As you may know, I’m a big fan of Nikon’s “Creative Lighting System
However, there are lighting situations and setups where IR triggering just isn’t enough. Enter the Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers.
For those shoots where line-of-sight and bounced transmission isn’t adequate, and where the speed of adjustments via CLS aren’t critical, wireless flash triggers are an inevitable conclusion.
In my speedlight kit, I have five speedlights, so for me, a prime concern for a triggering system was cost. Looking at the options for the sort of flash triggering kit I wanted to put together, purchasing a kit of Pocketwizards would have run nearly a cool $1,000 with the tried and true Pocketwizard Plus II models.
Since speedlights are not my end-goal for lighting, buying into half a dozen Pocketwizard units doesn’t really add up. My needs were simple: I just need reliable, fool-proof triggering of remote speedlights.
While there are a host of eBay flash triggers flooding the market these days, from my research, the best fit for my needs seemed to be the Yongnuo RF-602. There were triggers with more features, or cheaper triggers like the CowboyStudio NPT-04, but none that seemed to match the reliability, price, and general seal of approval that the Yongnuo RF-602
garnered.
| Type | 2.4GHz wireless remote sustem |
| Transmitter Range | 100 meters |
| Channels | 15-channels, plus an “all channels” mode |
| Transmitter Terminal | PC 3-Pin input terminal |
| Receiver Terminal | Yongnuo 3-pin output terminal |
| Time of shooting | Up to 20,000 times (Using CR2 Lithium battery) |
| Receiver Stand-by time | Up to 45 hours (Using AAA battery) |
| Dimensions (Receiver) | Receiver : 33 x 78 x 26mm (W x H x D) |
| Dimensions (Transmitter) | Transmitter : 38.4 x 48 x 27mm (W x H x D) |
I went with purchasing from directly from Yongnuo’s eBay store, as they seemed the most universally recommended source on the Flickr Strobist Group. Group members noted that they’d had good customer service from Yongnuo through their eBay store, they seemed like a better bet than other retailers. Might as well go straight to the source, right?
I ordered two sets of 3x receivers and 1x transmitters, for a total of 6x receivers and 2x transmitters. Buying two sets turned out to be the most economical combination at a total of $143.98 shipped. Again, less than the price of one Pocketwizard Plus II.
I ordered from Yongnuo on July 20 and paid via PayPal. On July 22, I received a confirmation and tracking number via email. The package left from Hong Kong on July 24 and arrived on July 27.
The whole package was delivered in an 11″ x 12″ bubblewrap-lined envelop. To my surprise, the package was basically a very solid brick.
Tearing into the package revealed why – by luck or expert packaging, I’m not sure which, the triggers fit perfectly into the mailer. ?The package included:
Inside the boxes for the receivers and triggers, you pretty much have everything you need to get rolling with the RF-602 triggers. Batteries for all units are included. Once point of reassurance is seeing Duracell brand batteries included for the receivers. The transmitters include Yonguo-branded CR2 lithium batteries.
The combo packs also include an instruction manual, but everything with the triggers is so straight forward that you probably won’t have to suffer through the errors of its translations.
Unlike the ubiquitous Pocketwizards Plus II, the Yonguo are not all-in-one units, but rather the system is comprised of dedicated transmitters and receivers.
Here’s a look at the RF-602 receiver and trigger side by side. Overall, both are quite small – the receiver is a little smaller than expected.
As you can see by the shoe mount on the receiver, there’s a hole in the bottom metal plate that accommodates the locking pin on Nikon speedlights – this a great touch. My Nikon SB-900 and Nikon SB-600 flashes lock in perfectly to the receivers.
The Yongnuo RF-602 get a B+ for connectivity. The transmitter features a standard PC-sync port (for better or for worse, depending on who you ask) on the transmitter. The receivers feature a three-pin connector, which requires an adapter cable for more standard options.
The RF-602 ship with adapters for 1/8″ jacks, along with 1/8″-1/4″ adapters for use on studio strobes. But for plugging directly into the PC-sync port of your Nikon SB-900, you’re going to need to order Yongnuo’s RF-602 receiver PC sync cable.
The RF-602 set also ships with an 3-to-10 pin adapter cable for triggering your camera’s shutter release. One very nice touch with these adapters is that they feature locking collars for both connections. While my Nikon cameras don’t have the threads for the 10-pin connector, the RF-602 receivers have a threads on the 3-pin connectors that the red aluminum collar screws into.
The build quality of the RF-602 flash triggers are overall pretty good. The receivers in particular feel quite solid in the hand – no creaking joints or weak-feeling plastic once everything is put together. The transmitters don’t have the same feeling of density as the receivers, but they seem pretty solid on their own.
The big weakness on both the receivers and transmitters are the battery compartments and doors. The battery doors on both units are pretty weak, and I could easily see breaking off the hinge pins from the doors trying to open or close the units. There are retainers for the door on the transmitter, but it’s a still a loose fit. I plan on replacing batteries as carefully as possible, because the compartment doors simply aren’t made for much wear and tear.
While the transmitters feature a nice metal foot, the other negative of the triggers is the plastic feet on the receivers. With something as potentially top-heavy as a speedlight, the plastic of the receiver’s foot doesn’t inspire great confidence. Thankfully, there is a metal 1/4″ socket on the receivers as well, which is nice feature for mounting directly on stands.
Of course, at an average price of $17 and change for each unit, it’s not that big of a deal if something does actually break.
I own five speedlights, and intentionally bought an extra receiver just in case one was DOA or breaks in the future. However, with smooth operation so far, my contingency plan might be in vain.
One thing I love about these new generation of cheap triggers is that they’re specifically designed for shooters using small flashes, and feature hotshoes directly on the receivers, eliminating the need for sync cords. Aside from mounting on certain light modifiers with finicky clearances, the days of dangling your flash trigger from a PC-sync cord or bungy-cording to your lightstand are gone.
With the Yongnuo RF-602, operation is simple – turn on the receivers, mount the remote flashes, and mount the transmitter on the camera.
There is no power switch on the transmitter, so you’ll have to be careful of draining the batteries from accidental use in storage.
One neat feature of the RF-602 is their use as a wireless remote shutter release for your camera. In this use, the transmitter acts as the remote release, while the receiver attaches to the camera’s hotshoe and is connected to the camera via a shutter release cable.
Simply put, these things just work (knock on wood). All six receivers I ordered worked perfectly with the SB-900s and SB-600s I have right out of the box. The RF-602 work just as you’d expect – when you press the shutter release, remote flashes fire, just as if you were using a wired sync cord or Nikon’s CLS or Canon’s wireless e-TTL. And of course, unlike the latter IR triggering systems, you’re not limited to line-of-sight triggering or having to bounce the signal.
In my range tests, the Yongnuo RF-602 fired with very solid reliability up 60-meters, and good reliability up to about 70-meters. Past 80 meters, the RF-602 experienced drops in signal transmission such that I wouldn’t count on it for long range use unless the wind is blowing just right.
Test fire the Yongnuo RF-602 and a Nikon SB-900 at approximately 60-meters, photographed at 200mm on the Nikon D700.
My testing was done in an alley situated between a four-lane street and a row of apartments, with power and phone lines all in close proximity to the transmitter and receiver. So factoring in the general radio interference, wireless routers, phones, and everything else in the area, I think that the Youngnuo performed very well.
My main use for these triggers is going to be for on-location portrait work, both outdoors and inside, generally working within a range of 10 meters from the remotes. From my testing and use, the Yongnuo are more than capable of handling these sorts of shooting conditions.
However, there are limitations to the RF-602, namely in a few caveats in their sync speeds and compatibility with certain flash models.
With my Nikon D3 and Nikon D700, I can use the RF-602 cleanly at a flash sync of 1/200. At 1/250, there’s a very, very faint trace of shadowing from the shutter on the bottom edge of the frame.
In this composite, you can see the shadowing effect on the left frame, shot at 1/250 on the Nikon D700, while 1/200 is 100% clean.
For the most part, I think the effect at 1/250 is minimal enough that in situations of mixed flash and ambient light, it’s going to be a non-issue, especially when I need the extra 1/3-stop of speed. Worst-case scenario is for scenes lit entirely by flash, in which case the artifacts are going to be plainly visible.
Again, note that these results are with the Nikon D3 and D700. Other cameras will produce different results.
Officially, the Yongnuo supports the Nikon SB-800 for full wake-up functionality, in which the receivers can send a signal to flashes that wakes them from standby mode. I use almost half a dozen Nikon speedlights in my kit, but there isn’t an SB-800 among the bunch. So, how’d they fare?
I have yet to have a problem using my SB-900 flashes and the Yongnuo RF-602s. In my testing, my Nikon SB-900s
did not go to sleep when attached to the RF-602 receivers, woke from standby when attached, and fired reliably without any incident even after an extended period away from the flashes.
I think that Yongnuo’s official list of compatibility to wake from standby is accurate, because the SB-900 never actually goes into standby.
The Nikon SB-600 speedlights, on the other hand, behave a little differently than the SB-900s in testing, in that the the Nikon SB-600s
do not wake from standby when attached to the receivers. In addition, the SB-600s do go into standby mode when this feature is activated. When using SB-600s or other flashes that exhibit this behavior, the best practice is simply to disable standby mode via the custom settings menus on your flashes.
Pro:
Cons:
For me, the biggest strike against the Yongnuo RF-602 is the lack of 100% clean triggering at 1/250 with my Nikon D3 and D700. Still, for applications where there’s any ambient light used in the exposure, I don’t think that the sliver of shadowing is going to be a deal-breaker. All caveats aside, for my kit of nearly half a dozen speedlights, going with the Yongnuo RF-602 was still a no-brainer.
I’ve used the industry-standard Pocketwizards, and at their best, these RF-602s seem every bit as transparent. And by that, I mean they just work. You press the button, lights go off. And at 1/6 the price of Pocketwizards, there’s a lot to like about that fact.
I’ll be updating this review as I use the Yongnuo RF-602 more, so stay tuned.
Right now, I’d recommend either buying the Yongnuo RF-602 on eBay.com or from Amazon.com. If you’re looking to get the Yongnuo quickly, these triggers are being stocked and fulfilled directly from Amazon.com in the US, so that’s the fastest option.
However, if you’re looking to get the Yongnuo RF-602 as cheaply as possible and don’t mind waiting just a bit longer for international shipping, using the “buy it now” option on eBay.com is the way to go:
Questions?
Questions? Comments? Let ‘em rip!
This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 18th, 2010 at 8:46 am and is filed under Photography Gear and tagged with ebay, flash, flash triggers, pocketwizards, poverty wizards, review, strobist, yongnuo, Yongnuo RF-602. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Thanks for the review. I love to see reviews of lesser known brands!
Hey Eric, thanks very much. The Yongnuo are a company that seem to really be stepping up their game and producing some great products for strobist-style shooters.
My wife and I are about to start adventuring into off camera flash. It honestly looks like Yongnuo will help us get started cheaply, but effectively. We’re looking at the YN-560 speedlites, and now definitely will be looking at these triggers. Great and thorough review, as usual!
Hey Ben,
Thanks for the comment. The Yongnuo triggers certainly warrant some consideration – along with the new YN-560 flashes, it’s possible to put together quite a powerful kit without breaking the bank.
Excellent review Todd. Question for you: Since the SB-600 doesn’t have a port at all, did you have to utilize a hot shoe mount to trigger those units?
Hey Jay, thanks for the comment. Yes, the SB-600s are best used with the hotshoe on the RF-602 receivers. Otherwise, you’re going to need to grab RF-602 receiver PC sync cables from Yongnuo and then use a hotshoe adapter with a PC-syc socket like this Hama Universal Flash Adapter.
Still, overall I’ve found that using the hotshoes on the receivers is the easiest solution. I’m probably going to only pick up one of the adapters from Yongnuo to use with my beauty dish.
I’ve been waiting for this review since I saw on Twitter that you bought these triggers.
I’ve been using a set of PoveryWizards (eBay triggers) for a year now. They were fine, but as I’ve been doing more and more paid shoots and using them more and more, they’re showing their age and limitations very, very quickly.
I’ll definitely be picking up pretty much the exact same set as you very soon. Thanks for the great review!
Hey Ash,
Glad to hear you found this review helpful. I do think that these Yongnuo triggers are in another class from the Cactus v4 and other, similar triggers. But thankfully, the price is still fantastic with good reliability.
hey!
i’m using the yongnuo stuff since months, for flash and remote. no problems at all. the thing about the 1/250 sync speed is correct. on my d300s i get a clean shot at 1/250.
by the way. mike larson (the wedding photographer) also shoots with yongnuo.
Hi Sandro,
Thanks for the comment. The exact sync speed at which the RF-602 seems to vary by camera. My results are particular to the D3 and D700 – most of Nikon’s DX DSLRs seem to sync just fine at 1/250.
Cool to hear of pros like Mike using the Yongnuo.
Great review Todd.
I’m considering getting a set of these. I definitely don’t need pocketwizards, so it’s between these and the cactus v4 (though I’m leaning more towards the Yongnuos).
Do you happen to know if that clean triggering limitation also happens with the D90?
Cheers,
Daniel
Hey Daniel,
Thanks for the comment, glad you got to check out this write-up. Between the RF-602 and the Cactus v4, I’d definitely go with the Yongnuo triggers.
It looks like with the D90, people are reporting 1/200, depending on the cameras and flashes:
http://www.flickr.com/groups/strobist/discuss/72157622425845319/
Hi Todd,
I was actually waiting for the review to come out and read your take on them since you said you were making it. I’ve been postponing getting the triggers for a while so it was actually good.
I’m definitely leaning more towards the Yongnuo. They seem much more well built then the cactus and they also seem to have better specs (especially range).
Regarding the D90 question, thank you for the link. I’ll follow up the discussion to see what’s been/being said.
Thanks once again for your availability. Not only regarding answering questions, but also for the time and effort to make these reviews ;)
Cheers mate,
Daniel
The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price – Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price – Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price- Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 trigger review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @lightroomblog: RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price- Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 trigger review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
Nice! RT @groovehouse: Check out @toddowyoung 's in-depth review of these Yongnuo Wireless Flash Triggers. http://bit.ly/9klEni – good info
Nice! RT @groovehouse: Check out @toddowyoung 's in-depth review of these Yongnuo Wireless Flash Triggers. http://bit.ly/9klEni – good info
RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price – Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @lightroomblog: RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price- Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 trigger review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price? Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
RT @lightroomblog: RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price- Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 trigger review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
I love your review Todd,
I used them for the last 8 month and they are nothing but great for their price and if I had not known about them I would buy them right now, after reading your review.
Cheers,
Lennart
Hey Lennart,
Thanks for the comment, very glad to hear you’re happy with the Yongnuo after using them this year. Seems like I’m a little late to the game, but it’s also nice to hear so many people having been happy with their RF-602s since late 2009, too, when they first started popping up.
I forgot…mine broke down about 3 month into the game but exchange was the easiest thing ever. they sent back a new version only a few days later.
I ordered via enjoyyourcamera.com and the customer service was absolutlely superb.
Nice, glad to hear you had a good experience with exchanges. I’ve heard that Yongnuo’s official ebay store has been good with exchanges as well. Hopefully I won’t have to test that, glad your case worked out.
Right now I’m testing a set of the Phottix Strato triggers, so will have that review up soon.
Todd thanx for the review
it’s nice, as always
cheers
Thanks for the comment, I appreciate it.
Great Review of the affordable Yongnuo RF-602 triggers http://bit.ly/9NBP2d
Have you heard of the half-press trick to get closer to your camera’s sync speed?
Here’s how it works:
Half-press the button on the transmitter and keep it pressed. Then take the shot as usual with the camera.
For some people this will boost the maximum shutter speed at which banding occurs.
I have a Casio EX-F1 with a native sync speed of 1/1000s (it has an electronic shutter). With the RF-602 I get a max sync speed of 1/500s. With the half-press trick I get up to 1/640s.
Georg
Hey Georg, thanks for the tip. I have tried a half-press with the D700 and D3, and get similar results. I will say that the shadowing at 1/250 is minimal enough that I think for real world shooting, it’s not going to have a huge impact on shooting.
I have tried the Panasonic LX3, which like your P&S cameras gets pretty nice shutter speeds with its electronic shutter. Will have to try a half-press with the LX3 to see if I can get higher than what I previously tested, which I think was 1/1600 or so.
Hey Todd.
Great Review as always.
Is there any umbrella adapter you can recommend using the Yongnuo triggers? I had problems using my cheap china models.
Greetings from Germany
Hey Niklas, I’m using this umbrella adapter: Manfrotto 026 Swivel Umbrella Adapter
It’s great, I highly recommend it. It came with the Manfrotto stacking lightstands that I use.
Todd, excellent review…well detailed, and i like the use of the images to augment it.
I’ve been on the fence about going wireless, mainly due to the cost of the PWs. this seems like a pretty painless way to do it. one question; why do you need the adapter if using the beauty dish? does that use a cold shoe?
I don’t find that the trigger is 100% stable when used on the flash bracket for my beauty dish, so I’d like to explore some other options. Any time the flash is higher and farther away from the mount, there’s going to be more instability, so I do think that the adapter to the PC-sync is going to be the best way to go.
Todd, while doing some searching I found this just-released alternative (more expensive, but has some additional features):
http://www.lightingrumours.com/phottix-strato-4-in-1-2-4ghz-trigger-released-635
Updated the review of the Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers w/ range testing http://bit.ly/bQduhb
Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @AndrewDarlow: Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @AndrewDarlow: Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @photoandmac: RT @AndrewDarlow: Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
Thanks, Andrew. RT @AndrewDarlow: Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
I gotta agree, it is an outstanding review. RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @dannynorthphoto: I gotta agree, it is an outstanding review. RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @toddowyoung: Thanks, Andrew. RT @AndrewDarlow: Outstanding review: RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
We use the new PocketWizards. I looked around for a while at other solutions, but it seems like the easiest way to do High Speed Sync (might be called something else for Nikon) was with the new PW’s. It seems like you’re losing the ability to shoot with a shallow depth of field if you can’t use a fast shutter. Is there a trick you have to keep your shutter slow and still keep your aperture wide open?
Hi,
Even heard of the Vari ND filter? A lot cheaper then Pocket Wizards. an as far as I know the HighSpeedSync does not yet work for Nikon. Only Canon.
Cheers.
Sander
We haven’t really explored the world of ND filters, but I’m familiar with the concept. Do they make them pretty dark? Sometimes in daylight we have to turn the shutter pretty high.
Something else I was thinking – is there any reason camera manufacturers are not giving the ability to drop down lower than 100 ISO? If I could keep bumping down my ISO on a sunny day, that would be better than having to go to High Speed Sync or using an ND filter.
Yes they can bring the light down alot.. Up to -8 stops ..
Here is an example: http://www.singh-ray.com/varind.html
And here: http://www.lightcraftworkshop.com/site/page1000.aspx
I bought the LightCraft one.
Todd, really enjoy the website and the good information. I just have a quick question about the Yongnuo RF-602, would I be able to use it in combination with a Nikon camera firing off Canon flashes?
RT @toddowyoung: The reliability of Pocketwizards at 1/6 the price – Too good to be true? Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers review: http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
Great review and I think you have made my mind up over the trigmaster’s work, And your photos are amazing
Thanks for the great reviewI was look at getting the Trigmasters, but I think I will get these.
Also amazing photos
Thanks Dion – glad this review helped.
Hi Todd,
Odd question. I’ve tried contacting Yongnuo and haven’t got a response. If you remember using PayPal on their eBay store, did Yongnuo allow the “Buyer Credit” option? (PayPal’s version of credit card as opposed from pulling from bank account.)
Thanks.
Hey Danni,
Not sure about that. I had PayPayl credit (not via their credit card, but in my PayPal account – didn’t pay with my bank account) and paid that way. I imagine that you could just as easily use the buyer credit, too.
Hope this helps.
@yarrumk These are much better. http://bit.ly/a3mtKg
I did my range testing in a park (so, little interference), and after about 150m and no missed fires I phoned the voice activated light stand to come back.
From what I’ve seen the sync speed limit depends a lot on the camera: with my (reasonably beat up) D90 I can only go as low as 1/160, at 1/200 I can see the shutter’s shadow; both my girlfriend’s D90 and my D60 sync ok at 1/250, and my old Fuji S9600 bridge (electronic shutter) syncs at 1/500 :)
[...] This review covers the details of the Phottix Strato and also offers a few points of comparison against the ever-popular Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers, which I recently reviewed. [...]
[...] [...]
Hola,
REPLY FOR CANONISTAS.COM
Obviamente hablas español… En fin, mira noes necesario ke kompres el Pocket Wiz es bastante karo y no se justifika. Si te interesan otras alternativas, por favor komunikate konmigo. Dependiendo de donde estes, me puedes llamar o enviar un korreo elektroniko.
Puedes visitar mi sitio web: http://www.latinimage.net
Alli en CONTACT o LINKS tienes toda la info para komunikarte konmigo si asi lo deseas. Vivo en Greensboro, Carolina del Norte en USA.
kordialmente,
ALFONSO,
LatinImageCL@gmail.com
LatinImage_NC@yahoo.com
Alfonso_Tobar@yahoo.com
(336) 944 – 5764
Thanks for the great review.
I am having trouble trying to focus while shooting with these triggers in low light conditions. With the trigger on top of my Canon 5D mark II and my receiver under my flash unit 10 metres away in very low light I am unable to focus on my subject using auto focus…..
I did however come across this http://www.davidejackson.com/blog/2009/04/18/canon-low-light-focusing-issues/
My Question now is can I do the same thing with the Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers?
Or if not what are my options?
Could I purchase a Pocket wizard trigger and a Canon ST-E2 rig it up as shown in the link above and sync that with my Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash RECIEVRS? is that possible? or would I need a specific cable to connect the RF-602 trigger to the Canon ST-E2 to get it to work?
RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
Just a question though? would it be safe to use the yongnuo 602 work with a lumix lx5? i have a yongnuo 602 for canon but i’m a little hesitant to use it. Thanks :)
Hey Lucas,
Using the LX3 with the Yongnuo triggers should be fine – I’ve used them with triggers with the LX3 without issue.
Hi Todd,
Excellent review, thanks.
I just received my RF-602 to use with my D700 and am confused about something. Although the RF-602 syncs with my various Speedlights, the camera doesn’t automatically sync the shutter speed to the default 1/60 second when I mount the RF-602. It’s as if the RF-602 isn’t recognized by the camera’s flash metering system. So, while the trigger is mounted on the camera’s hot shoe and will fire the strobes, the D700‘s metering system doesn’t recognize it automatically like I would if the Speedlight were directly mounted on the hot shoe. As a result, when shooting in “Aperture” mode, the shutter fires at a much slower speed, as if a flash wasn’t being used (This is indoors. I guess if it were outside in the sun, the shutter would fire at a much higher speed.) To get proper exposure I have to manually set the shutter and aperture on the camera. I understand the the RF-602 doesn’t have TTL capabilities like the CLS system or a sync cable, requiring me to set exposure on the flash, but why doesn’t the camera’s meter automatically adjust for use of a remote flash?
Am I not setting something correctly?
The transmitter doesn’t register as a flash – you may have to set the sync speed in the camera’s menu. I use manual mode, so I just set the shutter speed manually.
Hi, Todd. Great site in terms of your own photos and your gear reviews too!
I am a rainforest photographer who lives and works in Costa Rica. I do a lot of hummingbird photography with multiple flash using Canon Speedlites and the Canon transmitter. Works great for Canon folks but since I do photo tours, I also have Nikon-shooting clients.
Just want to check and make sure that the Yongnuo units reviewed here could work with a Nikon body. That is, that putting the transmitter in the hotshoe of a Nikon body would fire off the Canon Speedlites fitted with the Yongnuo receivers.
Do you happen to know if this is correct? (I use the flashes in manual mode for this work so I’m not worried about losing TTL capability).
I really appreciate your advice.
Best regards,
Greg Basco (a native St. Louisan BTW)
Hey Greg,
Thanks for the note, I appreciate it.
You can use the Yongnuo RF-602 with the Nikon flashes. There are different Nikon and Canon versions, and since you’re using the Canon flashes, you’ll want the Canon version triggers. The main difference is the wake/sleep signals, as far as I know. The triggers should work just fine between Nikon and Canon.
Hope this helps, Greg!
Thanks so much, Todd, for taking the time to reply. I will check into the wake/sleep issue as that would be the only sticking point. If my Nikon clients are unable to keep the transmitter awake (this has been the issue using the Canon transmitter with Nikon bodies, which otherwise works pretty well with the Canon flashes in manual mode), that would be a problem. But if that proves not to be an issue, this would be a great solution.
Cheers!
Greg
Hey Greg,
The simple solution about the wake-up signals/sleep mode is to turn the standby mode off on all the flashes. This is a menu function that you can turn off, and then just reset as needed for your clients.
Perfect, Todd. I was hoping it would be something simple. With the Canon transmitter there’s actually something in the circuitry that puts the transmitter itself to sleep, even when not set on hold and when the flashes aren’t set on standby, and the shutter button does not wake the transmitter up. So, the Nikon user has to keep turning the transmitter off and on. So, I’m happy to know that the Youngou won’t present this problem and that simply leaving the flashes off standby will do the trick.
Thanks again for taking the time to reply.
Cheers,
Greg
Hey Greg,
Glad to help. Yeah, you can change the settings on the Nikon flashes for standby mode – either to set it from auto to a certain duration of inactivity, or disable it entirely. As far as I know, the difference between the Canon and Nikon is just the wake-up protocols.
By the way, had a look at your work and I’m blown away. Simply fantastic stuff. And now that I’m looking at it, I call seeing your work at the Botanic Garden a year or two ago. Best work I’ve seen in that hall, hands down.
Hey Greg, just re-read your original question and for some reason I thought you were asking about using Nikon flashes.
But I don’t think there should be an issue at all using Nikon camera bodies with the Canon-version transmitters and Canon flashes.
Again, as far as I know, the difference between the models is in the wake-up signals, but the transmitters should fire regardless of whether it’s a Canon or Nikon body.
I fire my Nikon-version receivers from my Panasonic LX-3 just fine.
Hi, Todd. Thanks so much for the kind words on my nature photography. I love your work so that kind of compliment from you is just fantastic!
I definitely am going to pick up a set of these transmitters. Should be a great addition to my own kit and for the photo tour clients as well.
Cheers!
Greg
Todd,
I am a little confused. I bought the transmitter and the receivers. The brochure page 8 under 2. Basic Operation says “This product don’t support SB-600 flashgun.”
I tested with Nikon SB-600 flash units and Yongnuo devices DO NOt work!
And in your review, you write:
***
Reliability & Range:
Simply put, these things just work (knock on wood). All six receivers I ordered worked perfectly with the SB-900s and SB-600s I have right out of the box. The RF-602 work just as you’d expect – when you press the shutter release, remote flashes fire, just as if you were using a wired sync cord or Nikon’s CLS or Canon’s wireless e-TTL. And of course, unlike the latter IR triggering systems, you’re not limited to line-of-sight triggering or having to bounce the signal.
***
I bought mine from AMAZON.
Amazon sells them and advertised them as two different products:
COWBOYSTUDIOCowboystudio 3 in 1 Combo, 16 Channel Wireless Shutter release for Nikon SLR camera, SB900, SB600 Flash remote trigger for Nikon D90 D700 D300 D200 D3X, monolight wireless trigger
and
YONGNUOYongnuo 2.4GHz Wireless Flash Trigger/Receiver and Shutter Remote for Canon 1D/5D/7D/10D/20D/30D/40D/50D DSLR.
Unfortunately, the order came incomplete not as described. Sync and pc cables were missing. Although they are described as being part of the kits.
Besides, being the same product at different prices though, Customer Service Support was unable to explain why it is so.
Who did you buy them from? What model is it?
Please advise. Thank you.
regards,
ALFONSO
Hey Alfonso,
My SB-600s work just fine with the RF-602. They just don’t wake up from standby, as I noted. Do you mean yours don’t fire at all? The receivers could be defective.
Also, As I mentioned, I ordered the Nikon version of the RF-602 directly from Yongnuo through their eBay store. Due to the experience you’ve had with Amazon, that’s exactly why I recommend buying from Yongnuo – it seems like they sort these problems out.
Todd,
Thank you for your prompt reply. The transmitter and receivers all work fine with two LUMOPRO 160 PRO (http://www.mpex.com/browse.cfm/4,14648.html),
farther away than the indicated 100 feet distance indicated in their brochure and I also tested them through walls. However, they do not work with the Nikon SB-600.
I will certainly try the YONGNUO store you recommend and I will get back to you with the results, ok?
Thank you again.
ALFONSO
Another reason to buy straight from Yongnuo on their eBay store? It’s cheaper, with free worldwide shipping. Just under $29 shipped last time I looked.
Hope you get your issue sorted out with Amazon, at the very least they owe you some cables.
Gregg,
I apologized for my making you REBORN under a new name…
“Gregg” I will carve your name not to confuse it or forget it!
My bad.
ALFONSO
Excellent review
thanks
I have 2 RF-602 kits, and they have started behaving oddly with my SB800s. This problem happens with either of my RF-602 receivers, and with either of my SB800s in any combination. It’s this…
SB800s are set as SU-4 slaves.
SB800s are set on Manual flash.
I set the flash zoom manually to a value other than 24mm.
I fire the flash using the RF-602 trigger – either on the camera or just by pressing the button on the top of the RF-602 trigger.
The flash fires OK.
The flash’s zoom then resets to 24mm.
Happens every time – doesn’t happen if the SB800s are triggered using CLS.
The flash zoom also resets to 24mm if the RF-602TX button is half-pressed, and then released without being fully pressed down.
I have been very careful to ensure the SB800s and the RF-602s are off when I attach them to the flashes.
Anyone else getting this issue?
With reference to my previous post:
OK, I think I was being stupid. If the flash is set to ordinary Manual using the SB800′s Mode button, and not set as an SU-4 slave, it all works just fine. No unexpected zooming back to 24mm.
Note to self: Don’t use SU-4 mode!
Derek.
[...] I bought a pair of two transmitters and five receivers for the price of less than one single Pocketwizard Plus II. You can read more about these flash triggers in my detailed review. [...]
@matthew_roach Thanks for heads up re Yong Nuo RF602. Have been reading http://bit.ly/9NBP2d & strobist threads. The jury is out for now.
[...] This review covers the details of the Phottix Strato and also offers a few points of comparison against the ever-popular Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash triggers, which I recently reviewed. [...]
[...] reviewing both the Phottix Strato and the Yongnuo RF-602, here’s the $64,000 question: Are the Strato worth the premium compared to the current [...]
I own 2 flash units. The Canon 540EZ and the 430EZ. Are the receivers compatible with this flashes? Thanks.
Yes, you’ll be able to fire these flashes in manual mode with the Yongnuo RF-602.
RT @toddowyoung Review: Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers http://bit.ly/bQduhb
@dncosta mandei vir da amazon. Gostei do que li! Agora é esperar que chegue… http://t.co/S4A8BbH
Review of Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers: http://ow.ly/3NDVk. (1 trig+4 Receivers, 300 ft manual sync up to 1/250s for $100-ebay)
I ordered to Yongnuo a set of RF-602s WITH PC-Sync cords at the end of November.
This parcel was “lost in space”
Yongnuo finally accepted to reship it and I received after 11 weeks the RF-602s WITHOUT PC-Sync cords !
I sent 4 e-mails to complain because it’s useless for me.
These e-mails seem also to be “lost in space” and I didn’t get any answer :-(
If you want to lose your time (and money) I warmly recommend you to buy these products !!!
Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers | http://is.gd/pWtFSy
Hi,
Will Yongnuo RF-602 Wireless Flash Triggers
work using a D3100 with SB700?
Please advise.
Thanks in advance.
Paul
Yes, the Yongnuo RF-602 will trigger just fine.
Thanks for the quick response Todd
Appreciate it.
Hi Todd,
Using my D3100 with a SB-700 and the trigger doesn’t seem to work. At first I thought that the battery supplied has no charge, so I then replaced it. After a couple of test, it really doesn’t work. Maybe I’m missing something. Can you please advise.
I found a way to make the RF-602 wakeup the SB-900 by means of a very simple mod!
Check this out for the details:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/48915990@N08/5854837015/in/photostream
Hi Todd,
Excellent review!!!
I have a very intriguing though if you don’t mind.
I noticed that on the transmitter and reciever, the hotshoe contacts are similar to iTTL flashes, like SB400s, 600s, Yongnuo YN465. My camera bodies are Nikon D3000 and D40 and I usually use either an SB400 or YN465 flash. I would always know that iTTL solution works for me then I connect the flash directly to the hotshoe and (1) on Program Mode or Aperture Priority the shutter speed automatically sets itself to 1/60 (2) on Shutter Priority mode I cannot select a shutter speed beyond 1/200 (max sync speed).
My questions is:
Since the hotshoe contacts are similar to Nikon compatible iTTL flashes, does this mean that I can use iTTL solution using RF 602?
Example Non CLS Compatible Setup: Nikon D3000/D40 + SB400
Meaning using RF602, can I mimic the behavior of CLS by maintaining iTTL solution?
Thanks in advance and more power to you!
Excellent review, love your clean style here!
Question:
I have a set of two RF-602‘s, one I got on ebay a while back and the brand printed on the RF-602 says “HAVE”. Then, the other one, Yongnuo.
The HAVE one has a PC-Sync port on the transmitter, but the Yongnuo does not. It has this plastic circular engraving where the PC-Sync port would usually be.
What is the deal? Do some of these come with a PC port on the transmitters and others don’t? How come yours has a pc-port and mine doesn’t?
The one I got is the one on Amazon for the D300s.
Have you used the RF-603′s yet? Are you planning on reviewing it?
They seem like they’d be better then the 602′s and I’m considering getting them but i havent seen any decent reviews on them.
Thanks