How good is the Canon ST-E2 wireless flash system outdoors? Indoors, the near infra-red transmission signals bounce off everything so triggering the flash is hardly ever a problem - but what about outdoors in the sun? While abroad I found some time to test out the combo in full blown Mediterranean midday sun with not a cloud in the sky: I was impressed to achieve reliable triggering at 90ft with the ST-E2 in direct sunlight and a Speedlite 580EXII on camera in the shade. Flipping this around I achieved 60-65ft with the ST-E2 in the shade and the flash in direct sunlight. Pushed to the limit with both the ST-E2 and the Speedlite in direct sunlight I still managed to obtain distances of 40-45ft. All distances quoted are based on line-of-sight. It's good to remember these numbers: I know that one walking stride of mine is around 3ft - so I can quickly walk away from my flash unit/subject - up to 21 paces best case here - and know I'm still in flash range. Really your only practical limitation in this set-up is if you want to conceal the flash head behind or in an object out of shot - outdoors, line-of-sight is pretty unforgiving.
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