash domes and some filters from this guy. Everything works as it is supposed to and he is a very nice guy to deal with and fair prices. Highly recommend!

i picked up the Phottix KB-1 from Rudy (PhotoGlobe). extra nice guy, was able to set up an earlier appointment before i headed to Niagara Falls. i will definitely deal with again.

now on the ball head... just want to say it's an $80 ballhead. for the money i think it's worth it if you do not have a heavy/long lens. the main issue i have is that there's a slight play when i tightened the ball head to the tripod. i've tightened the panning knob and there's still play so i'm gonna have to check that when i get time. also, i guess this is one of the biggest difference between this ball head versus RRS, Kirk, etc., is the smoothness of the head. this head is not smooth at all. although i read someone disassembled this head and used a different lubrication and now feels like the more expensive counterpart.

R-Strap clone:
http://www.phottix.com/en/phottix-velo- ... amera.html

Double R-Strap clone:
http://www.phottix.com/en/phottix-velo- ... meras.html

Problem with the Phottix R-strap clone is it has an odd chemical/rubber smell that doesn't go away, that is usually found with cheaper rubber products.

Phottix Atlas transceiver looks sweet, might pick up a pair for the price of a single pocket wizard.

I think I'm going to do the same... 603's here I come...

I was curious about the atlas since it can trigger using the same freq as the pocketwizards (great seeing as my light meter has that feature). but at ~100$ a pop.. not sure if it's worth the price tag associated; to have that convenience.

Still 50% less then PW

Anyone try the Stratos trigger yet?

I'm looking to get new triggers, I just ordered a Yongnuo 460II.

I have/had RF-602 but....I've already had one set fall apart and the other is okay-ish.