500 ftz K-5 wireless problem

colinmiller18 · 11-10-2012, 10:36 PM

I've just started to try off camera flash techniques.

I have mounted a 500 ftz on a stand and set to slave (sl) in manual mode.

I have set my K-5 to wireless and am using the on-camera flash as a trigger.

The set up works in so much as, the on-camera flash fires the off-camera flash.

The only problem is the off-camera flash don't add any exposure to the image.

I have mounted the flash on the camera to register the flash, still the same result.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

Frustrated strobist.

SOldBear · 11-10-2012, 10:45 PM

The Pentax AF500FTZ does not support p-TTL remote operation. It is a "dumb" trigger mode, that is, the flash can be triggered by any strobe.

In this case, the remote flash is triggered by the preflash strobe from the built-in flash, which happens before the shutter is open. That's why the remote flash does not contribute to the exposure.

To verify, set the camera in 2 sec delay mode. You'll see that the remote flash is triggered by the preflash strobe.

This issue has been discussed many times. These are some threads on the same subject:

- Thread 1
- Thread 2
- Thread 3
- Thread 4

OK, here's my post explaining the symptom (AF500FTZ is essentially AF540FGZ in slave mode 2):

Pentax 540 in slave mode 2

colinmiller18 · 11-12-2012, 04:01 AM

Thanks for this, it explains my problem clearly.

11-10-2012, 10:36 PM	#1
colinmiller18 Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Perth, WA, Australia Posts: 27	500 ftz K-5 wireless problem I've just started to try off camera flash techniques. I have mounted a 500 ftz on a stand and set to slave (sl) in manual mode. I have set my K-5 to wireless and am using the on-camera flash as a trigger. The set up works in so much as, the on-camera flash fires the off-camera flash. The only problem is the off-camera flash don't add any exposure to the image. I have mounted the flash on the camera to register the flash, still the same result. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Cheers Frustrated strobist.

11-10-2012, 10:45 PM	#2
SOldBear Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Alameda, CA Posts: 3,206	The Pentax AF500FTZ does not support p-TTL remote operation. It is a "dumb" trigger mode, that is, the flash can be triggered by any strobe. In this case, the remote flash is triggered by the preflash strobe from the built-in flash, which happens before the shutter is open. That's why the remote flash does not contribute to the exposure. To verify, set the camera in 2 sec delay mode. You'll see that the remote flash is triggered by the preflash strobe. This issue has been discussed many times. These are some threads on the same subject: - Thread 1 - Thread 2 - Thread 3 - Thread 4 OK, here's my post explaining the symptom (AF500FTZ is essentially AF540FGZ in slave mode 2): Pentax 540 in slave mode 2 Last edited by SOldBear; 11-10-2012 at 10:59 PM.

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11-12-2012, 04:01 AM	#3
colinmiller18 Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Perth, WA, Australia Posts: 27 Original Poster	Thanks for this, it explains my problem clearly.