[GrimWolf]

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I have been looking at budget flash guns for my camera and have been looking at Neewer flashes, they look good and are at attractive prices, however I've not found much in the way of pentax oriented reviews. Has anyone had much experience with them? I want to get a flash gun that has ttl functionality. I had been looking at younguo models, but saw they only work in manual mode.

I am thinking of http://www.amazon.co.uk/Neewer-Professional-Speedlight-Flashlight-Photograph...E+5500k+pentax

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Last edited by GrimWolf; 12-03-2015 at 04:05 PM.

[THoog]

Even though it has 'TT' in the name, that is a manual-only flash - it only has a single pin on the hotshoe. I don't see a TTL flash for Pentax on the Neewer site.

[bdery]

Neewer don't manufacture their flashes themselves, they rebrand other products. That being said, they can rebrand excellent flashes without problem! Read a review of the Godox/Neewer 850 here:

Godox Ving V850 System Review - Introduction | PentaxForums.com Reviews

The flash you are linking to ressembles a Yongnuo flash based on looks and features. It will probably serve you well, within the range of things it can do. No TTL, no automatic controls, etc.

If you want a TTL flash, the cheapest reliable product is the Sigma 610 (or maybe something more recent?), if you exclude miniature units like the Pentax 200 and 201, and the equivalent Metz. The Metz 52 AF-1 is a bit more expensive, but a much better product. The new Pentax units (360 v2 and 540 v2) are also very good, WR, and have nice features like video lights. Metz also make more powerful units than the 52 if you're willing to pay.

[royden]

I've been looking at The Neewer TT560 and 561 myself. The former mentions usability on cameras with a single-contact hot shoe. The other(561) mentions standard hot shoe. I googled, read other listings(some don't mention the hot shoe at all) and is not clear on what I have on the K5lls. I know the the TT560 is a manual flash and if the one contact on it touches the big center contact on my hot shoe, I should be good to go. Am I correct in my thinking here? Your comments/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
And what the heck is a standard hot shoe?

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[THoog]

I know the the TT560 is a manual flash and if the one contact on it touches the big center contact on my hot shoe, I should be good to go. Am I correct in my thinking here?

Yes, so long as you aren't expecting any TTL or other automation. Earlier film SLRs (like the Spotmatics or K1000) only had a single pin in the center of the hotshoe. The other pins that surround the center pin were added later for communication between the camera and flash. As different makers have different layouts and uses for the other pins, flashes that use them have to be specific to that brand, and are referred to as "dedicated" flashes. A single-pin flash doesn't do any of that stuff.

And what the heck is a standard hot shoe?

These days, that pretty much means "not Sony's proprietary hot shoe", although Sony's later bodies have a "standard" hot shoe.

[royden]

Yes, so long as you aren't expecting any TTL or other automation. Earlier film SLRs (like the Spotmatics or K1000) only had a single pin in the center of the hotshoe. The other pins that surround the center pin were added later for communication between the camera and flash. As different makers have different layouts and uses for the other pins, flashes that use them have to be specific to that brand, and are referred to as "dedicated" flashes. A single-pin flash doesn't do any of that stuff.



These days, that pretty much means "not Sony's proprietary hot shoe", although Sony's later bodies have a "standard" hot shoe.

Thanks for info. THoog. I pretty much was coming to the same conclusion based on info I picked up here and there. The last flash I have was back in the early 1970's when i have a Vivitar, I think it was a 283 using it on a Canon AE1 program. I think I will order one tonight. The #560 is used in a number of flashes by other companies..Yougnou offers a YN560 ll, 111 and iv. Godox offers a TT560 and I think I saw another on Ebay or Amazom. Is there a significance to this Number?

[THoog]

Be careful with older Vivitar 283s. Some of them have really high trigger voltage (in excess of 200 volts). This was a non-issue with SLRs with an actual metal contact closing the hotshoe circuit, but with a DSLR, it's just a transistor switch and voltages that high can burn out the transistor. I understand the later (made in China or Korea, maybe?) 283s are only 10 volts or so, which is no problem. It's always a good idea to check with a voltmeter before trying on the camera.

[royden]

O no. I don't have that anymore. As a matter of fact I have 2 Pentax flashes that I test fired. I won't use them on my DSLR. They are AF200S and AF-16. I may put them on the Market Place. I read somewhere on this forum that they can be used on Dslrs with some kind of voltage reducer. I have no interest in looking into that.

[THoog]

O no. I don't have that anymore. As a matter of fact I have 2 Pentax flashes that I test fired. I won't use them on my DSLR. They are AF200S and AF-16. I may put them on the Market Place. I read somewhere on this forum that they can be used on Dslrs with some kind of voltage reducer. I have no interest in looking into that.

The Pentax flashes are fine, actually. Their trigger voltages are somewhere around 8 volts. Old Vivitars are kind of hit-and-miss because many models had such long production runs.

Regarding 560 - Yongnuo has had such success with the YN-560 as a cheap manual flash that it may be the other Chinese makers are trying to snag buyers away with even cheaper flashes with similar names. The Chinese 3rd-party makers are amazingly cutthroat.