looking for a good external flash

[luc]

Hi everyone,

I am currently using a casio qv-2900. I am thinking of getting an external flash but not sure what would be a wise choice.

I have been asking around in CP and MS colour, seems that they only carry a few brand, Achiever, Metz and Vivitar. Any recommendations?

[Tweek]

hi luc! Tweek here...haven't seen your shots from the BG yet leh?

I'm using the Vivitar 285HV, you saw it that day right? It's quite good, with a strong GN of 120 ft, but it's a little too bulky. mpenza uses the same cam as you and he uses a metz flash, maybe he can recommend that to you too.

[mpenza]

I'm using a Metz 32-Z1 with a "hotshoe trigger" connected to the QV2900UX.

What's your budget? Tweek's and mine's are over $100.

[luc]

Quote: Originally posted by Tweek hi luc! Tweek here...haven't seen your shots from the BG yet leh? I'm using the Vivitar 285HV, you saw it that day right? It's quite good, with a strong GN of 120 ft, but it's a little too bulky. mpenza uses the same cam as you and he uses a metz flash, maybe he can recommend that to you too.

my shots quite bad leh..out of focus for some of them..not sure why...

[luc]

Quote: Originally posted by mpenza I'm using a Metz 32-Z1 with a "hotshoe trigger" connected to the QV2900UX. What's your budget? Tweek's and mine's are over $100.

my budget is actually less than S$100, but if it is good, i.e. I can use it with other cameras later on, than I might consider spending more...how much is the Metz?

[mpenza]

Quote: Originally posted by luc my budget is actually less than S$100, but if it is good, i.e. I can use it with other cameras later on, than I might consider spending more...how much is the Metz?

Retails for ~$170. I bought a 2nd hand one for $110. It's weaker than the Vivitar 285HV.

[mpenza]

Quote: Originally posted by luc my shots quite bad leh..out of focus for some of them..not sure why...

how come? too slow shutter speed?

[luc]

Quote: Originally posted by mpenza how come? too slow shutter speed?

could be...photos are here, take a look and tell me what u think?

photos

[mpenza]

Quote: Originally posted by luc could be...photos are here, take a look and tell me what u think? photos

most of the pics look not bad leh.

using F8 will result in very slow shutter speed, making it susceptible to hand movements.

Anyway with the close-up +4 filter, the focussing point is around 25cm (auto focus). Alternatively, you could set to infinity focus wich will result in a (more or less) fixed focusing distance of 25 cm.

[megaweb]

Quote: Originally posted by luc my shots quite bad leh..out of focus for some of them..not sure why...

your shots are okay wat ... maybe due to low shutter speed tt cause a bit out of focus ...

[Tweek]

I also agree that the photos are not too bad! A bit of blur in some shots, but quite good overall.

[mpenza]

Anyway, back to the original question, luc, you'll need to get a flash bracket (~$10++ - $30) to mount the flash.

If the flash uses a standard PC cord, you could just mount it on the bracket and sync with the PC cord.

If the flash doesn't use a standard PC cord but can be hotshoe triggerred, you could get an additional "hotshoe with PC cord" (~$12).

Anyway, for the flash, the trigger voltage should not be more than 16V (according to Casio tech support).

Some cheap flash: Achiever 260T ($35, recommended by Alan Photo) has a trigger voltage of over 200V, so don't get it. Achiever TZ250 ($41) has a lower trigger voltage of 8V and I've tested it working with my QV2900UX. It's not very powerful (GN 83ft) but would already be much more powerful than the built-in flash (~GN 27 ft). It comes with a PC cord too.

http://www.achiever-hk.com/flash/dedicate.html

Achiever 630AF ($97) would probably work well too but I did not test it myself. I expect the voltage to fall within range.

http://www.achiever-hk.com/flash/auto.html

Any other auto flash (which allows you to set Aperture and ISO) would work too. If you want to check out the trigger voltage, you can refer to this:

http://www.botzilla.com/photo/strobeVolts.html

[luc]

Quote: Originally posted by mpenza Anyway, back to the original question, luc, you'll need to get a flash bracket (~$10++ - $30) to mount the flash. If the flash uses a standard PC cord, you could just mount it on the bracket and sync with the PC cord. If the flash doesn't use a standard PC cord but can be hotshoe triggerred, you could get an additional "hotshoe with PC cord" (~$12). Anyway, for the flash, the trigger voltage should not be more than 16V (according to Casio tech support). Some cheap flash: Achiever 260T ($35, recommended by Alan Photo) has a trigger voltage of over 200V, so don't get it. Achiever TZ250 ($41) has a lower trigger voltage of 8V and I've tested it working with my QV2900UX. It's not very powerful (GN 83ft) but would already be much more powerful than the built-in flash (~GN 27 ft). It comes with a PC cord too. http://www.achiever-hk.com/flash/dedicate.html Achiever 630AF ($97) would probably work well too but I did not test it myself. I expect the voltage to fall within range. http://www.achiever-hk.com/flash/auto.html Any other auto flash (which allows you to set Aperture and ISO) would work too. If you want to check out the trigger voltage, you can refer to this: http://www.botzilla.com/photo/strobeVolts.html

cool, thanks for the info..

[luc]

Quote: Originally posted by Tweek I also agree that the photos are not too bad! A bit of blur in some shots, but quite good overall.

thanks, but your's and megaweb's are definitely much clearer...maybe I should use a high shutter speed nex time..

[Tweek]

Quote: Originally posted by luc thanks, but your's and megaweb's are definitely much clearer...maybe I should use a high shutter speed nex time..

the flash helped for me...the overcast that morning didn't provide enough ambient light for fast shutter speed. If I hadn't used the flash, I would have gotten lots of blurred shots too I think. Anyway, hope the new flash you're considering to get can help you in this aspect!