Best Compact Flashes?

[FalseDigital]

I wouldn't be surprised if this question has been asked before but here goes;

I LOVE shooting with my Bessa-R but sometimes I wish I had a flash. I own some nice flashes but they are anything but compact.
I was wondering if you guys had some suggestions for a good compact flash to mount to my Bessa?

The more compact the better! I want it as small as possible

 

[rxmd]

I guess the most important consideration is that there will be no communication between the camera and the flash. So it should be an automatic thyristor flash, that is one with an A mode and a photo cell that were introduced in the 1970s. You dial in the aperture of your lens, and the flash automatically regulates the light output so that it fits ambient light for this aperture. This is so much more comfortable than guessing distances or flash metering all the time.

A secondary consideration would be tilt/swivel capability. There aren't many compact flashes with tilt capability and an A mode, partly because the mechanics make them less compact.

If you want really compact flashes with an A mode, you have things like the Sunpak PF20XD, but that one doesn't tilt. The Kalimar 190a is fairly small, too. The older Sunpak Auto series is neat (300, 311, 321, 411), but not all of them tilt. The 411 is a very versatile unit with two-way swivel, a good guide number and it doesn't look too intimidating from the front (all I can see on the lens are terrible wideangle shots that make it look bigger than it is).

 

[Jason Sprenger]

Non-dedicated compact flashes are pretty rare these days. I currently favor the Metz C-20 as it fits into a Domke F-5xb that I use for my RF gear. The head tilts and I can slip a business card behind the head to get a little bounce. It has two automatic modes at f2.8 and f5.6. The flash is small, takes two AA batteries and doesn't make an RF clumsy like a flash taking 4 cells would do.

A number of RF enthusiasts deliberately avoid flash, but I feel a little flash can be helpful within its limits.

 

[FalseDigital]

rxmd - Too big, too big! I don't mind if it has no tilt and if it's fully manual. I can easily deal with that. I just want something compact. If I could put a disposable camera flash on a hotshoe and use that I would. I don't need full coverage as I'm using it to shoot people directly in front of me.

Any suggestions based on that criteria?

 

[rxmd]

Well you can always find extremely compact flashes but there's the question of metering.

If you're willing to do a minimal amount of tinkering, the most compact option I can think of are the A11 or A16 flashes from an Olympus XA. They have a photo cell and an automatic mode for f/4, they run on a single AAA cell, and they're about the size of a can of film:

In order to use them on another camera than an XA, you obviously have to attach a foot and connect it to the fire contact of the flash, and you need to keep press the metal button on the side of the flash pushed in (jam it with a pin or something) so that the flash thinks it's connected to an XA.

For the foot and contact, either make one from one of those $1 hotshoe cables:

Or take an old Metz SCA 300 adapter, which should cost like $5 and is about the size of the flash:

Rip off the upper half of the SCA adapter so that you're left with just the swiveling foot with two contacts inside, and connect the foot to the contacts in the flash.

The guide number will be rather low and you'll be limited to f/4, but you'll have few problems with exposure and it's as compact a flash as they come. You'll have trouble getting any smaller than that.

 

[telenous]

Have a look also on Vivitar 252. It is compact enough to have always with and sells for a pittance. Two auto settings, one manual. Bear in mind it's an old technology flash reported to have a high sync voltage (c. 200V). I am not sure whether the Bessa R can take directly as much without damaging the light meter circuit. (I understand the Leica M6, for example, can; the M6TTL can't.) If in doubt plug the PC cord in the PC socket of the camera (instead of firing the flash directly from the hotshoe) to avoid problems due to high voltage.


.

 

[rxmd]

Like the M6, the Bessa's meter circuit is completely unrelated to the flash, and it's a mechanical camera, so it should work without problems. My Bessa R worked with a Braun Hobby flash from the 1950s, which almost certainly was a high-voltage unit. Anyway, there shoudn't be a difference between the PC cord and the flash socket.

The M6TTL contains flash metering circuitry, so the meter is connected to the flash socket, and as Leica economized on a $0.25 thyristor between the two it can't handle high voltages.

 

[presspass]

I don't know how big is too big, but if the size works, a Vivitar 2800 is a nice small flash. It tilts, has two auto exposure settings, and uses four AA batteries so the recycle is fairly fast. It may be too large for what you want - it's good out to 40 feet at f4.0 with Tri-X.

 

[FalseDigital]

I have a Vivitar 2800, Nikon SB-800, and Vivitar Auto Thrister. All of which are too big. I'm looking for something as microscopic as possible, like the sony nex flashes.

If I could mount one of those to my bessa that would be perfect. Since I mainly shoot portraits that would work fine.
I appreciate all the feedback.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

An old Vivitar 100 is pretty small.

http://cgi.ebay.com/VIVITAR-100-MANUAL-FLASH-UNIT-137418-/140574726077

 

[kxl]

The Nikon SB-30 is a small capable flash.

http://www.mir.com.my/rb/photography/hardwares/classics/NikonF5/Flash/SB30/index.htm

 

[rxmd]

I have a Vivitar 2800, Nikon SB-800, and Vivitar Auto Thrister. All of which are too big. I'm looking for something as microscopic as possible, like the sony nex flashes.

If I could mount one of those to my bessa that would be perfect. Since I mainly shoot portraits that would work fine.
I appreciate all the feedback.

Two considerations:

- The NEX flash is small because it gets power from the camera. You won't get that with any other flash, they have to get power from somewhere.

- I don't know about your project, but pictures taken with on-camera flash tend to be bad, because it's just about the worst direction where light can be coming from. Take the flash off your camera and you mitigate the size problem a lot, and get better lighting.

That said, I suggest you look into mini slave flashes:

Most of them will not have a hot shoe or sync cord, so you can't trigger them on the Bessa. But you can look for mini slave flashes on eBay and at photo stores.

Some of the better ones like the $30 Morris Mini Slave II and Mini Widehave a sync connection. Note that this again adds some electronics and size to the flash.

Those are still in the 2" size range because of the battery and sync electronics - in the NEX much of that is done by the camera. You won't get that in a film rangefinder, it's a case of "have the cake and eat it, too".

 

[zuikologist]

Back when the Bessa R was new, the Sunpak 1600a was the flash of choice. It has a bounce head, auto and manual settings and is about 3 inches high. A Fuji film cannister cut lengthways should clip onto the head to make a low cost diffuser.

You may be able to search the archive here for some old threads on this flash.

 

[tlitody]

A contax TLA200 is an option but not sure about its auto mode. The sunpak PF20XD is about the smallest with a fair amount of control.