Built in flash has died...

Hi

I bought a Pentax K10D DSLR while on holiday in the US in feb, however the built in flash has stopped workin - I used the flash about 2 months and went to use it again the other night but it didn't work.

Is anyone aware of this type of problem? What should be done to resolve it?

Thanks
Martin

I usually find that if an item dies within the guarantee period, the best thing is to return it to the place you bought it.

Presuming that that might be expensive, I should take/send it to Pentax UK and claim under the manufacturer's warranty.

That's assuming that you are in the UK. If you edit your profile, you can add that information, which is always nice to know.

G

I doubt that there is much that can be done without sending it for a warranty repair.

I'm not sure that I personally would bother as I never use the inbuilt flash anyway. I'd be weighing up the inconvenience of being without the camera.

However, if it needs doing then quickly whilst it's within warranty would seem to be a good idea.

A very good alternative to the built-in flash is a Pentax AF240Z.

http://preview.tinyurl.com/2u2hhd

Highly recommended as a light, cheap, easy-to-use, accessory flash.

G

Thanks guys

The only reason I was concerned about the built in flash was because I was considering the purchase of the Sigma EF-530 DG Super Flash Gun which is wireless - but I believe it only shoots wirelessly when the built in flash goes off.

Maybe I shouldn't be too concerned and just get the cheaper non wireless Sigma EF-530 DG.

Thoughts on a flash purchase? I am relatively new to photography.. therefore any ideas greatly appreciated.

Thanks

It would certainly be worth checking that it does still work with a flash on the hot shoe.

Even if you plan never to use the built-in flash, it would be a shame to discover - outside the warranty period - that the built-in flash head itself was fine, but that it was the firing circuitry that wasn't.

I don't know enough about them to know whether that's possible, but it would be pretty annoying.

This is true, and similarly so of all the wirelessly-triggered flash guns compatible with the K10D.

I got one of these recently for £181. They're out of stock at the moment, but since it seems to be identical apart from the badge to the Pentax AF540-FGZ, maybe worth waiting for.

I've been very happy with it so far (and at that price, it was a steal), including its wireless capabilities, although I haven't got totally familiar with it yet.

Thanks Chris

I'll get the flash george mentioned and try the hotshoe to make sure it works.

Then if that works I could still get another flash like the Sigma one and it could work wirelessly when the hotshoe flash firest. Right?

Cheers
M

When you say it doesn't work, do you mean it didn't pop up or didn't fire?

it didn't fire

No !!!!!

The wireless triggering that takes place between the built-in flash and a remote wireless slave such as the Sigma EF530 Super, or indeed the Pentax AF360- ad AF540 FGZ is not merely the slave being triggered by the fact that a flash has happened somewhere.

The camera and the flash exchange information using the built-in unit's pre-flash, in order to get the exposure right - the metering takes place during the pre-flash.

You can download the AF540 manual here - it's worth looking through; check out p38 for a description of what happens in wireless mode.

In summary, it says:

- press the shutter button
- flash on camera emits a pre-flash (relays the camera's flash mode)
- external slave emits a pre-flash (camera does metering)
- flash on camera emits another pre-flash (tells the external slave how much to flash)
- external slave emits main flash while shutter's open

So it's not as simple as you'd think. You can do simple wireless triggering with one of those little units that sit on the bottom of any slave flash, and fires the unit when it sees a flash anywhere, but you get none of the exposure control - you have to do it all manually, and you may as well get a cheap slave rather than a properly P-TTL compatible one.

If I were you, I'd bite the bullet, get the camera fixed within warranty.

In the studio, it's much simpler than all that info exchange.

Fire flashes and measure using flashmeter. F11 or whatever it is. Set on camera. Take pictures. In those circumstances there's no need for all the gizmos, so it really I suppose depends on what the photographer is doing and how.

I was surprised by this relative simplicity when I had that first go at studio work the other week.

Are there any inexpensive studio flash units about, that would do for a home studio? I'm thinking of getting a big piece of black cloth, suspending it from the picture rail, and moving furniture about. To start with, one flash and a reflector would probably do.

Also, how to trigger the studio flash? The built-in's no good, since the pre-flash can't be switched off, and I don't want the bulk of a full-size manual gun. Is there a suitable hotshoe adapter for the trigger cable?

Infra Red Trigger, works like a dream.

Is this the fella?