Shutter Sync Speed Hack

Back in the earliest years of the 21st century, when many of us were just switching to digital, any DSLR with an interline-CCD had a fantastic advantage. It would sync with flash at ANY shutter speed. The early Nikon D1, D1x and D1h, as well as the Canon 1D and a couple of others had this. They don’t use the physical shutter to make an exposure. Instead, the shutter gets out of the way, and the sensor is read for the desired amount of time.

Most claimed they’d sync at 1/500, and any dedicated flash would keep the shutter speed there or below. But hooking up a set of portable strobes like the Dynalite Action Pack allowed sync at all speeds (though after 1/4000 of a second, give or take, the camera reads the exposure for less time than the flash duration so you start to lose light). The camera was unaware of the flash other than firing the impulse, and that was fantastic for overcoming harsh sunlight without having to use a grip truck full of lighting.

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