Flash problem w/ Konica Hexar

[naren]

I just took my Hexar AF out for the first time, shooting at a fashion show in a very dimly lit venue. I was pretty clear on the manual's instructions and so I must have either a defect in the camera or in the flash.

I wanted to shoot in A mode, which according to the manual would require me to set the camera to f/8 and the flash to "A". This resulted in the camera behaving as though there was no flash on it. Thankfully, the camera and flash fired in "P" mode, but this was a bit nerve-wracking as I'm very uncertain what the camera was doing and whether or not the pics came out at all (not sure when I will have a chance to process either). The manual describes the "P" mode in flash photography on the Hexar, as the camera and flash acting together to match the background or ambient light. Since it was so dark in the room I would assume everything was shot at f/2. I did however leave the aperture set where I wanted it at f/8, as the manual had also said to set the aperture when shooting 400 asa. I also don't know what shutter speed the camera was firing at... I hadn't set the minimum "handholdable" speed for "P" mode.

Has anyone out there done flash photography with their Hexar are on "A" mode? I hope it's a problem with the flash and not my camera.

 

[pvdhaar]

The Hexar has rear sync, so if you've set A-mode and f8 in a dim environment, the shutter speed may well drop to a couple of seconds, at the end of which the flash is strobed. This can be very confusing if you're not expecting this..

In P-mode, the shutter speed never falls below the limit that you set. Most people set it to 1/30 or 1/60. Again, the Hexar uses rear sync, but the shutter speed is fast enough that the eye won't be able to catch that the flash pops at the end of the shutter cycle.

As far as the aperture in P-mode with flash is concerned, the Hexar starts the shutter cycle just as it would without flash. It tries to use the aperture you set on the top dial, unless it runs into the user set minimum speed (typically 1/30 or 1/60) or the maximum speed (1/250), where it will open up or stop down to get the ambient exposure correct. But at the very end of the ambient exposure, the Hexar uses the focussed distance, and using the aperture=guide-number/distance rule, changes the aperture to match, and pops the flash.

If you're using flash, and you want the Hexar to stay at f8 as well as have a fast shutter speed (e.g. 1/125) then you've got to set it to M-mode.

Hope this helps..

 

[naren]

Wow that is interesting! Well I'll have to check what my min. shutter speed was set at. Your explanation maybe also sheds light on the sluggishness of the camera even after locking focus. Thanks.

 

[pvdhaar]

Wow that is interesting! Well I'll have to check what my min. shutter speed was set at. Your explanation maybe also sheds light on the sluggishness of the camera even after locking focus. Thanks.

The Hexar is a very responsive camera. It's also one of the quietest, so there's sometimes hardly any clue that it's already started taking a picture.. the sluggishness that you think you experience is the cue that it's completed what it's asked to do.

 

[patrickssjj]

I know this is a really old thread. But I need some help facing the same problem. Did you ever come across a solution?