Tech Tuesdays - Pocket Wizards

When I first moved into the studio, I was unsure if I should spend the money on a set of Pocket Wizards. I knew I didn't want to be tethered with a cable, but wouldn't the "Poverty Wizards" work just as well for what I needed? They don't have 100% reliability, but who needs that? Seriously, I've got better things to spend my money on. Fortunately, I decided to play it smart and safe and get a set of Pocket Wizards. I don't think I'll ever regret that decision.

So what are Pocket Wizards (PWs)? Technically, I got a set of Pocket Wizard Plus II Transcievers. They're radio transmitter/receivers that communicate between your camera and studio strobes so that the strobes fire when you take a picture. There are lots of products on the market that do the same thing. Some are simple cords that attach to your camera and to a strobe. They're not wireless, but they're cheap and are 100% reliable. The downside is that you're tethered! "Poverty Wizards" are cheap radio transmitters that are only about 90% reliable, meaning that for every 10 photos you take, the flash won't fire in one of them. The upside is that they cost a fraction of the price of PWs. There are others that are just as reliable as PWs and are even less expensive, but they are not as ubiquitous as PWs. Ultimately, because of the number of photographers who use PWs and the number of products that have PWs incorporated into them (strobes, power packs, even light meters!), I decided to suck it up and buy a set.

Using them is about as easy as it gets. Attach one to the hotshoe of your camera. Attach another to a strobe (you've got to have the correct cable to attach it, and different flashes need different cables, so plan on spending some extra money for it). You're ready to shoot! There are no settings to mess with. There are no calibrations to set or buttons to push. Turn it on and shoot. As long as both PWs are on the same channel you're good to go. If someone else is shooting on the same channel as you, just change them both to a new channel (takes about 1 second).

The most important thing about PWs is the reliability. Although I've only been using them for a few months, I haven't missed a shot yet. I have experienced what it might have been like if I had purchased a cheaper alternative. Since I only have 2 PWs, I have to optically slave a few flashes when I use more than one, which sometimes means using a reflective umbrella to "catch" the light for the sensor to see. During one shoot, I wasn't getting flashes 100% of the time from my background light, which was kind of annoying. It just made me more thankful that the PWs don't miss a shot.

Ultimately, Pocket Wizards are not that expensive. Compared to the rest of the gear us photographers use, they're really pretty cheap. I don't plan on going out and buying a bunch of them anytime soon, but if you're planning on doing a lot of studio shooting, they're worth every penny!