[Toni60]

Hello, I would like to buy a ring flash for my K5IIs but do not have enough money to buy Pentax Ring Flash.
Please have you some suggestions?
Many thanks for help.
Regards.
Toni

[35mmfilmfan]

I use this :

Kenro Marumi DRF 14 C ring flash

It is dedicated for Canon, but works perfectly on K20D in manual mode. Cost £15 second hand in unused condition.

[Unregistered User 8]

Hi Toni. I have the Sigma EM 140 DG ring flash and find that it works very well. There are some reviews ( I did one also ) in the flash reviews in the accessories section of the forums. I can highly recommend this flash. Good luck.

[aslyfox]

Hello, I would like to buy a ring flash for my K5IIs but do not have enough money to buy Pentax Ring Flash.
Please have you some suggestions?
Many thanks for help.
Regards.
Toni

are you been checking the market place ( go to the top and check on "buy/sell" ), I have had very good luck finding items for sale there from the members of the forum

good luck

[Toni60]

Wow, many thanks for your quick response, unfortunately the Sigma is too expensive for me. Is for you a good solution Viltrox JY670?
In any case I search also in the market place.
As always excellent support.
Toni

[photolady95]

What's your budget in buying a ringflash?

There are many options for this. Not only ringflashes for macro photography but also bog standard flashes work for macro work too. I don't own a ringflash but use a Pentax AF201FG flash with extender/diffuser homemade for all my macro work.

[Toni60]

What's your budget in buying a ringflash?

There are many options for this. Not only ringflashes for macro photography but also bog standard flashes work for macro work too. I don't own a ringflash but use a Pentax AF201FG flash with extender/diffuser homemade for all my macro work.

My budget is maximum € 150, I already have a Metz 44AF1 that works fine for me and I have also a diffuser but not extender.
Please have you an example of extender, probably if I buy it is possible to solve for my macro.
Thanks.

[photolady95]

I didn't buy mine, I built it out of materials I had on hand. It's a design from another member here.

Materials I used:
foam board
electricians tape
and aluminum foil
and a cut out of a milk jug for the diffuser end
glue to hold it together long enough to wrap the tape and to glue the aluminum foil so it wouldn't slide.

Some members use a Pringles can and it is already lined with silver foil, and comes with its own diffuser.

Photo using my setup:

[WPRESTO]

BE WARNED: modern pTTL ring lights will not provide AE if you are using an MF macro lens on a Pentax DSLT I purchased and returned two units (Pentax and Metz) that would not work properly with either my Tokina 90mm or my Pentax 200mm SMCA ED macro

I use an old Sunpak DX (DX--- I don't recall offhand the rest of the designation - there are two). It used to have AE in the film era, but not since pTTL, so I use it in manual mode using the handy variable output slider.

An odd feature of using flash for macro: As you increase magnification you decrease distance to subject which brings the flash closer so it would require less exposure (=smaller aperture or less flash output), but you also decrease the effective aperture which requires increased exposure (=larger aperture or more flash output). IF a flash, ring or hot shoe, is position at the front edge of a unit-focusing macro lens of 90~105mm FL (ring lights are always at this position, a shoe strobe can be so positioned with an adjustable bracket) these two factors balance out over a certain macro range, roughly 1/5 life size to about full life size, such that the flash exposure remains constant. In other words, if you're using a manual ring flash or a manually-set ring flash, once you have the flash output, aperture and ISO set for correct exposure at say 1:3 reproduction, it will also be correct from about 1:5 to 1:1.

[ramseybuckeye]

I recently bought a Bolt VM-160 LED Macro Ring Light and am quite happy with it, although I have nothing to compare it to. Besides a flash you can also set it to constant on. It is a manual light. I was fortunate enough to get it on a a B&H Deal Zone deal but the regular price, which appears withing your budget.

[atlrob]

I recently bought a Bolt VM-160 LED Macro Ring Light and am quite happy with it, although I have nothing to compare it to. Besides a flash you can also set it to constant on. It is a manual light. I was fortunate enough to get it on a a B&H Deal Zone deal but the regular price, which appears withing your budget.

I bought this one and it is a decent ring flash with a few nice features.

amazon.com : Neewer® Close-up NW-14EXM Universal LED Macro Ring Flash Light with AF Assist Lamp for Canon Nikon Sony Panasonic Olympus Fujifilm Pentax and Other DSLR Cameras with Single-contact Hot Shoe : Camera & Photo?tag=pentaxforums-20&

R. \Burns

[Toni60]

I didn't buy mine, I built it out of materials I had on hand. It's a design from another member here.

Materials I used:
foam board
electricians tape
and aluminum foil
and a cut out of a milk jug for the diffuser end
glue to hold it together long enough to wrap the tape and to glue the aluminum foil so it wouldn't slide.

Some members use a Pringles can and it is already lined with silver foil, and comes with its own diffuser.

Photo using my setup:

Excellent picture and thanks for suggestions.

---------- Post added 04-23-17 at 09:17 AM ----------

BE WARNED: modern pTTL ring lights will not provide AE if you are using an MF macro lens on a Pentax DSLT I purchased and returned two units (Pentax and Metz) that would not work properly with either my Tokina 90mm or my Pentax 200mm SMCA ED macro

I use an old Sunpak DX (DX--- I don't recall offhand the rest of the designation - there are two). It used to have AE in the film era, but not since pTTL, so I use it in manual mode using the handy variable output slider.

An odd feature of using flash for macro: As you increase magnification you decrease distance to subject which brings the flash closer so it would require less exposure (=smaller aperture or less flash output), but you also decrease the effective aperture which requires increased exposure (=larger aperture or more flash output). IF a flash, ring or hot shoe, is position at the front edge of a unit-focusing macro lens of 90~105mm FL (ring lights are always at this position, a shoe strobe can be so positioned with an adjustable bracket) these two factors balance out over a certain macro range, roughly 1/5 life size to about full life size, such that the flash exposure remains constant. In other words, if you're using a manual ring flash or a manually-set ring flash, once you have the flash output, aperture and ISO set for correct exposure at say 1:3 reproduction, it will also be correct from about 1:5 to 1:1.

I prefer to use MF in the macro session and I would like to try my flash with an extender.
Thanks for reply.

---------- Post added 04-23-17 at 09:19 AM ----------

I recently bought a Bolt VM-160 LED Macro Ring Light and am quite happy with it, although I have nothing to compare it to. Besides a flash you can also set it to constant on. It is a manual light. I was fortunate enough to get it on a a B&H Deal Zone deal but the regular price, which appears withing your budget.

Thanks for the link.

---------- Post added 04-23-17 at 09:22 AM ----------

I bought this one and it is a decent ring flash with a few nice features.

amazon.com : Neewer® Close-up NW-14EXM Universal LED Macro Ring Flash Light with AF Assist Lamp for Canon Nikon Sony Panasonic Olympus Fujifilm Pentax and Other DSLR Cameras with Single-contact Hot Shoe : Camera & Photo?tag=pentaxforums-20&

R. \Burns

Thanks for other possible solution, I think only that guide number is low (14) than others with 18 but I am not an expert.
Regards.

---------- Post added 04-23-17 at 09:35 AM ----------

Thanks to All for your help, now in only necessary to found a time to try.
Probably there is another solution that I just discovered:
ExpoImaging Rogue FlashBender Review
Thanks.
Toni

[photolady95]

I bought this one and it is a decent ring flash with a few nice features. amazon.com : Neewer® Close-up NW-14EXM Universal LED Macro Ring Flash Light with AF Assist Lamp for Canon Nikon Sony Panasonic Olympus Fujifilm Pentax and Other DSLR Cameras with Single-contact Hot Shoe : Camera & Photo?tag=pentaxforums-20& R. \Burns

I bought one of these too but returned it because it wasn't better than what I use.

The main reason I don't like most ringflashes is because you get a "ring" shaped light, in the eye of some insects using them.

[adsouza]

Hello, I would like to buy a ring flash for my K5IIs but do not have enough money to buy Pentax Ring Flash.
Please have you some suggestions?
Many thanks for help.
Regards.
Toni

I do you an old Vivitar 6000AF Pentax dedicated on my K3...works beautifully and is rather inexpensive. The build quality is cheap and it feels flimsy but it is highly capable of producing excellent results recent photo attached using an M 100mm F4 macro lens.

[TER-OR]

Flash directors can be made as described, they work.

I have a used Sunpak DX-8R which I bought here on the Marketplace. I had to track down the Pentax module separately, but it was not expensive. I use the flash in manual mode, having learned the proper amount of light to add based on conditions. It's not as hard as it sounds. When shooting 1/160sec, f16, ISO 100 at 100mm I use 1/4 to 1/8 flash power. Add the 1.4X teleconverter and that goes up to 1/2 flash power.

I think the Sunpak is likely the least expensive strobe ring flash option.

But yes, you will get a ring-shaped reflection in insect eyes.