External Flash for A65?

seanoevil

seanoevil

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Hi All,

Bit of advice wondering if there any Sony Alpha compatible external flash guns available on the market - Had a quick look on Sony website - and they seem a little pricey for my needs presently! Well, I can't justify the cost presently, and only want to use one at home, to learn/hobby etc.

Just wondering if there are any alternatives at all?

TIA!
 
There is some decent ones on eBay.

Please Jessops do one aswell, I have 2 Jessops guns and 1 sony gun.

The sony one is better but it comes at a price.
 
The Yongnuo flashes are good, but you only get the manual versions for the Sony Mount.

I have a 560-II, which is great - plenty of power, very good control and includes an optical trigger for off-camera use.

If you want TTL, a good alternative is a s/h Sony 56 or Minolta 5600 HS(d) {these are the same, Sony re-badged the Minolta unit when they took over the A-Mount}, though these are significantly more expensive than the Yongnuo.
 
there was a 42AM on sale for £80 in the Classifieds section here the other day. You probably can't access that yet but soon ...
Both Metz & Sigma make Sony Alpha compatible flashes.
 
I have a Sony 42AM (£90 from FFordes) and a Jessops 360 (£25 from ebay) - Sony one is better built and has high speed sync but the Jessops one is fine and probably the cheapest option if you want ttl and you can use it in full manual too of course. For something in between in terms of price and features the Minolta 3600HS-D is around £50 to £60 and also pretty good - or the later Sony rebadged version which is 36AM I think?

If a used 42am or 56am is within budget then that would probably be the best choice.
 
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The Sony 36 / Minolta 3600 HS(d) has the limitation that the head is tilt only, no swivel option. Good as a second flash, but a PITA at times if the only flash you have.
 
Thank you all for your kind advice - certainly seems to be a minefield out there for these sort of items!

I have placed an ad in the wanted section for a second hand HVL-F42AM. I'll see if anything pops up.

Thanks again all.
 
Faldrax said:
The Sony 36 / Minolta 3600 HS(d) has the limitation that the head is tilt only, no swivel option. Good as a second flash, but a PITA at times if the only flash you have.
Click to expand...

Good point - forgot about that - I knew there was another reason I chose not to get that one aside from no hss.
 
seanoevil said:
Thank you all for your kind advice - certainly seems to be a minefield out there for these sort of items!

I have placed an ad in the wanted section for a second hand HVL-F42AM. I'll see if anything pops up.

Thanks again all.
Click to expand...

There is an overview here which may be helpful: http://kurtmunger.com/flashes_etcid287.html

HVL-F42AM is a good choice for the price and features I reckon - happy with mine anyway. Full list of features at: http://kurtmunger.com/hvl_f42am_flash_reviewid292.html

If you want a cheap and cheerful trigger for off-camera use these do the job pretty well: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JY-03-Wir...a-Support-For-Sony-Minolta-DSLR-/260998842828
 
applemint said:
If you want a cheap and cheerful trigger for off-camera use these do the job pretty well: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/JY-03-Wir...a-Support-For-Sony-Minolta-DSLR-/260998842828
Click to expand...

Note that the above triggers will be manual only - they will not, as far as I know, work in TTL mode.

As such, they are a good option to combine with something like the Yougnuo units I mentioned earlier.

I would suggest you pay a little more and get a kit that is shipped from UK - there are a number of sellers of this particular trigger, from my recollections. You pay a bit more going for a set that ahs already been imported, but avoid the risk that you will get stung for a nasty customs bill (and extortionate 'admin fees' from the courier).
 
Personally, for a first flash, I'd recommend getting a Sony if you can stretch to it. That'll give you the ability to trigger it from the pop up, without 3rd party triggers (with full TTL).
 
metz higher end models have all the features and ttl stuff, I like mine, was 100ish quid
you should budget 30quid or so for accessories whatever you get
 
Faldrax said:
I would suggest you pay a little more and get a kit that is shipped from UK - there are a number of sellers of this particular trigger, from my recollections. You pay a bit more going for a set that has already been imported, but avoid the risk that you will get stung for a nasty customs bill (and extortionate 'admin fees' from the courier).
Click to expand...

£14 from that seller - so no customs or vat as it's under the £15 threshold. Pixel, Cactus or Cowboy studio ones might be a bit more expensive though and therefore better sourced from a UK seller.

I don't think any wireless trigger will provide TTL except perhaps the PocketWizard ones - and they cost hundreds of pounds plus I am not sure if they even do Sony TTL ones?

I did look at Yongnou etc and manual is fine for me most of the time (in fact I prefer it) but TTL can be very useful occasionally and as John says, the Sony ones can be triggered by the pop up with full ttl (although if I am using TTL I usually just stick it on the hot shoe).
 
applemint said:
£14 from that seller - so no customs or vat as it's under the £15 threshold. Pixel, Cactus or Cowboy studio ones might be a bit more expensive though and therefore better sourced from a UK seller.

I don't think any wireless trigger will provide TTL except perhaps the PocketWizard ones - and they cost hundreds of pounds plus I am not sure if they even do Sony TTL ones?

I did look at Yongnou etc and manual is fine for me most of the time (in fact I prefer it) but TTL can be very useful occasionally and as John says, the Sony ones can be triggered by the pop up with full ttl (although if I am using TTL I usually just stick it on the hot shoe).
Click to expand...

Pixel do TTL triggers for Sonys with the iISO (Minolta) hot shoe.
 
applemint said:
I don't think any wireless trigger will provide TTL except perhaps the PocketWizard ones - and they cost hundreds of pounds plus I am not sure if they even do Sony TTL ones?
Click to expand...

Pixel Kings and Opas are both available with full TTL & HSS support in Sony Flash versions (The old Sony flash mount, that is, as the A99 uses a new mount, much closer to the ISO hot shoe). They are a LOT more expensive though (~£70 per unit).
 
Thanks, didn't know about those ones - am fine with all manual triggers at the moment but useful to know.
 
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