[C_Jones]

Old-fart rant notwithstanding, I must acknowledge that I have shot my last few weddings (and truly I do them rarely) using my 5D and 24-105 zoom lens, with an even older 550EX flash. It did fine, but it didn’t look any different than Uncle Harry’s digital Rebel and it was hard to get people to acknowledge me as the principle photographer. And believe me, most people still want all the formal group shots, photojournalism notwithstanding. But big print needs are rare, true enough, and the 13 megapixels was usually enough. My wife used a Nikon D300, but has since upgraded to a D500, which has much better high-ISO performance.

Rick “thinking the 645z is a big step up, at least for the formals and altar returns” Denney

---------- Post added 06-04-18 at 09:23 AM ---

Your 645Z has performance capability that you can take advantage of.

Good luck!

[rdenney]

This has been an interesting discourse. It also made me realize that I knew nothing about the 75LS lens. So I looked into it and discovered some ambiguity in directions for its use with flash. Perhaps one of you could translate this English statement from Page 8 of the LS lens instructions:

"Precautions on flash photography using X sync socket:
When an electronic flash is used in the lens shutter mode, connect the cord to the X sync socket. When using a dedicated Pentax clip-on type electronic flash, utilize Hot-shoe Grip, 4P sync cord C, etc. available as optional accessories. ..."

Evidently, this direction is tailored to the 645, as the 645N uses 5P flash cables, and doesn't require the Hot-shoe Grip because it has a hot shoe on the finder housing. What I am questioning is when using the leaf shutter and a Pentax dedicated flash, e.g., AF500FTZ, whether an X-connector cable is used on the 645N from camera to LS lens, or does the camera control the lens shutter through the camera-to-lens interface contacts while controlling the flash through the hot shoe (or any 5P cable)?

My second question is if the LS lens shutter is controlled by the camera via the lens contacts, does TTL work on the flash? Even 1/500 second (2000 microseconds) is long compared to typical flash quench timing in TTL.

Thanks

The LS lens does not need the contacts, and may work better with them taped over. It is triggered by the stop-down lever. When you press the button, it stops down the lens, which closes the leaf shutter, opens the focal plane shutter for 1/8 second, during which it releases the leaf shutter, which then remains closed until it is cocked with the ring on the lens.

The flash contacts and hot shoe on the camera are not used during leaf shutter operation, and the LS lenses do not support TTL or P-TTL automation. The flash is attached via PC cable to the PC connection on the side of the lens, which is triggered by the leaf shutter at the appropriate time.

All of this is triggered when the camera stops down the lens, so it (supposedly) works on all generations of 645 cameras. My 645z doesn’t coordinate properly with the lens unless I tape over the electrical contacts, which is a known issue.

The lens can also be used with the focal-plane shutter.

Rick “who has used it with studio lights quite a bit, and with Vivitar flashes” Denney

[kaseki]

Thanks, Rick.

[Alex645]

Did you ever switch from black and white to color?
Rick "old stories" Denney

Never for weddings, but all the time as a unit still photographer on motion picture sets and on location. The studio/agency/network (pre-digital, pre-AF) wanted 35mm color slides and B&W, so I typically carried (3) Nikon F3HP with Jacobsen sound blimps. One had typically a 400 ISO b&w neg, one had a daylight balanced color slide film like Ektachrome, and one had a tungsten balanced slide film, either 160 pushed two stops or 3M/Scotch 640 ISO. Imagine wearing that at least 12 hours a day, 6 days/week.

I only used the 645 with Kodachrome 64 as a special stills photographer where I got to set up my own lights and shots, vs. unit still where you just capture whatever the cinematographer is working with. And there again, I do recall an ABC and a HBO special where I shot 645 and they required/wanted both B&W and color.

You can imagine how easy it seems to me to shoot digital still these days.

[rdenney]

Never for weddings, but all the time as a unit still photographer on motion picture sets and on location. The studio/agency/network (pre-digital, pre-AF) wanted 35mm color slides and B&W, so I typically carried (3) Nikon F3HP with Jacobsen sound blimps. One had typically a 400 ISO b&w neg, one had a daylight balanced color slide film like Ektachrome, and one had a tungsten balanced slide film, either 160 pushed two stops or 3M/Scotch 640 ISO. Imagine wearing that at least 12 hours a day, 6 days/week.

I only used the 645 with Kodachrome 64 as a special stills photographer where I got to set up my own lights and shots, vs. unit still where you just capture whatever the cinematographer is working with. And there again, I do recall an ABC and a HBO special where I shot 645 and they required/wanted both B&W and color.

You can imagine how easy it seems to me to shoot digital still these days.

Very cool. And yes I can imagine.

Rick “who has a filmmaker buddy who was into Soviet cameras he used for that sort of thing” Denney