A200 with External Flashes

[allenglishboy]

Hey Im an A200 user. Bought it 2 years ago but only been using it for 8 months.


I wanted to know if it was possible to use an Alpha 200 with more than one external flashes?? I want to try using flash outdoors> I also want to try setting up a miniature studio at home like the one in the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Pu4uyFAkdU

I was just wondering if you could tell me all the equipemtn I would need to do something like that . Usually when i got to Jessops in London they carry virtually no sony equipment and arevery helpful for giving advice about sony products.

[KevinBarrett]

The HVL-F58AM and HVL-F43AM flash guns are designed to provide the kind of wireless ratio control you see used here, but they cannot provide it for any cameras other than the a700, a850, and a900.

This is a pretty useful resource, but it isn't complete in that it doesn't mention the camera-specific features of these higher end flash guns: http://www.mhohner.de/sony-minolta/flashes.php

[allenglishboy]

so wouyld i haave to set the ratio manually if i used it with my 200??? Also what other equipment would i have to buy other than ther flashes?

[KevinBarrett]

If you're going to trigger with the pop-up flash, just make sure your off-camera flash guns can "see" your camera's flash. Most don't have any difficulty with this indoors because the light bounces everywhere and the signals get through pretty reliably. Outdoors, just make sure the front of your extra flash guns (with the red plastic window) are oriented roughly in the direction of your camera. I'm not the expert on Sony's wireless flash by any means, so hopefully another old salt will chime in.

[twm47099]

so wouyld i haave to set the ratio manually if i used it with my 200??? Also what other equipment would i have to buy other than ther flashes?

The way you would set manual ratio is by setting the flashes at different distances from the subject. This is a good resource for wireless flash with Minolta digital cameras:

http://www.friedmanarchives.com/flash.htm

Note that with the old Minolta film cameras (xi and later) you could set ratio directly on the camera or flash. But with all of the digital cameras other than the A700, A850/900 you don't have that ability.

tom

[David Kilpatrick]

There are plenty of wireless flash units which can be set to manual power, over a wide range of settings, and work with all digital bodies. Sigma, Metz, Nissin, Minolta, Sony choices.

Digital SLRs almost remove the need for modelling lights, and flash meters. You can simply make test shots and view them. Therefore, it is totally practical to use manually set remote flash for all studio or fixed set=ups.

David