Pocket Wizard AC-3 Zone Controller; It’s Coming Soon

I have to say I’m getting excited. The AC-3 zone controller is, for me, the single most anticipated part of LPA Design’s Pocket Wizard Control TL, that is the TTL Pocket Wizards, system, and it’s arrival is getting closer and closer.

For those that haven’t been following the news, the Zone Controller, provides a simple, efficient way to control up to 3 channels worth of strobes in 1/3 stop increments from -3EV to +3EV (or 1/1 to 1/64 in manual) from your camera with out having a ST-E2 or 580Ex mounted on the camera.

Actually the AC-3 offers quite a bit more range, since the AC-3 Zone Controller honors the Flash Exposure Compensation set by the camera or on the flash directly. FEC set on the camera will shift all the zones by that much, so -3 EV on the AC-3 and -3 EV on the camera will drop the flash 6EV. FEC set on the flash will affect that flash only, with the results being similar but more specific.

For Canon shooters it gives an unprecedented level of control, since it lets you control the zones using EV and not ratios. This is huge since many modern lighting setups don’t neatly fall into the key:fill + background setup Canon’s flashes use.

The AC-3 Zone Controller is expected to retail for just under $70, which makes it a steal too, and ship for the Canon TTL Pocket Wizards in late May.

Rob Galbraith has a nice preview of the AC-3.

The latest news from LPA Design’s Product Updates for April 2010