Camera Equalization
Eq ualization, or syn ch ronizing mu ltiple cam eras to the sam e flash , requires prec ision timing . Even th ough we perc eive camera triggering activity as ins tantaneous , it is not. Even th e flash , whic h app ears to provide light only for an instan t, has a tim e duration (flash duration) that needs to be factored into synchronization calculations.
Every c amera h as a delay from the time it is triggered until the s hutter is fully open.
T he trigger can origin ate from either th e cam era’s trigger button or via th e motor d rive port. This delay is called lag time and it can be different from camera to camera and may even vary between two cameras of the exact same model. If two cameras are triggered at exactly the sam e time their s hutters will be open at d ifferen t mom ents . If one cam era is attached to a flas h, the other cam era’s s hutter w ill probably not be op en at the right moment to capture the flash.
Some cameras are not suitable for equalization. For best equalization a camera must have a consis tent lag time. If a cam era’s lag tim e varies widely or un predic tably from sh ot to shot th en it may not be pos sible to s ynch ronize that c amera. T his is not a flaw of either the c amera or th e Mu ltiMA X. A varying lag time in a cam era is c ons idered acc eptab le operation for the majority of p hotog raph ic s ituation s. C ameras are us ually des igned to res pond predic tably s hot to s hot, b ut are not neces sar ily or sp ecif ically designed to do so with the precision needed for equalization. Many factors can affect a cam era’s lag tim e:
•Camera
us ually have more c ons istent lag tim es if th ey are kept “awake” or Pr e- Triggered . The camera will also respond more quickly, but will consume batteries at a faster rate.
•Cam era batteries – lag times may begin to drif t or s low down as th e cam era’s batteries fade, especially in primarily mechanical cameras. Fresh batteries are recom men ded f or equalization
•T emp erature and hum idity – as these factors change, the mechanical parts of a camera may move differently thus affecting lag time. A temperature increase may dec rease lag tim e as the c amera’s internal lubricants are w armed and f low more freely or vice versa
•Hor izontal vs vertical orientation – as a camera is moved through these orientations various mech anis ms, es pec ially shutters in foc al plane cam eras , will be aff ected b y gravity making them move dif ferently thu s af fec ting lag tim e. In general, do n ot change a c amera’s orientation du ring eq ualization
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