Sony HVLF43M High Power Flash with Quick Shift Bounce (Black)

I won't get into a lot of technical stuff with this. I had the old 43 which worked well, got a Sony with the new hotshoe, so got a new 43 with the new connection. This is a great flash! I love the way the head pivots and tilts, it puts out great light, and I REALLY LIKE the new way it releases. The slide to lock/unlock lever is a real plus to this model. It seems to be perfectly matched to my A77II. They play very well together as the flash knows what the camera says and does it willingly.I haven't really used the LED movie light extensively yet because I'm not big on video but it seems a bit weak to do a lot. However, it has several levels and, if nothing else, it can be used as a decent flashlight.So, my 5 stars are mainly for flash for stills. I do a little real estate photography and (with a diffuser) this gives me all the nice even light I need for small to large rooms. The adjust-ability of the head really helps with bouncing/diffusing the light exactly where I need it. I did a shoot a couple days ago and flashed (fill flash level) about 200 times. It recycles well (and quickly if you need it) and I had a fair amount of power left when I was finished (I use rechargeable batteries in it).A little on people and kids: Great flash for that too. It meters well for fill and provides good lighting in a variety of settings (noting though that I always use a Graslon or Got Lux? diffuser, both of which I also recommend). Though it's probably more the camera, the TTL metering is accurate however I have this flash bouncing and diffusing. As I said, nice that they play well. Need a little fill when the sun is behind your model (or grandkids)? Great flash. Want nice faces and see a little of the scenery at night too? Use this flash and set the ole Sony on slow sync. Great results.Need a very nice flash for your very nice Sony camera, especially with the new hotshoe? Don't hesitate. I'll be getting another when I can to use in a group as you can use 1 or 2 or more of these wirelessly with most Sonys. Not that this one can't do a room; I just want another to experiment with learning expanded lighting and group wireless techniques.

No problems and works great. I use the Sony a55 DSLT. I bought this to use on my photoshoots for weddings mostly, and not only does it make significant improvements when dealing with low light, it has great functionality. You can change the zoom of the flash to condense or widen the angle. It has a two different built in defusers, one that retroflects, and another that's a semi-transparent piece of plastic, and you can use both at the same time if needed. A constant on LED light to use for videography, and timing settings to use with the camera, allowing for pre-exposure flash, during exposure flash, and after-exposure flash, all within micro-seconds of the the full exposure, so it changes the point of focus for the flash in the exposure. It also comes with a side stand to use as a stand alone flash, so not only could you use it from different angles, but buy a head of time if you're working with a lower end camera and one day want to upgrade. Its very versatile.Side Note: There are multiple remotes you can use with the camera, and/or the flash, but they're terribly expensive, so my fiance that's an engineer is building his own using an arduino pro mini, and somehow mimic the signals to the camera, so I can use a separate remote, and have RF(wireless) linkage, all for like $30, which is half the price of Sony's. I think that paints a huge picture, Sony needs to be more price point competitive.

Equipment: Sony A7R2, Lens: Sony 28 f2. Camera setting: Aperture priority, ISO: auto, flash setting: fill light. Flash setting: TTLThe result: well with the TTL, the camera auto set ISO: 254000. F 2, 1/125 s.What the heck? The reason I want to use the flash is to lower the ISO in low light condition, now with and w/o the flash ISO is the same! Maybe I was spoiled by the Canon system? When I use my Canon 6D and speedlite EX420, whenever the flash fires, the ISO is auto set at 400, and speed 1/180, so my ISO dial is always parked on Auto. The only way to make this flash and A7R2 work together is to set the camera on manual mode, and set the ISO manually. The highest speed can go is 1/250. For auto flash, the flash gives 2 second "pre-flash" before fire, this delay costs my losing a lot of shots of my children. The only way to avoid the delay is to set the flash on 'rear sync" on camera. Never had this kind of delay on Canon flash.Anther problem of the design of the flash, is that is causes spillage of the light posteriorly during the fire of the flash and it punishes the eyes of the photographer who is behind the flash, even with the flash point upward 90 degrees for the bounce light, the flash light spills out so much that my eyes are constantly being "flashed" whenever the flash fires. This never happens on Canon flash. The canon's flash light is very well controlled and does not spill backwards to punish the photographer who stands behind.You will probably be better off with a third party flash, with 1/5 of the price since only manual mode works with this flash.

The HVLF43M I received was damaged with limited capabilities. The horse shoe connector, the part that connects to the camera's horse shoe, was chipped. Although the product was able to turn on and work with the camera, not all of the flash's settings worked because of the damage.