| Latest Review Posted | Vivitar 550FD M/P/O
This flash came with some gear I purchased on Ebay, so it was basically free to me. When I mounted it on my K-x I was surprised to find that the dedicated functions worked! With the K-x set to program mode, I turned on the flash, and the K-x went to flash mode, showing the flash icon in the viewfinder. The shutter automatically set to 1/180, and the aperture changed to match the 5.6 aperture setting on the flash. The flash has two auto ranges, and when I switched the flash to the second range, f11, the aperture on the K-x automatically changed to f11 to match! Even better, you don't have to change the ISO setting on the flash at all. I just have to change the ISO setting on the camera, and the aperture on the camera changes to match the new ISO.
I have since discovered that when I have my Pentax 18-55 af zoom on the camera, only the f stop setting is controlled by the flash. I still have to set the shutter to 180 manually. When a manual focus lens is on the camera, the flash controls both the shutter speed and the f stop.
The Ttl mode does not appear to work, but so far the flash's sensor system has been spot on accurate so I am not missing the Ttl mode at all. It has a decent guide number of 80 and the longest auto range goes out to 40 feet. I am totally happy with this flash. I no longer have to go to manual mode and make all the changes necessary to use an auto flash. I just have to turn the unit on and I am ready to fire away. |
