Any Help WIth A New Flash?

I have the Sony HVL-F60M flash... I'm reading flash photography books and the manual and still can't figure out how to use it.
I can't find any videos or articles on how to use it either.

I want to shoot in manual but I can't figure it out. In the book I'm reading the author is using a Nikon SB-900.

With that flash he changes the f stop and turns a dial or presses buttons until it tells him how far he needs to be from the subject. He also changes the ISO I believe on the flash to help it calculate the distance.

I can't do either on my flash. So I don't know what to do??? I'm sure there's an answer but I can't figure it out and I'm getting impatient!

Please help if you know the answers or have this flash. Even sending me to a website or somebody to ask would be much appreciated!

Thank you!
Seth

You should disregard what someone else does with a Nikon flash. Stick with the Sony manual and you should be able to figure it out.

The Sony flash manual seems pretty straight forward.

I contacted Sony and they told me it wouldn't work how I needed it to. That's all great what you posted, but it doesn't work like that off camera. It becomes all guess work. It won't tell you the distance you need to be. It won't let you change the ISO or f stops. Its a great flash if you want to use it on camera or in auto TTL but I want to use it off camera in Manual so it won't work for me. Thank you for the effort!
Seth

Bonecollector wrote in post #17872078
I contacted Sony and they told me it wouldn't work how I needed it to. That's all great what you posted, but it doesn't work like that off camera. It becomes all guess work. It won't tell you the distance you need to be. It won't let you change the ISO or f stops. Its a great flash if you want to use it on camera or in auto TTL but I want to use it off camera in Manual so it won't work for me. Thank you for the effort!
Seth

What you are asking for is impossible. When you use a flash off camera, in manual mode, it is always guess work or you use a flash meter. No other flash ever made will do what you describe.

The day and age of everyone not wanting to know the ins and outs. I don't have skill or patience to learn mentality. Just have some automated system do it for me.

The SB-900 does.

I've seen it... maybe i'm not describing it well but It is possible.

My ancient Sunpak will show recommended distance when ISO, f number, zoom, and power are set on the flash. This assumes the flash is on the camera (or if off-camera, the same distance as the camera to the subject) and no modifier used.

The Sony manual, page 57, states distance isn't shown if the flash is used off-camera.

IMAGE LINK: https://flic.kr/p/CW6N​8i

oldvultureface wrote in post #17872196
The Sony manual, page 57, states distance isn't shown if the flash is used off-camera.

weird.

really makes no sense.

all my ancient (and newer) flashes will give distance info off camera.

A distance readout is only relevant if the flash is the same distance from the subject as the camera, pointed directly at the subject, and not bounced or modified.

oldvultureface wrote in post #17872231
A distance readout is only relevant if the flash is the same distance from the subject as the camera, pointed directly at the subject, and not bounced or modified.

well the flash could be off camera and the same distance to the subject ... if so, all the info would still be relevant.

but it just makes no sense to hide that info if the flash isn't connected to the camera. It seems like more work to program that into the flash rather than just have it display at all times.

Bonecollector wrote in post #17871135
I want to shoot in manual but I can't figure it out. In the book I'm reading the author is using a Nikon SB-900.

With that flash he changes the f stop and turns a dial or presses buttons until it tells him how far he needs to be from the subject. He also changes the ISO I believe on the flash to help it calculate the distance.

If what you're learning is manual off-camera flash, I think you'd be better off forgetting that speedlites even have this functionality. It sounds like a way to use the flash's software as a crude exposure calculator in lieu of proper metering. Pre-setting flash power and having the flash tell you where it wants to be is also backwards from how photographers normally work with light, and without knowing how to do the same math yourself, you get a distance figure that is only valid if this flash is your only subject light. And as soon as you start using any kind of light modifier, this whole approach becomes useless.

My recommendation would be to forget that the flash even has this distance calculator, put the light where you want it for the look you want to get, and meter the subject (or take test shot). Adjust flash power and camera settings accordingly. If where you want the light turns out to be too far away at max flash power, you can shoot a higher ISO, wider aperture, or move the flash closer. This kind of adjustment will work with multi-light setups and with strobes and continuous lights (which don't have speedlite-type calculators).

I agree... I'm in the process of returning the Sony flash and have ordered the Canon 600EX-RT flash.

I'm planning on purchasing a Canon for wildlife photography anyway so I chose Canon over a Nikon flash.

I'm going to use it off camera with a pocke wizard...

The man I talked to as Sony doesn't know why they didn't make it the normal way?

It's pretty silly!
Thanks for your response...
Seth

I'm following Brian Petersons guide the way he teaches you to learn...


You start by using the settings the flash tells you, once your experienced enough you can do it how you wish.

I assume it's like when I learned to shoot in manual.... You start by following the rules he'll tell you iso 200 f 11 shutter speed 200 (or whatever) then once you start understanding how it works you realize how to choose what you want. You want more in focus? f 22 iso 500 shutter speed 80 something like this

so if I don't have the settings on the flash (the ability to change the iso, f stop, and have it tell me a recommended distance) it leaves me with guessing. Having never worked with flash, I will be confused for a long time and not really know how it works... zooming in, flash level, how close to be etc.

unless I'm confused I believe at least to learn I need a flash that will allow me to se those functions.

As I stated above I’m purchasing a canon flash and will experiment and hope it works.

If I'm confused, please explain to me I would rather keep the Sony flash if it's just as easy to learn how to shoot flash without those setting and having correct exposures.

Thank you,
Seth

abplastic's post is good info too.

further, the flash is just using basic calculations and laws of physics to calculate those numbers, you can do the same. The inverse square law will help you do the calculations if you want to learn.

I use a flash meter it makes things nice and simple especially when you get into using softboxes and multiple lights. Here's a recent post where a lot of us talk about how we use light meters, https://photography-on-the.net …read.php?t=1449​674&page=1 Once you get a good feel for things it becomes second nature to move the flash back a bit and crank up the power enough to make the difference.

So are you saying I should keep the sony and get a meter?

Do you put the f stop and iso info in the meter for it to calculate rather than in the flash?