# Birds with Better Beamer & sync times



## florian (Nov 9, 2012)

Hi everyone,

I´m very happy with my 5D III and my Speedlight 600EX . Now that I put the order down for my EF600 II Lens I try to get all the right equipment for shooting Wildlife.
I thought I get the RRS B91-QR to put my Speedlight 600EX with a OC-E3 cord on it and then add the Better Beamer FX3.

So far so good, I hope this is a setup I´ll be happy with, if you know a better solution let me know.
I don´t have a Gimbal I´ll use it on my Sachtler head.

What setting do you use to get a good lightning of your wildlife?
Isn´t there a sync speed limit I have to watch ?
Because with 600mm and maybe a 1,4 Extender 840mm I think I need about 1/1000 to 1/2000 to get really sharp pictures, but from my tests it looks like the strobe won´t keep up with it.

So what are you using ?

Sadly there is not always the chance to walk around it and get the sunlight shining as you need for a perfect shot.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions and story how you did find the right setting.

Cheers

Florian


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## neuroanatomist (Nov 9, 2012)

florian said:


> I thought I get the RRS B91-QR to put my Speedlight 600EX with a OC-E3 cord on it and then add the Better Beamer FX3.



I have that exact setup (also the RRS PG-02 LLR which is excellent).

You need to enable high speed sync (HSS) for the flash, to shoot at the shutter speeds you want. The downside to HSS is that it reduces flash light output, but with the Better Beamer that's not such a big deal - without HSS, at the 1/250 s limit, you'll often need to dial in -2 or -3 FEC to get fill light that doesn't overpower the ambient. With HSS, you might use no FEC or +1 to +2, just experiment...


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Nov 9, 2012)

I find that I just let it synch at 1/200 for still wildlife shots. The flash will freeze any slight movements. However, if something is moving and you need a high shutter speed, use HSS.
Here is a 400mm image using the better beamer on a bird drinking, so he was moving. My 1D MK III synchs at 1/300 sec.

Tv 1/300 sec, ISO 200, f/14 (set by camera) 100-400mmL


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## victorwol (Jan 11, 2013)

Good I found this, I was wondering about the same, looking to get this one too


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## natureshots (Jan 11, 2013)

You should be able to get handheld shots sharp at 1/250s with the 600mm and 1.4x. I'm in Costa Rica right now and I have been getting sharp shots with a 2x and the old 500 (2 stop IS as opposed to the 600mm II's 4 stop) handheld at 1/300s (1DIV max sync speed). Of course not every shot is sharp but the birds here don't spook from the flash. The flash output even with a better beamer at the distances that you will be shooting at with 840mm will not be sufficient to mask shadows if your bird is in the shadows or really heavily backlit. Improve, yes but fix no. If you are off high speed sync you should be fine with the output. I am bigger than most (6'5") but if you work on your technique and arm muscles you should be fine. The technique is far more important than the arm muscles though. If you throw your arms out to the side and don't press the camera to your face with your feet square to the bird you'll have a hard time getting a good shot at 1/1000s.


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## victorwol (Jan 11, 2013)

I'm totally surprised of the IS of the 600 II... Testing at home today, hand held at 1/13 and still sharp.. Of course I was shooting at some books, but still handheld with available light at night... And 1/13!!!!


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