What is the AC3?

The PocketWizard AC3 ZoneController is an add-on to the ControlTL system that brings a new level of control to your lighting setups. Before we get to deep into this we need to take a step back and look at what the Canon system delivers so we can see how the AC3 ZoneController enhances the original functionality.

While I am not going to go deep into detail here as that would require an entire book, let’s break it down into two main types of control the Canon system has.

• eTTL Ratio Control
  With eTTL Ratio mode you have an A and a B channel that will provide automatic metering through the camera. You can provide more power to one channel while taking power away from the other. This is a very basic ratio control and the only override you have is a general flash exposure compensation. You can then add to that a C channel which operates independently and has its own power adjustment. The downside with this setup is that a simple ratio control sometimes isn’t enough.
• Manual Control
  In manual control you can simply adjust each of the three channels independently. This is generally my favorite mode but the main problem is still the line-of-site issue and that pesky third channel is often now in a good position to get a signal from the main flash.

While the PocketWizard ControlTL system solves the line-of-site issue, the problem has always been that if you still want all of the functionality of the Canon wireless system, you still had to put a 580 EX/EX II flash on top of the MiniTT1 module to enable the full range of controls. What I really wanted was to be able to use ALL of my speedlites off-camera and not have to sacrifice one just for the controls.

This is exactly where the AC3 ZoneController comes in. The AC3 provides you with three different channels to work work (make me now wish for 4 or 5 though) that can be managed in three different ways:

• Off
  Should be self-explanatory here, if not, this allows you to simply turn off each channel by itself.
• Auto
  Uses the Canon TTL system for automatic metering while provide a simple override dial giving you plus or minus three stops.
• Manual
  Provides manual control over each channel from 1/64th power to Full Power.

Using the AC3 ZoneController

I certainly have to admit that I don’t miss having to have a complete speedlite on top of the camera to give me the control of my lighting since this give me one more light at my disposal to use to light the scene. I also should admit that I shoot the vast majority of my work with manual flash. I find it to be more reliable and consistent than using eTTL. The ability to turn channels on/off and adjust the power without having to walk over to where the speedlite is can come in very handy.

For most portrait setups, the Automatic mode will work the vast majority of the time, its usually only when the subject has odd-reflective properties do things have a tendency to get a little wonky. Still, I shoot my camera in manual, and I generally keep my flash in manual.

One of the biggest advantages is the time savings in dialing in your lighting output power. I can start with all of the lights off to adjust for the ambient. Then turn on the accent light to get it’s power set, add the fill light, and then the key light and everything comes together very quickly without multiple trips to each light or having to have a VOLS handy.

Keep in mind that you are paying for this convenience. A three light ControlTL power system would consist of the following components:

• MiniTT1 Transmitter $199
• Three FlexTT5 Transceivers @  $229 each
• AC3 ZoneController $79

So a three light setup will set you back $955.00. While a cheap, manually only trigger kit will run less than $100. While this does sound like a staggering difference in cost, and it certainly is up front, you have to consider the time factor of being able to control everything from your camera. You simply do not always have the luxury of time to run around adjusting lights to get exactly what you want. The time factor can certainly pay for itself fairly quickly since you can dial in all three zones without having to waste your own time or have an assistant.

Putting the AC3 ZoneController to Use

The following sequence of images shows exactly what I described above from starting with ambient light and adding the three lights in order.

Get Exposure for Ambient Light	Setup Background Light
Add Fill Light	Add Key Light

The beauty of the PocketWizard AC3 ZoneController is that turning lights on and off and adjusting their power is all done without have to step away from the camera. If your lights are pointed in the right direction it should only take a few shots to get everything you need dialed in quickly and accurately.

If you have already made the investment in the PocketWizard ControlTL system, plunking down another $79 in order to have the AC3’s level of control should be a complete no-brainer.

Pockwizard Website: http://www.pocketwizard.com/
PocketWizard Blog: http://blog.pocketwizard.com/

Amazon Links

• MiniTTL Transmitter
• FlexTT5 Transceivers
• AC3 ZoneController

There were five speedlites used on this setup with a mix of 580 EX, 580 EX II, and YN560′s all fired with Pocketwizard FlexTT5′s. To get the signs on the top light with minimal spill, they left and center one were fitted with Harbor Digital Quick Spots and the one on the right was fitted with a large Rouge Flashbender if a half roll to act as part snoot but also to spill some light on the side of the building. Two more speedlights were on the ground pointed inwards to light the area under roof area.

Lighting Setup

While we tried to use a longer exposure to try to pull in the stars, the problem was that too much shutter and we were getting light contamination from nearby street lights. All of the flashes were set to 1/4 power and the three pointing at the signs were also zoomed to 105mm while the ground lights were zoomed to 24mm.

24mm - ISO 400 â€

For more information about this image and to see the rest of the Photo Project 24 images, please visit http://photoproject24.com

The Lighting Setup

With almost no ambient light left and just a little rim of light in the background, we would need a long shutter speed to bring some light back to the sky. We also wanted to try to lose focus on the trees behind the wagon so we set on an aperture of f/4 and at ISO 500 we would need a 1 second exposure.  We could have used a lower ISO and longer shutter but there were still enough cars whizzing by that any longer than a second and we would likely end up with headlights streaking by.

With the camera setup for the sky, we now needed to light the wagon. This was done with two speedlites fired with PocketWizard FlexTT5′s and the Mini TT1 on the camera. We put both lights in manual mode at 1/4 power with no modifiers on them.

Lighting Diagram

32mm - ISO 500 - 1 sec - f/4

Fairly simple setup, a few practice shots, and we got the image we were looking for and headed down the road to the next location.

Be sure and follow the complete set of images and stories at http://photoproject24.com

Understanding the problem

In the intro, we stated that the Canon wireless speedlite system has a lot of features and is reasonably flexible in how you can use it. While that is true, there are some serious limitation to the system that Canon has yet to address, and given the installed base, probably isn’t likely to address in the near future.

The primary problem is that the Master light needs to communicate with the slave units and does this via bursts of flash just before the main flash goes off. This “pre-flash†happens so fast that you can’t tell it from the main flash. This works quite well in optimum environments like inside your studio. However, once you get outside and you have issues like the sun interfering with the speedlite’s communication, trying to use modifiers that block communication, or worse, trying to put speedlites in places with no direct line of sight such as outside a door, or around a corner, and the Canon system by itself starts to have issues very quickly.

While there are inexpensive radio triggers available and some of them work very reliably, the problem is that they only allow you to use use speedlites in manual mode only. Now this may be ok for you, and it is for many people, they lack several very key features:

1. The ability to use Canon’s eTTL system for automatic exposure control
2. The ability to remotely adjust the power output of the slave units
3. The ability to use high speed sync

Again, these things may not be of interest to you based on the style of shooting you do, but for many people, these are critical components of getting the lighting they want.

How the ControlTL System Solves the Problem

While I will go into more technical detail in a moment, simply put, the ControlTL system intercepts the signals going to the speedlite and transmits the information over radio frequencies to the remote receivers.

There are two available components as part of the system, the MiniTT1 transmitter and the FlexTT5 transceiver. At a minimum you need one transmitter and one transceiver which would allow you to do off-camera lighting in eTTL mode and allow you to adjust power output by adjusting the flash compensation on your camera body.

Adding additional transceivers and speedlites adds to the flexibility of the system and allows you to build up to using multiple zones, ratio control, and remote setting of manual settings.

Why is eTTL Important?

Is eTTL over-rated or the magic bullet? For the most part, eTTL does a pretty good job the majority of the time. Let’s say we are shooting a scene and we set our camera to ISO 200, f/5.6, and 1/60th of a second shutter speed. The Canon speedlites will do a pre-flash to determine the best flash output for those settings and adjust accordingly. If we then change our camera settings to ISO 400, f/5.6, 1/100 of a second, even though we have effectively adjusted the camera settings by two stops, the eTTL system will determine that it simply needs less flash output to properly light the scene. Of course, with any system that is trying determine how to light something, it isn’t always going to be perfect because the camera simply can’t read your mind to figure out what it is you are trying to do, but generally speaking, eTTL does a pretty good job most of the time and can be a big time saver in getting your lighting dialed in.

ControlTL Modes

The new PocketWizard ControlTL system has several basic operating modes, the following are explanations of the basic setups.

• Basic eTTL Mode
  In the most basic mode you need either a MiniTT1 transmitter or a FlexTT5 transceiver on the camera’s hot shoe shoe and a flash on a FlexTT5. In this basic mode, all speedlites  are grouped together into a single zone.
• Ratio eTTL Mode
  This mode requires Canon 580 EX or EX II be in the hot shoe of the MiniTT1 or FlexTT5 that is in the hot shoe on the camera. Remote flashes can be assigned to zones A, B, or C by selecting the zone switch on the remote FlexTT5 module. The ratio control is managed on the speedlite mounted on the camera. You can also use a Canon STE2 Commander on top of the camera to adjust the lighting ratios.
• Wireless Manual Mode
  “Wireless Manual†system allows setting a remote flash to a desired manual level from the MASTER flash. You must use a 580EX II on the MiniTT1 or FlexTT5 as transmitter. The original 580EX or earlier flashes cannot perform
  this function via ControlTL radios. “Wireless Manual†uses controls similar to ratio mode.

In both of the eTTL modes, the new PocketWizards double the output of the pre-flash boost for determining exposure making it more accurate, usable at longer ranges, and improves functionality when using modifiers such as umbrellas and softboxes.

One feature that I love is being able to use high speed sync. The way high speed sync actually works is that the flash will output thousands of small bursts very quickly to provide virtually continuous light output when the shutter is moving at high speeds. The downside to HSS is that it’s pretty harsh on batteries. The MiniTT1 and FlexTT5 communicate directly with the flash and PocketWizard came up with a means of optimizing the burst output to match the shutter speed which can result is massive improvements, 2-4x improvement in output power, 2-4x increase in battery life, and 2-4x faster recycle time.

There is yet another mode called HyperSync which allows high shutter speeds with studio strobes. While you do take a light output hit in this mode, it can enable some incredible shots that were previously impossible to get. This is a mode I am really looking forward to playing with more.

Finally there are even optimizations for rear curtain sync that ensure the flash goes off as late as possible ensuring a proper exposure while making sure the shutter is in the right position when the flash goes off.

Although you may have heard that putting a ControlTL device on your camera’s hot shoe will fool your camera into thinking there is a flash there, this is not completely accurate. The only in-camera flash control you have is Flash Exposure Compensation. Any zone control or ratio adjustments have to be done with an actual 580 EX/EX II mounted on top of the MiniTT1 or FlexTT5 device.

When the Zone Controller is available, this will help solve the ratio issue by allowing independent adjustment of three different zones without having to have a speedlite on the camera itself. This will allow photographers with two speedlites to use them both off-camera with individual output control. The Zone Controller can also operate each zone in manual or eTTL mode for maximum flexibility. The Zone Controller should be shipping at the end of May for around $70.

How I use the PocketWizard ControlTL System

I can’t really address every possible scenario but I can tell you how I have been using the ControlTL system in the shooting I have been doing. This generally breaks down into a couple of different situations. As seen in this first image, a remote flash on a lightstand is outfitted with a Lumodi Beauty Dish to provide directional lighting and make it appear as if the subjects are being lit by the sun. Shooting at this distance and still having eTTL control of the flash is a huge benefit. This is also used with high speed sync to be able to properly expose for a bright sky and still get a proper exposure on the subjects.

Usually only a simple adjustment of the flash compensation is all that is needed to dial in the exact look that I am going for.

The second most common usage is the ability to place a subject is complete shade to minimize harsh shadows from the sun but still provide the look of an afternoon sun but with far greater control over the contrast.

The bottom line is that the ControlTL system provides the means accomplish the style of images that I try to create with minimal setup time and quick remote adjustments.

Is the ControlTL System for you?

You are the only person who can decide if the ControlTL system is the right fit for your photography style and especially your budget. The components are not cheap, this is a system designed for professionals. The MiniTT1 transmitter sells for $199 while the FlexTT5 transmitter sells for $225. With the Canon 580 EX II selling for $445, a multi-light setup starts to get expensive very quickly.

Why not just use studio strobes and radio triggers? There are certainly situations where that is appropriate and even preferred. However, studio strobes are not as portable, do not offer eTTL control, cannot do high speed sync, and can’t dump their light fast enough for higher speed shots. The small speedlites are extremely flexible and having them be able to be used at fairly long distances gives you control over your lighting that you simply can’t get with a studio strobe.

For more information as well as numerous instructional videos, check out the PocketWizard website at http://pocketwizard.com

Disclosure: CameraDojo, Kerry Garrison, and associated editors do not receive any monetary compensation for any reviews or articles written for the
CameraDojo.com website. PocketWizard supplied loaner equipment to use for this article as well as several upcoming lighting tutorials.

Why PocketWizards?

This isn’t really an article about why or why not to use PocketWizards per-say, but the PocketWizards do provide unique functionality that other systems do not. Could I fire the flash with the dish on it using a $24 Cactus v4? Of course I could, and many times that may be all you need. If you are good with a shutter speed of around 1/160th of a second, these cheap wireless systems will work just fine. Let’s take the first image above, notice the well exposed sky and background, this was taken with the sky overhead in bright sun. That image was taken at ISO 200, f/5.6 with a shutter speed of 1/1,600th of a second. Thats TEN TIMES faster than a cheap manual flash can do. With a shutter speed this fast, the sky is exposed properly (this technique is called high speed sync), if I had to shoot at a much slower shutter speed, the sky would be completely blown out. Also, since the PocketWizard system is wireless, the flash can be hidden behind the dish and will still fire.

Why not just use natual light?

ISO 100 f/5.6 1/640th No Flash

Because natural light sucks. Maybe I should explain that some more. You have very little control over natural ligh and no way of “fixing” bad natural lighting. Sure, I might be able to bring in a reflector and completely blind the subject (in this case me) but reflectors can have their own issues and more often than not, they require an assistant to hold and adjust to get the light just right.

Notice with these two images that were taken at the same time, one with flash and one without, the image without flash suffers from heavy, sharp shadows and dark eye sockets (racoon eyes).

ISO 100 f/5.6 1/640th

The image taken with flash is more evenly lit. Granted, I don’t make the best subject and I am trying to overexaggerate the lighting effect to help make it more understandable, but you can see that the racoon eyes are gone as well. Learning to balance the flash and ambient is really the key to making your images look natural even when throwing in flash to help them out.

So again, yes, you can certainly start off with cheap wireless triggers but you also need to understand their limitations and be able to work within those confines, you would not be able to balance flash and ambient in a bright outdoor shoot while being limited to less than 1/200th of a second. For studio work or more controlled lighting environments, manual flash and remote triggers will very often be the only thing you need. However, if you really want to take full advantage of your system and be able to switch from manual to eTTL and let the camera and flash help get your exposures right, as well as do tricks like high speed sync, then the ControlTL system is going to be the solution you are looking for.

Final lighting setup

For those of you wanting to see the final lighting setup used on the last two images, here it is. The camera was about 20 feet away using a Sigma 24-70 lens. A 580EX II flash was mounted on a tripod using the FlexTT5 Transceiver with the Lumodi 14″ beauty dish mounted on it. The light was position to the right of the subject at about a 45 degree angle to provide direction lighting in the same angle that the natural sunlite was coming from.

Elmsford NY – December 29, 2009 -

Two key version 5.0 capabilities are Rear Curtain Sync and Pre-Flash Boost. PocketWizard’s rear curtain sync allows the photographer to set the shutter speed at which rear curtain sync automatically engages while optimizing the timing of rear curtain sync to fire at the absolute end of the shutter opening. Pre-Flash Boost provides enhanced E-TTL performance when using flash diffusers, doing bounce flash, or at ranges just beyond the normal E-TTL capabilities. By increasing the pre-flash power, PocketWizard has offset the loss of light in these challenging E-TTL situations.

Another significant new feature is Automatic Camera Detection. The ControlTL system can now automatically detect exactly which camera is being used to optimize system performance precisely for that camera. For Canon 5D and 5D Mark II users, this means the system will set the High Speed Sync crossover point to 1/320th versus the default of 1/400th to compensate for those camera’s slower shutter mechanisms. Camera compatibility for the Canon 7D has been added as well as E-TTL flash compatibility for the Metz 58 AF-1 flash.

Several other new features and refinements have been made and complete details can be found at www.PocketWizard.com/downloads. Current MiniTT1 Transmitter and FlexTT5 Transceiver owners can upgrade to the new firmware for free via the recently revised PocketWizard Utility.

About PocketWizard and the MiniTTI and FlexTT5

The PocketWizard MiniTT1 Transmitter and FlexTT5 Transceiver for Canon allow photographers to wirelessly control single or multiple off-camera flash units. These radios interpret the flash and exposure data communicated through the camera’s hot shoe and digitally transmit the information through a reliable radio signal. Photographers can place E-TTL flashes connected to a dedicated FlexTT5 Transceiver for wireless E-TTL operation wherever they need to illuminate a scene, even out of sight or in bright sun. Any change in ISO, aperture, shutter speed and even flash compensation is automatically communicated and adjusted wirelessly. A ControlTL system for Nikon is in the works as well as compatibility with some studio lights. The ControlTL system is also compatible for standard triggering with all PocketWizard radios.

For More Information

For more information on firmware version 5.0, including all new features and refinements, please visit PocketWizard.com.

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New feature provides amazing energy savings for faster recycling, more shots per battery while enabling greater working distances.

5D Mark II now compatible with on-camera flash with ControlTL system.

South Burlington, VT – Through-the-shoe communications allow PocketWizard radios, with version 4.250 ControlTL firmware, to significantly boost the performance of the High Speed Sync (HSS) feature of Canon Speedlite flashes. This means more light (which equals greater working distance), faster recycling times and more flashes per battery set when shooting in Canon’s HSS/FP Flash mode.

Because the new MiniTT1 Transmitter and FlexTT5 Transceiver communicate through-the-shoe with the camera system, they can control the HSS burst duration.  By precisely matching flash duration to the shutter speed, large gains in efficiency were found, as much as 60% in many cases, for both remote and on-camera flashes.

This gain in efficiency is immediately translated into shorter recycle times, allowing faster HSS shooting, more shots per battery set, and up to 1 ½ stops more output potential which enables greater working distances between the subject and the flash.

The new firmware also allows photographers to disable HyperSync™ mode in the MiniTT1 and FlexTT5, allowing use of HSS for shutter speeds down to 1/320 second. This is especially useful for the Canon 5D and 5D MK II whose shutter mechanisms can’t take full advantage of the HyperSync mode.

PocketWizard has also found a solution to allow on-camera flash with the 5D Mark II when using the MiniTT1 or FlexTT5.  Earlier firmware was not capable of firing a flash mounted on the hot-shoe of the MiniTT1 or FlexTT5 working on the camera.

These incredible new features are available for both the MiniTT1 Transmitter and FlexTT5 Transceiver running firmware version 4.250.  Units running older firmware may be easily updated to the latest release via a firmware upgrade by going to the maintenance tab of the PocketWizard Utility and click “check for updates†or go to PocketWizard.com/support/downloads to download the utility. Learn more about the new ControlTL Firmware v4/250 here or Download Manual Addendum v4.250 here.

Firmware version 4.250 is not compatible with versions 4.100 or earlier so all units should be updated to the latest release. You can also find detailed information about these new features at PocketWizard.com/inspirations/technology/fp_sync_hss

PocketWizard products are made by LPA Design, based in South Burlington, Vermont and sold by MAC Group in the USA and authorized distributors around the world.

MiniTT1 – Canon

The smallest PocketWizard radio ever, the MiniTT1™ Transmitter locks onto the camera’s hot shoe supporting an on-camera flash with its own hot shoe while working with remote PocketWizard units. Remotes can be one or more PocketWizard FlexTT5™ Transceivers connected to Canon E-TTL II flashes or any PocketWizard Receiver for triggering flash or remote cameras.

Flex TT5 – Canon

The dedicated FlexTT5™ Transceiver, with its built in hot-shoe and ControlTL™ firmware, is the perfect addition to Canon E-TTL II flash systems.  The FlexTT5 takes the existing benefits of Canon wireless systems beyond the boundaries of infrared technology.  When paired with the Mini TT1™ Transmitter or another FlexTT5 Transceiver, a whole new world of wireless flash freedom opens up.  The FlexTT5 is also the perfect Transceiver for your manual triggering needs and works with all MultiMAX channels and many of the MultiMAX advanced functions.

The following video was taken on the show floor at WPPI 2009:

[podcast format="video"]/podcasts/PocketWizards_wppi09.m4v[/podcast]

For more information, go to http://pocketwizard.com

Both units sit on half of the enclosure to be used for production units. The finished dimensions 2.6 inches long by 2 inches wide, by 0.75 inches thick. The antenna length is approximately 4.5 inches. This enclosure is very slightly larger than the one they originally designed to. The original enclosure didn’t allow enough room for the antenna mount. A major bonus with the move to this new sized enclosure is they now have room for a standard AA battery. That’s right! They went from watch batteries, to AAA batteries, and now, finally – the battery you already own a bag full of – a standard AA. That’s progress!
Website: http://www.radiopopper.com