Off camera shoe for Canon A-1/AE-1p

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Nighthawk

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Although I rarely do flash photography a need has arrisen, and I'm trying to solve a problem. I use Canon A-1s and AE-1 Programs primarily, and have several dedicated Sunpak strobes. The problem is getting them off the camera without loosing the dedicated function. I'd read somewhere a while back that that Off Camera Shoe 2 for EOS will work, and in this hope have recently ordered one. But I wonder if I've made the right choice. Does anyone have any experience with this solution, or can anyone recommend a different solution?
 

waynecrider

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Did you look over in the Canon Museum to see what accessories were available? If there wasn't a cord available or a second party transmitter/reciever that quelched the flash like Nikons unit available, your up the creek except for auto operation which can work correctly if you test the flash.
 

benjiboy

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Canon A1 off camera strobe

Nighthawk said:
Although I rarely do flash photography a need has arrisen, and I'm trying to solve a problem. I use Canon A-1s and AE-1 Programs primarily, and have several dedicated Sunpak strobes. The problem is getting them off the camera without loosing the dedicated function. I'd read somewhere a while back that that Off Camera Shoe 2 for EOS will work, and in this hope have recently ordered one. But I wonder if I've made the right choice. Does anyone have any experience with this solution, or can anyone recommend a different solution?
I have a couple of A1's, and since there is no ttl flash ability on the camera all a dedicated flash will give you is a flash ready light in the viewfinder, I just use a 1meter coiled flash sync lead, and a bracket.
 

MattKing

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Are your flashes ones that can only be used, dedicated, on the Canon cameras, or are they ones that can be used as well either manually, or semi-automatically (i.e. you set the ASA/ISO on the flash, and read the aperture indication that corresponds to the distance range you need, then set that aperture on your camera)?

It has probably been more than 25 years since I sold these cameras (Canon A-1/AE-1p) so my memory on the subject is somewhat vague, but I seem to recall that these cameras did not offer any through the lens flash metering. As a result, they depended on the sensor on the flash to adjust the light being emitted by the flash.

If I am correct in my recollection, the only benefits of having a "dedicated" flash were that you were assured that you would not accidentally set a shutter speed that was too high for flash photography (faster than 1/60 second) and when you set the aperture on the flash (for the automatic range you had chosen), the cameras would automatically be set to that aperture. Setting the ASA (as it then was) on the camera may also have set the ASA on the flash too.

If your flashes are the semi-automatic ones, then it is merely a matter of using a generic cord to trigger the flash (I seem to recall that at least the AE1-P had a PC synch outlet), making sure that the settings on the camera match the flash, and taking care to make sure that the sensor on the flash is pointing at the subject of your photograph.
 
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