For my regular blog-stalkers and clients:

The following ramblings are a product review meant for photographers. Unless you're interested in geeky technical photography talk, come back tomorrow or scroll below :) I try to avoid putting much of this stuff up here, but wanted to review a new product for some photographer friends...

Intro...

I'm writing this review for a few purposes. First, because as I was researching a purchase for Radio Poppers, I noticed a specific void of reviews for the product, particularly for the features I was most interested in. Also, I was confused about some of the features. I found the Radio Popper website to be a good resource for product owners, but without reading all of their product manuals I wasn't ever fully able to grasp what is and isn't possible with Radio Poppers. Particularly, I couldn't figure out some of the things I most wanted to know.

Since Radio Popper PX's are the most expensive triggers out there, pulling the trigger (pun intented), was a pretty tricky proposition for me. Most of all, I'm writing this for other photographers who check this blog and want more info on these slightly magical (and slightly mysterious) little creatures. If I missed anything you're curious about, leave a comment and I'll try my best to hook you up with whatever info I know. If you're looking for examples, please see any of my work after November 1st, 2009 on my main blog. Enjoy...

Overview...

For the past two years, I've used Pocket Wizard Plus II Transceivers for all of my off camera flash needs. There are a few things I always loved (and still do) about Pocket Wizards. They are rock-solid for indoor use. They're VERY easy to adjust, have a nearly universal user base (helpful for 2nd shooters), and since they're transceivers, they're very useful for any kind of off-camera strobe unit or even a remote camera. On the other hand I grew frustrated with reliability outdoors, or when being out of sight of the receiver. VERY frustrated. To the point at which I felt it was affecting me by making my clients wait longer than necessary.

Early this year, Pocket Wizard came out with a TTL capable system that expanded some of these capabilities. While the system looked promising (I pre-ordered them), early reviews showed even more reliability and range issues, particularly with Canon systems. While the new Pocket Wizards offered backward-compatibility and some new features that I liked, I simply couldn't pull the trigger (pun still intended) on something that might further perpetuate the only problem I had in the first place. They have since come out with a 'sock' that covers the flash and solves some of these range issues. However, adding and removing a sock to my flash wasn't really something that interested me much.

So, after months of wondering whether or not to pay the extra money (extra because they're more expensive and I needed to buy a bunch of them to completely replace my system) I decided to buy Radio Popper PX's. I'll be the first to say that NO system is perfect, much like the Canon/Nikon debate (35L or 85L, anyone?). With that said, I've been very happy with the Radio Poppers so far, which you can read about down a bit later.

What it does...

The biggest thing I was having trouble finding with the Radio Popper PX's was EXACTLY what they do and don't do. I never read this anywhere, but the capability of a Radio Popper comes down to just one sentence: Radio Popper PX's can do EVERYTHING that a 580exII can do and (almost) NOTHING more, except for extend the range tremendously. The best way of thinking about it is as if they don't really have their own feature set (not entirely true, I'm generalizing), but simply transmit the already existing features of your flash. Here's what that means:

Mimics your flash's Line of Sight system
Canon and Nikon flashes actually have an off-camera flash option built in. Many people don't know much about it because, well, it sucks. Actually, it doesn't suck, it just doesn't work with any distances I use, and doesn't work really at all outdoors (where I usually shoot). The Radio Popper simply detects any info you plug into your flash and sends it to other flashes. That's it.

ETTL
If you want to use your flashes in automatic (ETTL or iTTL) mode, the Radio Popper PX simply sends the signal out to any slave flashes you have set up. From the Speedlight on-camera (which is required) you can plug in a vast number of options for the slaves. You can simply leave it in ETTL and let them do all the thinking. You can also use Flash Exposure Compensation to increase or decrease the flash power in 1/3 stop increments. On top of that, you can set up groups and ratios that allow you to use one flash to fill in a certain percentage of the light and the other flash to do the rest. For example, using a two-flash setup, you can plug in a 4:1 ratio, meaning that flash #1 will do 20% of the work and flash #2 will do 80% of the work. Keep in mind that ALL of this is done on your on-camera speedlight, and that the Radio Popper PX will need no adjustments to perform changes.

Manual
The real gem for me is the control and use of manual flash using the Radio Popper PX's. Since I'm used to Pocket Wizards, I've gotten pretty quick at human light metering, and usually prefer manual flash. Again using your on-camera speedlight, you can simply move into manual mode on camera and your slaves will automatically do the same. Then you can also adjust their power from your same flash. Have two flashes? Well you can adjust their manual power independently, all from your on-camera flash. Keep in mind that your flash has always been capable of this, but the Radio Poppers are simply allowing you to make it usable with distance and positioning.

High Speed Sync (HSS)
Another welcome addition to the on-camera functions is the use of High Speed Sync. No matter the shutter speed, you can trigger your off camera flashes in both Manual and ETTL modes. This, to me, was HUGE. The ability to shoot at 1/500th and stay at f/2.0 with a touch of extra flash is simply cool. As with the normal use of HSS, your flash will work harder at faster speeds, so shooting at 1/8000th is really gonna use up those Duracells quick. Also, good luck getting much help from a speedlight at 1/8000th.

Shoot in ETTL & Manual
UPDATE: I just found out this works. For Canon, holding the Mode button down on the slave allows it to be put in manual mode. Although you lose the ability to adjust the slaves from the camera, you can shoot ETTL on camera and manual off-camera. Woohoo!

Adjust EVERYTHING in manual
UPDATE 2: I was just corrected on this as well. The on-camera flash of your camera will work as group A using manual ratios, so you can have slaves in up to 2 groups (B and C) firing manually. Nice!

Other
The Radio Popper PX's also transmit the adjustments of some other things like 2nd curtain sync, Multi mode, ect... I simply haven't ever used those features enough to mention it, since it doesn't affect my workflow much.

What it doesn't do...

I had a few things in this section, but as I've been corrected it seems that everything I thought I couldn't do, I can. So, this section is now a bit, um, brief. In fact, everything that I once had listed here, I've been corrected on. So... well, let's move on.

Review

So the real question here is 'What do you think?'. Although I had trouble gathering all the above information on my own before purchasing, that still doesn't mean that they work.... but they do. In fact, they work great. Like I said before, no system is perfect, but the cons of the Radio Poppers seem to me to be nit-picky things to me.

The Good...

Range
My biggest criticism of Pocket Wizards was always their range. I know that many people claim to have unbelievable ranges with PW's, but I've used dozens and have never had good experiences with outdoor use, particularly with obstacles in the way. The Radio Poppers, in this respect, are amazing. I've tested them up to about 250 ft with obstacles and about 400ft without obstacles and have still yet to have a misfire. Even at 200mm (the maximum that I ever shoot), this range is still more than I can see myself using. Just unbelievable. Coming from someone that's felt handcuffed by this range, the fact that I can now use it is only exceeded by the fact that I can adjust my flashes 200ft away without moving in about 2 seconds. Soooooooo nice! (Yes, I know using multiple oooo's is girly. Deal with it.)

Reliability
I just touched on this, but in my (still limited) experience, I've yet to have a misfire. Also, due to the nature and location of the buttons, changing channels or bumping them off is a non-issue. It wasn't a big deal with the PW's, but it happens a few rare times.

Manual Adjustments
As I've touched on, I've always been a manual flash shooter. Since Radio Popper has staked their claim on the ETTL features, I just wasn't sure what I was getting in the Manual flash department. I literally couldn't be happier about both the ability to use Manual flash at high speeds as well as the ability to adjust the flash power individually or as a group. So far, both have worked just as good as one could hope. Mastering the adjustments for several flashes using Canon's system isn't the easiest to do quickly, but I've gotten much faster as I've gotten used to controlling my flash menu.

No Wires
Freedom!!!! For many people, the biggest complaint of most triggers has been the dependability of the PC connection, which is used by Pocket Wizard as well as most other trigger systems. Coming from a Mac guy, it's just another reason to hate the term PC. The Radio Popper PX system (JrX receiver uses PC with flashes), simply mounts to your camera flash using velcro and to the slaves using a plastic mount made by Radio Popper (see below). This lack of wires is so welcome to me, as I suspect it would be to many former PW shooters.

Stability of Slaves
The mount that Radio Popper has come out with feels very stable on the flash. It makes it not quite so top-heavy and also works as a stand, which is great for me, since I have no idea where my original plastic stands are. The stand feels strong right now, but I'll admit that my lightstands fall a lot, so the verdict is still out as to if they can withstand a fall (or how many).

Small, Light Weight
I had read that the Radio Popper PX's were small and light weight, but I didn't think they'd be as small as they are. Very nice surprise for me. In fact, they're actually considerably smaller than the (poorly named) JrX's.

The Bad...

Battery compartment isn't locked
Probably my biggest gripe so far is actually a very small one, but the plastic piece that closes the battery compartment is neither attached nor does it lock into place. I have a feeling I'll be loosing one or more of those covers in the future.

Menu system
The Radio Popper PX menu system isn't bad, it just has a learning curve. It's sort of cryptic with it's abbreviations. Channel changing and power settings (for the JrX) seem a bit difficult, since it's very hard to go down and very easy to go up. I never changed channels on my PW's and don't expect to much with the Radio Poppers, but for those that do, this is definitely way more difficult than with Pocket Wizards.

Transmitter Antenna
The antenna on the receiver is on a rotating lock, allowing it to swing around and stay pretty flush with the unit. The antenna on the transmitter sticks straight up, though, and isn't movable. I haven't found that it affects the range at all (unlike the PW's), but it's just a bit annoying for storage purposes.

The Neutral...

Flash on camera
The biggest difference in functional use between the Radio Popper PX and almost any other trigger is that you NEED a master device on the camera. This usually means a flash, which means that you need one more flash than you had before. Does this stink? You would think so. Except, that you soon realize that having your flash on camera allows you to make every adjustment imaginable. Would I prefer having a way to do this without a flash, sure. But until that's possible, it's worth the tradeoff, in my opinion, for all the benefits.

Build
I've seen some people mention that the Radio Poppers feel cheap. Other than the battery compartment, this is also sort of a pro/con thing. The receiver isn't an issue, because in the new mount it's very secure. I think most people seem to dislike having a lightweight transmitter just seated on a piece of velcro. While I understand that, I also like the fact that it's so light, especially since I'm going to have a flash on my camera a lot more. I think it's an even trade. In my 3 shoots so far, I did have the transmitter get pulled off the flash once, when I bumped it into something. No big deal, since I noticed, but had I not, I would have been out $250.

Conclusion

There's no doubt that the Radio Popper system is awesome. Between the many options of the PX system and the abilities of the much cheaper JrX system, there is literally nothing that the Radio Poppers cannot do compared to every other trigger out there. With that said, for my specific workflow, I find that I need both the PX's and the JrX's, since I use both speedlights and studio strobes occasionally. To me it's fine having the variety of different gadgets, I like to have backup anyway. To someone looking into the Radio Poppers, you're looking at a BIG investment (My 2 PX transmitters, 2 PX Receivers and 2 JrX studio receivers came close to $1200). After using them for a few weeks, do I think it's worth it? For my workflow, YES, without a doubt. The ability to do so many things from the camera is just awesome. Do I have a few little nitpicks and ideas for some slight updates? Of course. Do I feel that this system is light years ahead of any other system out there? Yes.

If you use off-camera flash a lot, like to work quick, and don't like unnecessary walking, I'd highly recommend the Radio Popper PX's. If you're looking for a set of studio triggers, I'd recommend the Radio Popper JrX's OR the Pocket Wizard Plus II's (RP JrX's are cheaper, PW +2's are more widely used right now).

Well that's it for now. I'll be adding to this as I can. Feel free to ask questions or correct me in the comments. Thanks!

This past Saturday was pretty special for me. It was my first wedding in here in Downingtown. A huge thumbs up for that! I've had so many weddings this summer that have been a few hours away that a 3-minute drive after a long day was music to my legs.

Ashley & Mark are some FUN people. When I met them for their engagement session, they said they were up for anything. They proved it by jumping in a cold stream... my kind of people :) So, overall I was pretty excited about this wedding. Ashley looked just gorgeous. It's always fun to see how great people look on their wedding day (Mark looked ok too I guess). It was quite the beautiful November day, which allowed for an outdoor ceremony, some beautiful backlight and a great sunset (which you'll see soon).

A big thanks to my buddy Alan Abrams who came down from NYC to help me with the wedding. This is his 2nd straight day appearing on this blog in some form. Some of his shots are sprinkled in here. Enjoy!...

Kicking it off with what is my favorite shot of the day. I love this one...





I hope this shot reminds you of Brett Favre and Wrangler jeans...




Great shot from Alan. He was taking a while and I thought he was just trying to get a photo of the hands. So, like a jerk I stepped in and took one of the hands. When I saw Alan's shot later, I realized that I'm a jerk :)...









Thanks to whoever shot their flash here and hooked me up with a little extra juice at the right time. I guess this is the best time to thank my friend Dolph (the guy in the middle officiating) for hooking me up with these guys. Although it looks like it, Dolph was not sitting down in this photo...


Alan's shot...










Alan's shot...


Alan's shot...

Well, I guess this is as good a time as any to make the official announcement that I got chosen to be featured in the November issue of Rangefinder magazine!! Woohoo!! I found out a while ago, but I wanted to wait until I actually had some stuff to share with all my wonderfully-loving blog stalkers. A HUGE thank you to everyone who nominated me and the many people who have told me that they voted. THANK YOU!

So... a little bit ago, I was interviewed by Scott Sheppard from Rangefinder Radio. It was a cool experience. My first time being interviewed when I knew people would actually hear me. It was a little weird and nervewracking, mostly because I didn't want to say any cliches (I did say 'At the end of the day' once, but it wasn't too flagrant). If you're interested in hearing it, you can check it out HERE or by searching for the Rangefinder Radio podcast on iTunes. It's heavy on technical photography talk, so you've been warned :) Hope you like it!

And the big question of course, is what does it look like and who's photos did they use? Here's the spread for you guys all to check out. Clients who got featured are: Maria & Eric, Erica & Andrew, Justine & Drew (sorta), Dave & Erin (twice), Maureen & Chandler (sorta). Hope you like them. Big thanks to Alan Abrams, and the editors for the kind words! If you're interested in seeing this and some other stuff, check out the features at Rangefinder Magazine.

Wow, it's gonna be a busy week. Gonna be blogging every day with a WIDE variety of things. First things first, here's an engagement session I shot last week at Longwood Gardens with Jenn + Matt. We had a bit of a scare with weather but everything worked out just fine. Matt was sick and couldn't really talk, but he toughed it out and I'm pretty sure I healed him with my hilarious jokes :/... Going to a session right now, so no more time to talk. Check em out!...



Love this one...



Favorite part one...







Favorite part two...

Favorite part three...

Tuesday was a good day. Those local to here know the joys associated with the Shady Maple Smorgasbord. So whenever someone requests a shoot near East Earl, PA... my immediate response is usually "Wanna go to Shady Maple?". So, after eating a ridiculous amount of food with them, I headed out to shoot for my friends June and Josh and their twins Eli and Jackson. I shot these little guys about 7 months ago, and it was sort of crazy to see their personalities and how much trouble they can now get themselves into. This time, we got some family shots for them too. Two doses of cuteness for the price of one today. Enjoy...


This one is Eli (yes I remembered)...

And this is Jackson...

It was very hard for me to wait this long to post my second wedding from last weekend. Even in the midst of busyness, last weekend just really stands out for me as a great one. Without a doubt, one of the biggest reasons is because of Kim + Dan. From the time I first met with Kim (which almost didn't happen since it was such a busy month), I was just incredibly excited to work for these two. When we met Dan, even he said how lucky we were to be working for Kim, because as we would soon find out, she is literally the nicest person on earth.

Between their engagement session, a Phillies game, and bunch of emails and phone calls, I feel like I've gotten to know these guys so well. It was almost sad leaving the next morning, since we had so much fun. Thanks guys, for making your wedding a wonderful experience for everyone, but especially us. Thanks for the glasses (which are Amy's favorite, we use them every day). Thanks for the Phillies game. Thanks for the awesome hotel room with the jacuzzi tub. I can't imagine anyone being that cool... you guys are the best.

Now, with all that said, the wedding was in the gorgeous town of Lititz, PA at an old, secluded church. It really felt like the only people around were at the wedding. Then the reception was at one of my new favorite places, the Inn at Leola Village. That place is a gem. After being there twice in the last 3 weeks, I can honestly say that we really love everything about it. The food, the rooms and the staff are all just top of the line. Thanks to Stephanie for hooking everything up and to my new best friend JLo for being awesome and finding my lost lenses :)... Enough talking... enjoy the images...



Tobin face. If you don't know, now you know...


Gorgeous shot from Amy...


















Amy's shot...



Amy's shot...




Amy's shot...






As always, thanks so much for looking. Feel free to leave a comment if you wanna shout out to Kim + Dan...

Wow, this weekend was pretty awesome overall. I had two fantastic weddings. They came at the right time too. October was my busiest month ever. I had more shoots this month than I thought was possible. I was so happy that Keri + Brian were helping to cap off the month. They're really easy to deal with, and they hang out with a pretty fun crew of people.

It had been almost a year since I'd seen Keri + Brian for their Engagement Session, but I don't feel like we skipped a beat with their wedding. I really love the images from Friday. I owe a big thanks to Matt Bailly who came down from New York to shoot with me. Matt is a really skilled natural light shooter and he really added a lot to these photos. Thanks again Matt...

Onto the photos, here's Keri + Brian... enjoy!



Matt's photo...



Matt's photo...













Matt's photo...





Matt's photo...