The Flash Photography Field Guide

TTL Infrared Controllers

If you already own a modern pro-consumer DSLR and a dedicated flashgun from one of the big brands, there’s a chance you already have everything you need to take it off-camera and work wirelessly.

Of course, you don’t have to go wireless. You can buy a sync cable that umbilically links your camera to its flash; these range from cheap, basic sync cords to expensive full-function TTL cables that retain full TTL control, as if the flash was still on its hotshoe. The cable route is not so neat, however. You’re limited by the length of your cable, and there’s a safety issue in having cables trailing everywhere.

Instead, triggering your off-camera flash via wireless technology is the way to go in most situations. If your camera ...