Preflash with Sony DSC-P5

Anybody know if a DSC-P5 preflashes?

Do I need a digital dedicated strobe or would a YS30 work with this camera?

Following tray, arm and strobe system can be added to all of this type housing. Deflector to cover strobe on camera is not provided. These DS series strobes will provide and operate with both preflash and standard flash systems.

Click here for more information

[Edited on 3-24-2002 by ike]

Hi,

I have DSC-P1, P5 is same as P1.

DSC-P5 Not have preflashes.

You need a digital dedicated strobe.

Epock ES-150DS,Sea and Sea YS-90 DX ,INNON etc.

in cause,P1/P5 not have manual exposure control.You need strobe power control method.

Hmm...

If the camera's internal flash is TTL (and all of them are) then why wouldn't the Ikelite digital strobes work? They "watch" the camera's internal flash and mimic it. So when you take a shot, the camera's circuitry tells its INTERNAL strobe "Ok, enough light has come back, turn off." Then the camera's internal flash will stop firing and the Ikelite digital strobe would stop firing too.

In other words, the Ike strobe does what the camera does. Make sense?

Cheers

James Wiseman

[Edited on 3-29-2002 by jamesw]

James, what you say makes sense - however it doesn't seem to work like that!

I did some experiments in the dry to see what was going on. I set up a Nikon compatible TTL flash unit on a Nikon SU-4 wireless TTL slave sensor. This should be pretty similar to the slave sensors used in U/W strobes - it is a slave trigger with TTL sync. I pointed the slave trigger at a subject and set it to TTL and then fired the P5 with forced flash.

Results: Sony P5 definitely does not pre flash (I took some shots facing a mirror and you can cvlearly see the 2 flashes in the pictures). However, it does not kill the light in the same way as a TTL strobe. The SU-4 gives an audible warning that the flash has fired at full power (not been quenched) and the pictures were way over exposed. Turn off the slave and the pictures are correctly exposed (so I know I wasn't just too close for the strobe to quench in time).

Something very odd is going on.

Conclusions:

DSC-P% does not pre flash.

Internal flash is NOT TTL, but behaves like it for the camera! I think I read somewhere that some digicams adjust the sensitivity of the CCD instead of quenching the light.

Looks like I'll be using a manual control then...

INUZUKA and Jonniboy sure complicate things. May I suggest reading following URLs for info:

http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/dig_strobes.html

http://www.ikelite.com/web_pages/dig_ttl.html

Jonniboy aimed the Nikon sensor at the subject rather than at the camera so sensor would have been blinded by the strobe to which it was attached.

Ikelite introduced wireless TTL sensors to the WORLD. System works nicely except when a mistake is made in assembly.

First question is do you use manual flash above water with these cameras? If it works above water our system will work underwater.

ike

ike - thanks for the links. I've used Ikelite kit with my (film) F70 so if you say it'll work then I'm pretty confident it will.

Just to clarify, I took shots with the slave sensor in all kinds of places. I ended up pointing it at the subject to mimic what I believe the YS-50 does. I also masked off the Sony's flash with slide film (haven't used that in a while!) on some of the shots. On all of them the slave failed to kill.

Looks like I need the Ikelite kit - shame because I was oferred a really good deal on a used YS-50...

Hi, ike.

If I want effect,more dark or more bright,

How to control brightness by DSC-P1/P5?

[Edited on 4-2-2002 by INUZUKA.m]

There are two ways to get more strobe light into your image.

1. This is obvious, but if you are using a manual strobe you just pick whatever power level you want on the strobe and operate it manually, synched to the camera's strobe. Note that the DS-50 only has one power setting. Also note that the Ikelite DS-50 and DS-125 (with the current slave sensor) cannot operate as manual slave strobes with a digicam that uses preflash -- hey Ike, any word on the rumored slave sensor modification to make this possible?

2. Use the camera's flash exposure compensation (or its overall exposure compensation) to change the TTL exposure. I don't have a Sony camera so I'm not sure how those features work with that camera . . .

Mike

To change the overall exposure:

> with the camera is shooting mode, press MENU

> select the +/- (EV) item

> + will give you more exposure (i.e. more light)

> - will give you less

You can also change the amount of flash output (options are normal, high or low) but the manual isn't at all clear on what this does ("makes the flash level higher than normal" - yeah, how much?) and it doesn't seem to do a lot at all.

Hi,Jonniboy.

EV setting NOT work in flash mode.

EV is work no flash situation.

DSC-P1/P5 flash is NOT TTL.

It like AUTO flash.

AUTO sensor is locate side of flash.

Actually, most digital cameras do not have "TTL" metering if you take TTL to mean "through the lens" -- the initialism is more correctly correlated to the term "Thyristor-Thyristor Logic". In fact, even the highly touted Coolpix 5000 has a flash sensor located on the outside of the camera body . . . How very interesting that exposure compensation doesn't work with the flash on. Have you tried it to make sure?

Mike

explanation

No flash.

http://www.hoops.livedoor.com/~inuzuka_m/d...ev_probrem0.jpg

Flash On.

http://www.hoops.livedoor.com/~inuzuka_m/d...ev_probrem1.jpg

(Sorry mitake post.)

I recently purchased the Bonica Neon Strobe and I got much better results than without it. See below

I recently purchased the Bonica Neon Strobe and I got much better results than without it. See below