Vivitar 285

daveyboy123 · 2nd of April 2007 (Mon)

Would the Vivitar 285 flash be as good,or nearly,as a 430 speedlite?I am trying to cut corners a bit with cost....I want a flash for macro...but I am a bit skint!Does anyone have any advice?Cheers,
Dave

Courierman · 2nd of April 2007 (Mon)

it's what i use with the off camera kit ,set 1/4 power and the 28 mm def and my 50p flash bracket

daveyboy123 · 2nd of April 2007 (Mon)

Well your shots seem pretty good with that setup!Does anyone else have any experience with these flasguns?Or maybe any of the less expensive Metz flashguns?

Curtis N · 2nd of April 2007 (Mon)

Those old-fashioned auto thyristor flash units still work great for a lot of things. But for Macro work, TTL (through the lens) flash metering will be much more enjoyable.

The Vivitar 285 and similar flash units have a built-in sensor that must be aimed at the subject for their auto modes to work. This can be rather difficult when the subject is two inches in front of your lens. Further, they do not have auto settings designed for those distances or the small aperture settings typical of macro shooting.

You can use them in manual mode, measure the distance, calculate the light loss from extension tubes, and figure the correct power setting based on the guide number. But the process is a bit laborious and often leads to frustration.

If you enjoy macro shooting, I strongly recommend an E-TTL flash unit. If the 430EX is a bit too rich for your blood, consider the Sigma EF-500 DG ST for around $150 US. It's an E-TTL flash that should work well for macro endeavors as well as generalized on-camera flash.

daveyboy123 · 2nd of April 2007 (Mon)

OK thanks Curtis,I will have a look around.

2nd of April 2007 (Mon)	#1
daveyboy123 Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Teignmouth,Devon,England Posts: 432 IMAGE EDITING OK	Vivitar 285 Would the Vivitar 285 flash be as good,or nearly,as a 430 speedlite?I am trying to cut corners a bit with cost....I want a flash for macro...but I am a bit skint!Does anyone have any advice?Cheers, Dave

2nd of April 2007 (Mon)	#2
Courierman Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Chatham Kent England Posts: 1,968 IMAGE EDITING OK	Re: Vivitar 285 it's what i use with the off camera kit ,set 1/4 power and the 28 mm def and my 50p flash bracket __________________ Gear List Last edited by Courierman : 2nd of April 2007 (Mon) at 14:19.

2nd of April 2007 (Mon)	#3
daveyboy123 Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Teignmouth,Devon,England Posts: 432 IMAGE EDITING OK	Re: Vivitar 285 Well your shots seem pretty good with that setup!Does anyone else have any experience with these flasguns?Or maybe any of the less expensive Metz flashguns?

2nd of April 2007 (Mon)	#4
Curtis N Master Flasher Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Northern Illinois, US Posts: 18,988	Re: Vivitar 285 Those old-fashioned auto thyristor flash units still work great for a lot of things. But for Macro work, TTL (through the lens) flash metering will be much more enjoyable. The Vivitar 285 and similar flash units have a built-in sensor that must be aimed at the subject for their auto modes to work. This can be rather difficult when the subject is two inches in front of your lens. Further, they do not have auto settings designed for those distances or the small aperture settings typical of macro shooting. You can use them in manual mode, measure the distance, calculate the light loss from extension tubes, and figure the correct power setting based on the guide number. But the process is a bit laborious and often leads to frustration. If you enjoy macro shooting, I strongly recommend an E-TTL flash unit. If the 430EX is a bit too rich for your blood, consider the Sigma EF-500 DG ST for around $150 US. It's an E-TTL flash that should work well for macro endeavors as well as generalized on-camera flash. __________________ "If you're not having fun, your pictures will reflect that." - Joe McNally Chicago area POTN events Flash Photography 101 \| The EOS Flash Bible \| Techniques for Better On-Camera Flash \| How to Use Flash Outdoors \| Excel-based DOF Calculator

2nd of April 2007 (Mon)	#5
daveyboy123 Member Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Teignmouth,Devon,England Posts: 432 IMAGE EDITING OK	Re: Vivitar 285 OK thanks Curtis,I will have a look around.

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