Sony and TTL is still not as good and consistent as Nikon imho. I noticed a huge difference in metering and consistency when i ditched my Nikon D3's for Sony A900's years ago. I owned a couple of hvl‑F60am which i found to be extremely well made for being speed lights, and with a nice swivel design which outperformed both Nikon and Canon flashes.
TTL has improved over the years and with the A7/A99 series it's good enough and consistent enough. Still prefer Nikon's flash metering though.
I do not use TTL speed lights these days, when I need a speed light I do not need a 500-600$ unit, I prefer using cheap manual speed lights that I can toss in wherever I need and not worry about them being knocked around of getting wet/hit etc.
Fotografpaul wrote:
Sony and TTL is still not as good and consistent as Nikon imho.
I was _VERY_ happy with Nikon's TTL when I was Nikon user. That and other things make me miss it and keep wishing Nikon does come up with exact copy of their eco-system in mirrorless format. Hopefully they don't do something stupid this time around like they did with CX.
Fotografpaul wrote:
I do not use TTL speed lights these days, when I need a speed light I do not need a 500-600$ unit, I prefer using cheap manual speed lights ...
Oh, I am not getting this for actual serious work. I am getting just single unit for those times when I need some fill and won't have opportunity to deal with metering (hence TTL, and reliable accurate TTL, requirement).
I had the HVL-F60M unit before. Operation-wise I was happy with everything that flash had to offer. But that version had only the optical remote triggering and it wasn’t that reliable, especially for outdoors. That’s the main reason Sony came up with the new “R” version.
AGeoJO wrote:
I had the HVL-F60M unit before. Operation-wise I was happy with everything that flash had to offer. But that version had only the optical remote triggering and it wasn’t that reliable, especially for outdoors. That’s the main reason Sony came up with the new “R” version.
Yes, optical triggering is why I wasn't looking at F60M. That becomes completely unusable even at short distances when you are in strong sun.
I have two HVL-F60RM, one HVL-F45RM, and two Flashpoint Zoom Li-on R2 TTL (V860II-S), The Godox units sometimes lose connection in the hot shoe when moving around an event with two cameras and require "refitting" into the hot shoe. The weird head "Quick Shift Bounce" on the Sony is useful in fast moving event work.
For on-camera event shooting, I am using the Sony.
I'll probably sell the Flashpoint Zoom Li-on R2 TTL (V860II-S) units, keep the Flashpoint eVOLV 200 TTL (I have two), remote triggers, and add a high powered Godox unit.
I don't run out of power with the AA batteries in the Sony although I was hoping to ditch them when Godox came out with the Li-Ion battery flashes.
The Sony units feel more responsive at events; however, I've not done any testing so it's doesn't have any real use in evaluating the options. Try renting to see what you prefer.
Edit: I like the locking switch on the Sony as the controls get hit a lot when carrying two cameras with flash units. . Setting up wireless is easy.
MNPNW wrote:
I have two HVL-F60RM, one HVL-F45RM, and two Flashpoint Zoom Li-on R2 TTL (V860II-S), The Godox units sometimes lose connection in the hot shoe when moving around an event with two cameras and require "refitting" into the hot shoe. The weird head "Quick Shift Bounce" on the Sony is useful in fast moving event work.
For on-camera event shooting, I am using the Sony.
Thank you! How accurate, reliable and consistent you are finding HVL-F60RM's TTL, please?
I have been using the Godox flashes and they have worked but are extremely fragile. The flash feet break off with even light handling. Not useful for professional use on camera. For off camera use I have put them into bowens flash mounts and then onto a flash stand. I am hoping the HVL-F45RM units will be more reliable.
That's an artifact of the Sony foot design. It's the same with real Sony speedlights.
It may be possible to design around the problem, but no one I'm aware of has managed it yet.
Grasping for straws, the Godox feet at least have the advantage of being cheap to replace.
EDIT:
Chris Geiger wrote:
I have been using the Godox flashes and they have worked but are extremely fragile. The flash feet break off with even light handling.
Sony flash protocols use the Minolta system which is 2 part, ttl and adi with the adi found in A mount cameras very accurate. It is a distance measuring set up and is part of the reason the newer A mount cameras have focus limiting built into the camera with the subject shown on a graph. The ability to set minimum and maximum focus is quite handy.
mogul wrote:
Sony flash protocols use the Minolta system which is 2 part, ttl and adi with the adi found in A mount cameras very accurate. It is a distance measuring set up and is part of the reason the newer A-mount cameras have focus limiting built into the camera with the subject shown on a graph. The ability to set minimum and maximum focus is quite handy.
Yes and i'v heard this so many times over the years, ever since i started shooting Sony A900.
Minolta was indeed one of the first with wireless flash and distance metering. But the notion it's that it still is a protocol that is one of the best on the market is simply not true.
It's been bested by Nikon CLS (and Canon) for quite some years ago, Sony's metering is conservative at best. There is no denying that Sony TTL is about the hardest to get right for any 3rd party manufacturer.
Heck not even Profoto who has first-hand access to the proprietary TTL protocols has been able to put out a A1 for Sony.
Jay Ford wrote:
That's an artifact of the Sony foot design. It's the same with real Sony speedlights.
It may be possible to design around the problem, but no one I'm aware of has managed it yet.
Grasping for straws, the Godox feet at least have the advantage of being cheap to replace.
Not at all. The breakage is at the heel of the shoe, where just about any iso shoe can break if you're clumsy enough or if the flash is poorly made.
If you were to complain about bent pins in the MI shoe then I might buy it...
Sony's flash system isn't perfect, but their MI shoe is far better than both Nikon and Canon.
And while we are talking about iso shoe standards, there really isn't one. Nikon's hot shoes vary from model to model, it's not even funny and this with up to 1-2mm. So in one camera, you can slide in accessories and on another you simply can't.
That's the opposite of reality. Sony is the only shoe of the big three that has a series of little knobs instead of a solid plane, and the only one that cannot have the strength part of the connector be a piece of metal.
Fotografpaul wrote:
Not at all. The breakage is at the heel of the shoe, where just about any iso shoe can break if you're clumsy enough or if the flash is poorly made.
Having broken 3 Sony mount flash feet (two Godox and one nissin), and zero canon or Nikon metal feet, my experience differs completely. Not only that, but the additional electronic contacts on the front of the Sony hotshoe (on mirrorless bodies at least) are easily shorted out with a small amount of moisture - was on a commercial shoot in light snow shower and when I got back inside my A7rii kept locking up because it thought there was an incorrect accessory mounted. Worst part was that it didn’t indicate that the error was coming from the hotshoe - so I wasted a good 20 minutes on location, with daylight fading, trying to figure out if it was my triggers or battery grip.
Sony’s MIS was a good idea in theory, but in practice it’s not up to the durability standards of canon or Nikon.
Fotografpaul wrote:
Not at all. The breakage is at the heel of the shoe, where just about any iso shoe can break if you're clumsy enough or if the flash is poorly made.
If you were to complain about bent pins in the MI shoe then I might buy it...
Sony's flash system isn't perfect, but their MI shoe is far better than both Nikon and Canon.
And while we are talking about iso shoe standards, there really isn't one. Nikon's hot shoes vary from model to model, it's not even funny and this with up to 1-2mm. So in one camera, you can slide in accessories and on another you simply can't.
