I wonder whether there is anything special about the autofocus assist, ie
geometry of beam, must
come on at a certain moment etc. Maybe a few narrow beam hi power, infrared
LEDS hooked up to the
low voltage output of a quantum pack and left on continuously, would also work?
Somebody with
time on there hands could give it a try? You could then use any flash
including high power studio
flashes etc.
Actually I wonder same question for Oly products, that use flash LED focus
assist?
Do some of them use two beams with some sort of triangulation for example.
Tim Hughes
--- Chuck Norcutt <chucknorcutt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> The DJ at a recent bar mitzvah finally defeated me and the Canyon 5D and
> my 2.8 lenses. He turned the lights down so low I could hardly see
> where to point the camera let alone count on me or the camera to arrive
> at a good focus.
>
> I hated to admit that I needed to abandon my beloved Sunpaks and T-32's
> (for event work at least) and move on to a Canyon flash unit with
> built-in autofocus assist light. But that's a problem since the current
> cat's meow Canyon flash (the 580EX) is $380 at B&H (before a piddling
> $15 rebate). If you're shooting an E-thing you also understand the
> problem since an FL-50 is no bargain either at $375. It was also irking
> me that I would be paying for all that automation which I never use
> since I only shoot flash in manual mode.
>
> It finally struck me that there is a bargain to be had that solves my
> problem. It's the Canyon 540EZ. The EZ series flashes are off-the-film
> TTL flashes like the Oly T-series but new enough for autofocus. From an
> automation standpoint they're film only. They don't work anymore on
> digital gear since the Canyon digital cameras don't use OTF TTL exposure
> control. But the 540EZ is just as powerful as a 580EX (about the same
> as a T-32), has a 7 stop manual control range, lighted control panel and
> an autofocus assist light that's good to 15 meters... 50% further than
> the 10 meter range of the much newer 580EX. Better yet, I managed to
> snag one on the bay for $52 when they typically sell for $80-120.
>
> Tried it last night in the pitch black attic. I prefocused the camera a
> few feet away to force it out of focus and then aimed at the far wall
> which was over 20 feet away. It was so dark I wasn't sure what I was
> aiming at until the camera took the shot. It turned out to be well
> focused, and by lucky guess work even reasonably well exposed on the
> first try.
>
> So, you too may be able to see in the dark. Finally.
>
> Chuck Norcutt
>
>
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