Mains powered Canon flash

iwb

I am not exactly an avid photographer but I have owned a dSLR for many years. I have a specific requirement right now to have a camera permanently mounted in a location where it will be triggered to take a few pictures every twenty minutes or so over the day.

I am using a Canon 1100D and intend to buy a speedlite or similar flash for it. I bought an AC adaptor for the camera but can't seem to find an ac adaptor for a flash. It isn't practical to have it run on battery for my application.

Any ideas?

Gregor Samsa

Every 20 minutes over 24 hours is only 72 shots. You should easily get that out of a set of good rechargeable batteries. The Speedlite 430EX II spec claim 200-1400 shots from good batteries (not sure what power setting, interval, etc they're using for those calculations).

Regarding mains power:

http://www.innovatronix.com/speedfire.asp

I know nothing about it, just found it on a Google search. Note the Product Advisory about not using this with other equipment that's running off the mains, so it might not be the solution for you (since you're running the camera off AC too). Also, you still need batteries in the flash to run the LCD display and the controls, the AC adapter only powers the flash itself. You say that batteries aren't practical. Is that just because the camera won't be accessible to replace them, or another reason?

There's also battery pack solutions like this that will give you more shots from your flash (this one clams 500 at 1:1 power)

http://www.photoloving.com/gbu0-prodshow/FP-SYS-580EX.html

iwb

I appreciate the quick response. I had found that Innovatronix solution. I will be doing what they warn about, so I didn't want to chance it. I emailed them over a week ago and haven't heard back, so I have discounted it.

I don't want to to with any sort of battery solution as it has to be unattended if possible. Forgive my ignorance but the AC adapter for the camera is a simple device shaped like the battery that is wired back to an AC adaptor. Why can't the flash have a similar arrangement? When I started to google a while back, I thought that is what I would find but hits were almost non existent. Is there a technical limitation or just no demand for such an application?

Gregor Samsa

iwb wrote: »

I don't want to to with any sort of battery solution as it has to be unattended if possible.

I assume when you say "over the day" you mean over more than just one day - in which case I can see the need for mains power. So I'm assuming this is a (semi) permanent setup you have in mind, not just a temporary (one day) project?

iwb wrote: »

Forgive my ignorance but the AC adapter for the camera is a simple device shaped like the battery that is wired back to an AC adaptor. Why can't the flash have a similar arrangement? When I started to google a while back, I thought that is what I would find but hits were almost non existent. Is there a technical limitation or just no demand for such an application?

Sorry, I have not idea if the lack of such a product is a technical or market issue.

Hopefully some one who uses flashes in a studio setting will be along with more possible solutions. There are studio strobes (as opposed to flashed that sit on your hot shoe) that run off mains power, but I know nothing about them.

iwb

Thanks again for the quick response. I realise I didn't explain myself very well. It is a permanent install and will take remotely triggered pictures every 20 minutes over a 12 hour day. The camera is connected via USB to a PC that grabs the pictures each time.

I guess it is similar to a studio. I am on a budget. I don't know what the studio flashes cost but probably not cheap. Hopefully someone here will know more.

Thanks again for your help.

stcstc

you could buy a cheap studio flash for the price of a canon speedlite

and just get a hotshoe adaptor to trigger it