Recommend a affordable swivel flash for A300?

[DanielG]

Hi all, need to get a flash for event shooting but the original Sony HVL-F56AM is RDP $699... way out of my budget. Anyone can recommend a place to get this cheaper or any 3rd party one at a more affordable price?

Use mostly for portraits, close-ups etc. Don't need very powerful, but need to be able to swivel left and right.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Exposure]

try 42AM

 

[DanielG]

Can this flash swivel? Cos I see from Sony website, seems can only do up, down.

 

[eow]

try ms color or cathay photo, tell them a 'friend' recommend u there to buy.
The rrp is 699 but u could buy the 58 flash for a lot less than that.

 

[ghost04]

i bought a sigma dt530 sd flash during the IT fair for $272 after some discount with 2 years warranty...
i using a350.

 

[shin-arudo]

i own f58s and a f42. Yes f42 can swivel left, right, up, down
however f58 cant swivel left and right but it could 'tilt' uniquely. and actually the price its not that high. you can get f58 below 600 and f42 below 400 i think.

 

[DanielG]

i own f58s and a f42. Yes f42 can swivel left, right, up, down
however f58 cant swivel left and right but it could 'tilt' uniquely. and actually the price its not that high. you can get f58 below 600 and f42 below 400 i think.

Thanks for the confirmation. Will check these 2 models out. In your experience, do MS Color or Cathay have better prices?

 

[shin-arudo]

i bought mine at CP, i never check MS. goodluck finding your new toy ;D

 

[dewei85]

Thanks for the confirmation. Will check these 2 models out. In your experience, do MS Color or Cathay have better prices?

I got mine at MS color. Look for florence.

Price wise it was about the same. See which is nearer for you. I'm using the 42. It's a decent flash.:thumbsup:

Oh and if you decide to get from CP, please ask for an e-quote.

In fact, just ask for e-quote from both MS and CP. :bsmilie:

 

[synapseman]

You want cheap? Sigma EF-530DG Super. Can do almost everything the 56AM can do.

 

[reaper3075]

You want cheap? Sigma EF-530DG Super. Can do almost everything the 56AM can do.

actually... the f42am is slightly cheaper than the 530DG super.... at MS

 

[reaper3075]

Thanks for the confirmation. Will check these 2 models out. In your experience, do MS Color or Cathay have better prices?

yes.. these shops tend to give a better deal. provided you pay in cash

i have both the 42 and 58.

if you're looking for flash on a budget.. that probably the 42 is for u. value for money. got mine for less than 400 bucks.

f42 is in the background. its smaller, maybe lighter than the 58 (foreground)

 

[DanielG]

Read review ar www.dcresource.com that compatible flash is lacking some functions that original can. But it was quite vague. Can anyone confirm what can or can't do with 3rd party flash? I guess the most basic and important is must be able to do TTL metering and high speed sync, right?

 

[calvincheng]

Hi hi,

So comparing f42 and f58 which will you prefer?

"f58 cant swivel left and right but it could 'tilt' uniquely"
does it affect the flexibility of the shooting

 

[afipuffy]

Actually, at Lucky plaza you can also get 42 and 58 cheaper than MS and CP. I did many research on the lowest price and you can bargain for 42 at $350 and below. and 58 for between $450-$500 (Last mth check). They also sell lens at a very low price too. But don't get knock by them if you dont know their trick. They once wanted to sell me VG30 for $399(more than MS and CP selling price) but i bargain untill i got it for $220. So good luck in finding those cheap and good price. You need to bargain. MS and CP very hard to bargain as they know the prices well. But those small shop but make more profit from C and N, they make Sony as low to finish off the product asap.

my 1 cent

 

[weishengg]

Actually, at Lucky plaza you can also get 42 and 58 cheaper than MS and CP. I did many research on the lowest price and you can bargain for 42 at $350 and below. and 58 for between $450-$500 (Last mth check). They also sell lens at a very low price too. But don't get knock by them if you dont know their trick. They once wanted to sell me VG30 for $399(more than MS and CP selling price) but i bargain untill i got it for $220. So good luck in finding those cheap and good price. You need to bargain. MS and CP very hard to bargain as they know the prices well. But those small shop but make more profit from C and N, they make Sony as low to finish off the product asap.

my 1 cent

you are 1 true bargain-king :thumbsup:

 

[shin-arudo]

Hi hi,

So comparing f42 and f58 which will you prefer?

"f58 cant swivel left and right but it could 'tilt' uniquely"
does it affect the flexibility of the shooting

for shooting with direct flash no prob. give you advantage if you take pic vertically with your flash attached to your camera
just 1 prob i got when im using my whale tail diffuser, hard to explain but yeah, we cant use that diffuser on F58 perfectly.

 

[TME]

Hi all, need to get a flash for event shooting but the original Sony HVL-F56AM is RDP $699... way out of my budget. Anyone can recommend a place to get this cheaper or any 3rd party one at a more affordable price?

Use mostly for portraits, close-ups etc. Don't need very powerful, but need to be able to swivel left and right.

Thanks in advance.

The street price is at least $150 lower. So look at $500... It would be better to buy either the 42AM or the 58AM... these two flashes have a new protocol for flash exposure and is more reliable with the Alpha bodies... the 56AM is a throwback to the KM era where flash exposure was a bit touch and go... I use the 56 and have come to expect weird exposure when using it on the 7D... So the 42 is the flash to go for as it can swivel. It's just less powerful but most of us don't really need something in the power range of the 58...

 

[calvincheng]

i going to get a flash recently but dont know which to get...
42AM can swivel but not 58AM
but 58AM is more powerful than 42AM

So which one to get?
When will you need a really powerful flash like 58AM?
can 58AM reduce the power of the flash as needed?

Sorry newbie here and usually taking fotos indoors and events...

 

[navlem]

i going to get a flash recently but dont know which to get...
42AM can swivel but not 58AM
but 58AM is more powerful than 42AM

So which one to get?
When will you need a really powerful flash like 58AM?
can 58AM reduce the power of the flash as needed?

Sorry newbie here and usually taking fotos indoors and events...

58AM definitely will be able to reduce flash power when needed.