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Canon G11 high speed flash syncing 1/800
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I did a test shoot of a basketball game a few weeks ago using a Canon 40D. The guys were playing in early morning sunshine which didn’t do me any favors. One end of the court was shaded by some trees so I went shooting there as the contrast wasn’t so harsh. To really freeze the action I needed a shutter speed of at least 1/800 but I still didn’t like the shots as there was too much detail missing in the shadow areas.
So I thought about filling the shadows using off camera flash but I knew I couldn’t sync a flash above 1/200 when using my 40D unless I was using a high speed sync flash like the 430exii or the 580exii and from what I’ve read the power is reduced big time when using the HSS mode so I ruled out that option. I know some of you maybe thinking of ganging several 580exii flashes together but that’s too much money in my opinion.
I went away and did some research on the internet and found out the the Canon G11 has an electronic shutter and is able to high speed sync with remote flash heads connected via a wireless remote trigger / receiver set or a pc cord / hot shoe adapter. Yes I know the G11 isn’t a DSLR but it’s still a pretty darn good camera.
I borrowed a G11 off a friend and went back to shoot another game again in the early morning sunshine, yes it’s always sunny in Mexico. My off camera flash was an Alien Bees B800 with a 7” reflector, I would have preferred to have used the 11” long throw reflector but sadly I don’t own one. I set the B800 to full power which has a T1 duration time of 1/1000. I did test the night before and the G11 would sync at 1/800 but anything faster would turn to black when using a Yongnuo RF-602 transmitter and receiver set to fire the flash. I guess Pocket Wizards would have been ok at 1/1000 due to having less delay in the electronics but I don’t have any Pocket Wizards to prove that theory.
When shooting action with the G11 it’s better to manual or pre focus (half button press) to avoid shutter lag which can be a killer when shooting any type of action, some say it’s also better to turn off image stabilization. The G11 was in full manual mode on this shoot and the file format was RAW CR2.
Anyway as you can see it all worked out and I returned the borrowed G11. Now I’m searching to buy a used Canon G9, G10 or G11 for doing some more high speed sync flash shoots and some pole aerial photography. For the Nikon crowd you could buy a used D70 or D70s DSLR as they also have electronic shutters and can achieve the same goal of high speed flash syncing using off camera flash heads.
The final image above has had some light adjustments made in Photoshop.