TTL vs Manual...

Fuji S2Pro in IkeLite w/ 2 SB105's...

Getting way over exposed w/ 20mm ad 60mm..... I have tried 1 on ttl and 2nd on man full or 1/16th...

Ideas, thoughts, good articles??

Thx!!!

Scott

Hi Scott

I've used Sb-105 for years, never had an issue with them, on my F80 (FILM) or on My D70 (shooting Manual)

First thing you should check it all the connections i guess, the S2pro is still a TTL camera and will work with any TTL that is connected with all 5 pins in the Bulkhead connected.

Check out the wiring is this housing and its hotshoe, Was it working ok or have you purchased it used and then found this problem.

You might find that the housing could only be rigged with only 2 pins connected thus the stobes will only light Manual settings.

Also are you using a TTL sync cord... important, lots of older SB Sync cords could be None TTL.

regards

craig

Scott,

You might want to use this as an opportunity (perhaps it's a blessing in disguise?) to learn to shoot in full manual (camera AND strobes), as many of us now do.

Until about 2 years ago, I had never shot anything BUT TTL. But when I got my first DSLR, I decided I would go "cold TTurkey" and shoot nothing BUT full manual until I got it figured out (which I was surprised to find only took a few dives!). If you look at my website, ALL the photos from Komodo 2004 to the present have been shot on full manual (I'll never go back). Following is a synopsis of my simplistic approach to shooting manual that I posted to a local uw photography board after my first DSLR trip - it might be helpful in curing your "addiction" to TTL:

>...what surprised me -- and should be encouraging to others of you considering D-SLRs for UW photography -- was how quickly I was able to learn to shoot on full MANUAL (I've always used cameras' program and/or TTL modes). I was really worried and intimidated by that prospect, but was told by several people that it was the only way to go, so I forced myself to learn...

Within a half dozen dives, I developed a simple system that worked for me: I would set a shutter speed ahead of time based on the type of subject (usually between 1/60 and 1/100), and then -- when actually taking the picture -- adjust only the aperture for depth of field and exposure (e.g., to get blue water in the background, adjust aperture until the camera's viewfinder exposure guide arrow showed me about 2/3 to 1 stop underexposed), and then I'd simply increase or decrease the strobes (also operated entirely on manual) based on the exposure of the first or second shot (see next paragraph). For macro (with no blue water considerations), I typically set the aperture to f16-f22 (to get good depth of field), and then just pumped up the strobes until I got a decent exposure. For wide angle, I typically used f5.6 - 8. If you find you're blowing out the subject/foreground, just back the strobes off a notch or two (you'll get a feel for it after awhile).

I also found that (per an excellent suggestion by Norbert Wu, a renowned UW photographer), using the histogram to quickly assess exposure of each shot was a BIG help! If you have a digital camera that shows histograms during the quick review display after each shot, learn how they work (a Google search will produce excellent tutorials) and USE them! <

Craig,

Yup I am sure it is a dual TTL cord.. Brand new from Ikelite... It has the 5 Pins on it...

Scott

Hi Scott

 

I've used Sb-105 for years, never had an issue with them, on my F80 (FILM) or on My D70 (shooting Manual)

 

First thing you should check it all the connections i guess, the S2pro is still a TTL camera and will work with any TTL that is connected with all 5 pins in the Bulkhead connected.

 

Check out the wiring is this housing and its hotshoe, Was it working ok or have you purchased it used and then found this problem.

 

You might find that the housing could only be rigged with only 2 pins connected thus the stobes will only light Manual settings.

 

Also are you using a TTL sync cord... important, lots of older SB Sync cords could be None TTL.

 

regards

 

craig

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hi Scott

Ok thats confirmed that that part is fine, You now need to trace the wires from the Hotshoe to the Bulkhead now, to see if 5 pins are connected.

The SB's shouldn't be at fault, as tough as old boots..

I'm 100% with the S2pro, but i assume that there is no function to change the output of the hotshoe to just X-sync only and turn TTL off in anyway.

Do you get flash connected confirmation signal in the viewfinder?

craig

1. The S2Pro only operates ttl from 100~400ISO. Above 400 it won't work with ttl.

2. When did you last have the flash units serviced? If the 'master' unit isn't working properly then it will show on both - I'd suggest regular servicing of SB105s - they are not as reliable as SB103s in my experience (in that they do need regular servicing).

3. Test the flash lead with a multimeter - it should have all 5 connections to the master flash and 3 to the 'slave' - there should be no crossover between connections (just because it is new, don't assume it cannot malfunction).

4. Manual is a lot easier than you might think as has already been stated.

Additional to the other suggestions, you may want to try a process of elimination.

Shoot with each of the SB's individually to determine if they work alone......

there is some useful info here on dual strobe use:

http://www.ikelite.com/faq/faq_topics.html

good luck

Steve

If TTL isn't working, then the strobes will fire in full power if the switch on the strobe is set to TTL but the strobe only receives the "fire" signal. That could explain the overexposure.

Check the wiring inside the housing to make sure that all 5 wires are still connected.

Cheers

James

What is the proper way to use the meter to check the output??? I do not wanto to blow anythig up!

Anyone have the email addr for IkeLite....??

Thx!!!

SCott

1. The S2Pro only operates ttl from 100~400ISO. Above 400 it won't work with ttl.

2. When did you last have the flash units serviced? If the 'master' unit isn't working properly then it will show on both - I'd suggest regular servicing of SB105s - they are not as reliable as SB103s in my experience (in that they do need regular servicing).

3. Test the flash lead with a multimeter - it should have all 5 connections to the master flash and 3 to the 'slave' - there should be no crossover between connections (just because it is new, don't assume it cannot malfunction).

4. Manual is a lot easier than you might think as has already been stated.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The way to check that you flash lead and housing circuit are ok is roughly as follows:

Connect the flash lead to the housing then use the meter to ensure that you get a low resitance reading between one of the housing's hot shoe contacts and a pin on the other end of the lead, repeat this for all five connections on the 'master' section of the lead to find which pin connects to which contact on the hotshoe. Next do the same for the 'slave' section which should show three good connections (you can also check these connect to three pins on the master lead end too). Lastly check that there is no connection between the individual pins (although I have a nagging suspicion that there may be a resistor between two on some cables - best to check with Ikelite). If you get good connections with no crossover then it means that the lead is probably ok.

Then (or possibly OR) try taking some shots with a static, repeatable set-up. Take a sequence of shots varying the aperture to see if this alters exposure. Try switching the slave flash off and take the same sequence again - see if the same variance of results occurs. Swop the flashes over and repeat this. IF you find doing something changes when you change things around then change will indicate the probable culprit. If you suspect that you have merely got full power all the time then it is possible that the ttl feedback circuitry on either camera or a flash has failed - but swopping over the flashes will probably indicate if it is a flash and which flash.

Hope that this isn't too confusing, and helps!