Paul C. Buff, Inc. Technical Forum

So i'm really new to all of this, but I figure the only way for me to learn is to jump right in and start practicing (since there are virtually no schools in my area that offer photography courses, let alone lighting)

Anyway I shoot with a Canon 50D I came across a deal on some White Lightening WL5000 BCPS, I wrote the Tech support on the White Lightening page and asked what I would need in order to fire one of the lights with my 50D they directed me to the Alien Bees website and told me I would need one Cybersync Transmitter cst and one Receiver CSRB (battery powered)

I put both items on my list for christmas and wouldn't you know Santa shops on the internet.

Anyway When I hook my Canon 50D to the Transmitter and try to adjust the external flash settings it just tells me either the power is not on or I am using an incompatible device and it cannot display the menu. Neither item came with an instruction manual, which isn't good for me since again, I'm very green at this.

Any help would be very very appreciated.

Thanks
-Christopher

You can't adjust the lights thru your camera since CST just triggers the light and it's not TTL compatible.

Hi Christopher,

I'm also new to the devices you are using, but I will try my best:

CSRB is battery operated, is your receiver's battery properly inserted?
Is the sync cable fully inserted in both the CSRB and the WL5000?
To find out if the issue is on the transmitter or the receiver side, did you try the test button in the CSRB? Its LED flashes red when pushing the test button?
CST is battery operated, is your transmitter's battery properly inserted?
If you click the test button in the CST, does its red LED flashes?
If the flash goes off when clicking the test button in the receiver, is the CSRB in the same frequency than the CST?
If both the CSRB and the CST are in the same frequency, did you try the test button in the CST to see if the LEDs in both units, the CST transmitter and CSRB receiver, flash accordingly?
If using the test button in the CST flashes the WL5000, is the CST fully inserted in the hot-shoe of the 50D?

The answers to all these questions should help to isolate where the issue is.


Ruben

CreV has it correct! I was thinking on an issue between the CST and the CSRB, but the 50D flash menu will control only a newer Canon EX flash unit, like the 580 EX II or the 430 EX II.

Your setup will intruct your WL5000 to flash when triggered from the camera, but you need to manually set the level in the flash unit.