BUG: No flash overexposure warning

This was one bug I found a looong time ago that I notified Pentax about, but never got any response

(Thought I'd documented it already)

If the exposure is bright already and you enable flash, the camera will dial back to 1/180s but NOT show any over exposure warning!

For example:
* K5
* AF360FGZ on hotshoe but off
* Set Av mode, f/4, ISO8000
* Check that shutter speed > 180 (e.g. 1/4000s)
* Power on the flash
* Shutter speed is reduced to 1/180s - but no overexposure warning

Same thing applies to pop-up flash

It's something that has caught me out a few times - especially when working quickly and moving from indoors to outdoors!

As far as I can tell it affects all Pentax cameras, and all firmware versions.

...just hope Pentax/Hoya/Ricoh read this sometime soonish

Matt

You're right Matt, there is no overexposure indication under those circumstances, but with exposure mode set to M, you do see the manual meter in the viewfinder which does show overexposure.

Perhaps one way to temporarily resolve this is to set the flash to HSS?

You'd have less flash power available, and a minimum shutter speed of 1/100th, but at least you'd get the shot.

Peter,
Obviously there are sensible workarounds, but even so it would make SO much more sense to flash the display
Matt

Agreed. HSS mode is not available with the built-in flash anyway.

(Slightly off topic)
I'm just browsing the signal links between the K5 + AF360FGZ with work's 300MHz digital storage scope

Very interesting indeed. The camera relays all the information about ISO + Av in real time (128ms bursts of data). That's why the Metz 50MZ5 tracks the camera settings in "A" mode. Unfortunately the Pentax guns do not track - you set the aperture & ISO manually on the flash.

It'd be nice to have some kind of combined gizmo that does what the PocketWizard AC3 + bits does over radio - allowing dial-in control of P-TTL compensation and/or manual setting for three zones directly from the camera.

Oh to have more time!!!
Matt