I bought about a month ago the Patchmaster Lightning Shutter Trigger for Nikon. I purchased it on Ebay. I submitted a best offer of $89 which was accepted. The prices on the device have gone as low as $79. Currently prices are at $97 OBO for the d2, d3, d700, d300 series dslrs. A search for lightning trigger will show the products for sale. The device is shipped from Istanbul Turkey. It approximately 3 weeks for me to receive the device as it was held up in US Customs in NYC for about 10 days.
Packing was only mediocre. It was not packed in a box. It arrived in manilla type envelope in bubble wrap. However the packing seemed to be adequate as the item was not physically damaged in any way. It arrived with a set of instructions, basically a pamphlet. However there are instructional videos on the operation of the device in the ebay listings.
The trigger utilizes a 9V battery that is included. Actually it was preinstalled. Overall the device is reasonably well made. It is all plastic including the hot shoe mount. One flaw is at least with my particular copy is that the battery cover is difficult to get on and off. It takes more force than would seem necessary. The trigger has a 10 pin cord that plugs into the 10 pin jack on those Nikon bodies that utilize this connector.
Operation is simple. Mount it in the camera hot shoe. Connect 10 pin cord to the jack. Turn the switch on. And wait for lightning. The device can be tested using a flash. After i received the device i tested it by using my SB800 and the modeling light. The modeling light successfully triggered the Trigger which in turn triggered the shutter. Bottom line the trigger works as advertised. It triggers the shutter in the presence of optical phenomena.
Another flaw is that review of images on the LCD using the play button does not work when the trigger is connected to the camera via the 10 pin jack. This is in contrast to my 10 pin MC30 Remote which still allows review of images on the LCD using the play button. Thus I am unable to check my exposure and adjust SS and aperture when using the trigger to shoot lightning. have to disconnect the 10 pin each time i need to review images.
Tonight there was lightning but it was nothing spectacular. This is the first field test for the trigger. D3 + Sigma 24-60mm + Trigger all on a Manfrotto tripod. In summary, the device works as advertised and is a very affordable alternative to the more famous Lightning Trigger which sells for $329. I should have many more opportunities to use the trigger since lightning season and thunderstorms are just getting started in Florida. I hope this review was useful and if you have any questions please ask.
Here are the results from tonight:
Packing was only mediocre. It was not packed in a box. It arrived in manilla type envelope in bubble wrap. However the packing seemed to be adequate as the item was not physically damaged in any way. It arrived with a set of instructions, basically a pamphlet. However there are instructional videos on the operation of the device in the ebay listings.
The trigger utilizes a 9V battery that is included. Actually it was preinstalled. Overall the device is reasonably well made. It is all plastic including the hot shoe mount. One flaw is at least with my particular copy is that the battery cover is difficult to get on and off. It takes more force than would seem necessary. The trigger has a 10 pin cord that plugs into the 10 pin jack on those Nikon bodies that utilize this connector.
Operation is simple. Mount it in the camera hot shoe. Connect 10 pin cord to the jack. Turn the switch on. And wait for lightning. The device can be tested using a flash. After i received the device i tested it by using my SB800 and the modeling light. The modeling light successfully triggered the Trigger which in turn triggered the shutter. Bottom line the trigger works as advertised. It triggers the shutter in the presence of optical phenomena.
Another flaw is that review of images on the LCD using the play button does not work when the trigger is connected to the camera via the 10 pin jack. This is in contrast to my 10 pin MC30 Remote which still allows review of images on the LCD using the play button. Thus I am unable to check my exposure and adjust SS and aperture when using the trigger to shoot lightning. have to disconnect the 10 pin each time i need to review images.
Tonight there was lightning but it was nothing spectacular. This is the first field test for the trigger. D3 + Sigma 24-60mm + Trigger all on a Manfrotto tripod. In summary, the device works as advertised and is a very affordable alternative to the more famous Lightning Trigger which sells for $329. I should have many more opportunities to use the trigger since lightning season and thunderstorms are just getting started in Florida. I hope this review was useful and if you have any questions please ask.
Here are the results from tonight:
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
Subscribe to see EXIF info for this image (if available)
