Looking for a flash

Markok765 · Dec 6, 2009

I'm looking for a hammerhead style flash, mounted on a bracket, to use with my Leica III and 15mm f4.5 for clubbing/party shots - flash with long exposure. I'd like it to be pretty powerful, to be able to bounce, use standard batteries[non rechargeable], must have a PC sync, as I have no hotshoe, and to have reasonably wide coverage in case I want to use it straight on. I'm thinking Metz. What older models that I could get on KEH are recommended?

Paul VanAudenhove · Dec 6, 2009

Marko - if you already have a hot-shoe style flash you could look into just buying a flash bracket. These screw into the camera baseplate and the flash mounts on the top of the handle. I think the one I have was made by Kaiser. It might be cheaper than the hammerhead, and will open up your choices of flashes you can use.

bdial · Dec 6, 2009

Get one of the Metz 45 variants

Markok765 · Dec 6, 2009

Paul VanAudenhove said:
Marko - if you already have a hot-shoe style flash you could look into just buying a flash bracket. These screw into the camera baseplate and the flash mounts on the top of the handle. I think the one I have was made by Kaiser. It might be cheaper than the hammerhead, and will open up your choices of flashes you can use.

Paul - I have two hot shoe flashes, a Nikon - which I cannot use with a manual camera, without doing some calculations prior, and a small Metz, which really isn't very powerful, and the plastic on the hotshoe connector is almost broken off. Plus, I've seen hammerheads for around $140 on KEH, which seems like a good deal for that powerful of a flash.

Markok765 · Dec 6, 2009

bdial said:
Get one of the Metz 45 variants

These have PC cords?

Paul VanAudenhove · Dec 6, 2009

The Metz 45 series was the flash in it's day and is still a good unit. So long as the flash has a pc cord it should work with your camera. You may need to buy a new one separately, or as a backup. I used to lust over having a 45 series Metz, then the Quantum flashes came along. Eventually, I changed to shooting available light only!

I'm not certain, but don't the Nikon flashes have a manual mode? The older flashes used to have an eye on the front for auto mode, so you could set the f-stop and shoot away. I'd be surprised if the Nikons didn't have a similar mode. I'll have to find my flash now and see if it does.

The only problem I've had shooting with a hot-shoe flash on a bracket is having the bracket complete the circuit and fire the flash. I solved that with a piece of tape on the bracket.

If you go the bracket route, you may want to look at a flash like the Vivitar 283 which was very popular in the days of pre-integrated flash-camera exposure.

Markok765 · Dec 6, 2009

Nope, sadly my Nikon flash doesn't have a manual mode. The 45 series looks awesome - though I'm a bit concerned with it not having a wide enough spread for my lens.

bdial · Dec 6, 2009

Yes, they have PC cords, plus some versions may have TTL modules that can work with your Nikon, offhand I don't know the specific combination's that are possible. I have a 45 CT-3 with a TTL module for my F3 (which is a different system from your Nikon, I believe). I also have PC cords for it for use with older cameras and optical slaves.
Any cord you can't get from Metz is available from Paramount.
They produce plenty of light, and can run on AA's. The Metz 60 produces even more light (GN 60 vs 45) but so far as I know, requires a rechargeable battery pack.

It won't have enough spread for a 15, there are wide angle adapters for them, not sure how much coverage they can provide though. Bouncing may give you enough, depending on the conditions you have available.
Few off-the-shelf standard flashes will have coverage for a 15. Sunpack and a couple of others have bare tube options which may be your only alternative.

MattKing · Dec 6, 2009

It is going to be tough to find a flash that will cover a 15mm lens unaided. If you find one, it won't be very powerful at that setting, because a lot of the power from portable flashes comes as a result of focusing the light path into a limited area.

The Metz 45 series flashes come with a wide angle adapter that will spread the light enough to cover 28mm (on a 35mm camera).

Anything wider will require some sort of extra diffusion and/or bounce. There is a bounce accessory available that mounts a card above the flash. Any such increase in coverage will correspond with a resulting decrease in light intensity at subject distance.

Here is a link to the manual for the Metz 45 CL-4 flash:

http://www.metz.de/fileadmin/fm-dam/Download/Photo_Electronic/Bedienungsanleitung/mecablitz/mecablitz_40_bis_45/mecablitz_45_CL_4_D_F_NL_GB_I_E.pdf

The english section starts on page 40 .

And here is a link to the english side of the Metz website itself:

http://www.metz.de/en/photo-electronics/into-the-future-with-tradition.html

I have a couple of Metz 60 series flashes (they use an over the shoulder rechargeable pack) and they are great.

By the way, when people quote the guide number for these Metz units (45 for the 45 series, and 60 for the 60 series) it is in meters!

Matt

Markok765 · Dec 6, 2009

Matt - Thanks a bunch! I don't think the loss of flash power due to diffusion will be a large problem - the guide # is 45M as you said, and I'll be using it at a 1 or 2 meter distance.

benjiboy · Dec 6, 2009

Hi, Marko, A Metz 45 CL would be ideal, and with one of these http://www.stofen.com/index.htm you will find will cover your 15mm lens if bounced off the ceiling, and still be able to use a reasonable aperture, I use this set up with a Canon 17mm Lens. Like this http://www.stofen.com/Info/infoWithWithOut.htm
The Metz 45 series are great they have been made for over twenty years and are still made, all the accessories are still available, and they can still be repaired, I have two of them and they just keep working.

Rol_Lei Nut · Dec 7, 2009

Markok765 said:
Nope, sadly my Nikon flash doesn't have a manual mode. The 45 series looks awesome - though I'm a bit concerned with it not having a wide enough spread for my lens.

IIRC, the 45 series Metz should "decently" cover 28mm with direct flash.
For best results and, especially, when using (very) wide angle lenses, bounce flash is necessary.

To illuminate a picture taken with a very wide (and esp. a 15mm), using bounce flash does become something of an art....

With the camera you mention, the old Metz 45-CT1 wiil do very well (it can fry the circuits of later electronic cameras, though).

timk · Dec 8, 2009

Metz 45 and the Sunpak equivalent springs to mind.

I own a Sunpak 3075G and it's pretty good, though not as powerful as the Metz 45 (GN = 30m@100iso) it's a handle mount flash, has M(full) and M(1/16) control, has a PC sync socket, has bounce. It's smaller than the metz which might be useful in a club, it still has reasonable power. 2 dedicated auto settings

Another option is buy a bracket that has a hot shoe on the top, then you can use any flash with it. If you do this, the Vivitar 285HV is an awesome buy for around $100, offers 4-5 manual settings, GN = 36m@100iso, has bounce, has a PC sync cord. 4 dedicated auto settings.

jime11 · Dec 8, 2009

I have 3 of these & they work well (but be aware of the 175V sync voltage). Here is a link to B&H that has the flash & wide angle diffuser -- buy both for under $27 plus shipping

Dead Link Removed

cmo · Dec 9, 2009

The Metz 45 is the best choice for this profile since many years. But it will make your camera look like a dwarf

BTW, here is a list of trigger voltages:

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

removed account4 · Dec 9, 2009

marko

if you don't mind lugging a battery pack on your shoulder
get a lumedyne 244 and a single flash head.
there was one for sale in the classifieds section (here) for a good price.

eddym · Dec 9, 2009

I have a Sunpak 622 with the diffusion head, and it will easily cover the 15mm lens, and has power to spare. I'm not sure if they are still available new, though. I power mine with a Quantum battery, but they come with a battery holder for 4 C cells.

elekm · Dec 9, 2009

Vivitar made a flash bracket that includes a cable release. Nice piece. It was an accessory for the 283 flash -- a workhorse for many pros. It came with wide angle adapters.

2F/2F · Dec 9, 2009

Sunpak 622.

GN of 200 means that when you diffuse the light enough to cover 15mm, you still have a decent amount of light left. I believe that it is also the lowest-priced flash out there with this much GN, and it is also easily accessorized. There is even an IR head for it (no longer available new).

I use the 555 with the 20mm diffuser for nearly everything I shoot using flash, and I am most happy. I have owned it since new, and if it ever died, I would get another, or a 622. It has been battered and bashed into who know what who knows how many times, drowned by an air drop helicopter along with my Canon F-1s, and has had cheap batteries literally blow up inside of it from too-rapid cycling, spreading goo all over the inside of it, but still works, and works perfectly. I don't think I would be able to say the same about any of the fancy, modern, expensive flashes.

Looking for a flash

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