Metz 58 AF-1

Seems to be available at SRS. I've been waiting for months to find out where I could find a P-TTL version. Price looks good, specs are good, it can strobe...

Cheaper than the 540, although has a different AF assist.

Difficult decision as to which is best. Have also considered the Sigma 500 (the better of the two versions).

Don't want the 360 as it won't swivel for portrait orientation. It is a very small flash unit though.

Any idea what its wireless is like?

I emailed Chris@SRS to get some more details. Apparently it supports wireless P-TTL looking around on the net. I'd rather have solid confirmation though. Works with C&N wireless modes, so don't see why the PTTL version won't work with Pentax's wireless protocol.

That was my guess too.

Not sure it's enough to make me cancel my order for the Samsung 540, although the strobe facility which I'd missed is something of a carrot. Only the AF500 FTZ can do that I believe.

I got an AF500FTZ recently. It makes a very good manual flash for the K10D, with lots of features and it's quite powerful. The multiple flash facility is lots of fun.

G

Is that twice you've done it to me????

Come to think of it, it's probably more than twice.

You can go off people, you know.

Remember the fable? "Slow and steady wins the race".

That ole Aesop, he wuz lyin'.

G

You gotta run outa money** sometime.

Then it'll be mine, all mine, I tell you... bwah ha hahhhh

Edit... **or space in your house. Ex gear freak, my ****.

Hello all,

I'm a long time lurker on here and thought I'd surface to give some information on this flash. I've bought one, from SRS Watford, great service from them as you lot already know. I've never had such an advanced flash before, only having used the Sigma EF500DG ST before. When I got the Metz I was a bit confused about HSS operation, so I emailed Metz technical support and got a very prompt, helpful reply back. Thought it may be useful to let others know.

It does seem to work very well. Very flexible, is accurate from what I've seen so far, love the P-TTL wireless mode, it makes thinks so much easier than I'd been used to.

Correspondence with Metz and reply pasted below.

HSS mode on 58AF-1 with Pentax K10D

Dear Metz,
I have just bought a Metz 58 AF-1 Digital flashgun, in a Pentax fit, for use with my Pentax K10D dSLR (fitted with firmware v1.30). I have some questions on the operation of this flash in High Speed Synch mode with this camera.

On page 112 of the flashgun manual (Section 16.4) it states that "The high-speed flash mode is automatically activated if the shutter speed activated on the camera - manually or automatically - is faster that the flash synch speed". I have found that this does not happen.

If I have the flashgun mounted on the camera and set to (for example) P-TTL, I cannot set the shutter speed on the camera to any speed faster than 1/180, the maximum flash synch speed of the K10D. This is true regardless of the mode (P, Av, Tv, M, etc) used on the camera. I have to manually set the flashgun to HSS mode to allow speeds of higher than 1/180, it does not automatically activate as indicated in the instructions.

After setting P-TTL HSS mode on the flash, I have found there are limitations on how I can use this mode. With P-TTL HSS set on the flash, if I am using any mode on the camera other than Tv (shutter priority) or M ( fully manual) I find I still cannot set shutter speeds higher than 1/180 at all. It is not possible to set a speed higher than 1/180 in any other camera mode, apart from Tv or M modes on the camera.

If I use Tv or M modes on the camera I can set shutter speeds of >1/180th but only if I also take the additional step of setting the ISO speed to a discrete value, i.e. not leaving the ISO setting mode on the camera in "Auto".

Once I have manually set the flash to P-TTL- HSS mode, set the camera to Tv or M modes, manually set a shutter speed, and manually entered an ISO value for the sensitivity setting, then, and only then, can I use a shutter speed of >1/180th with the 58AF-1 flashgun on the K10D.

I would like to know if this is the normal expected behaviour for this flashgun on this camera. Having downloaded the manual from your website, and read it thoroughly before making my purchase, I had expected HSS modes to be rather more flexible and usable. I doubt that will use HSS mode except on an occasional basis, so this is not a great problem for me, I would just like to know if the flash is working as you would expect it to. Thank you for your help in this matter.

Regards,


Dear Duncan,

What did your wrote is quite normal and caused by the camera's electronic. In P and Av the camera by itself limits the shutter speed in HSS on 1/180. Only in Tv and M you have a chance to set a shutter speed faster the 1/180. That's quite normal. At that moment we had checked it out with a mecablitz 58 AF-1P on a K10D and compare it with a Pentax flash unit called AF540FTZ but found the same behavior. Therefore I am under the impression that your flash 58 AF-1P works properly as it should.

best regards

Lutz Goeschel
Technical support
_____________________________________________

Metz-Werke GmbH & Co KG
Ohmstraße 55, D-90513 Zirndorf


eMail: mailto: [email protected]
Internet: http://www.metz.de

Thanks for posting, very useful. Now I just need that £250.

I think I've decided that I will get the Metz flash, someday.

I just tried the AF540 in Av and P modes... and it happily chooses shutter speeds faster than 1/180s in HS mode.
However, auto ISO does tend to make it more difficult to get that situation - indoors at least the K10D seems to prefer a shutter speed somewhere between 1/focal-length and 1/180s - presumably so it can use non-HS mode (don't forget that HS mode cuts the guide number in half).

You can test it by forcing the ISO to 1600 and the higher shutter speeds will appear in HS mode

Outdoors it should be no problem at all.
Matt

Good tip Matt, I've just done some more experimentation. With the ISO forced to 1600, the shutter speed can be set to speeds higher than 1/180 in all camera modes, not just Tv and M. The Metz still has to be set to P-TTL HSS though, it doesn't auto switch to this mode, and in non-HSS, it still won't allow speeds higher than 1/180.

Regards,

Duncan

Dear all,

I have a flash 540, use on my k10d, but the p-ttl let me very sick.
So I want to find a new one.
Could someone give me a suggestion of 58 AF-1 ?
Is it good then 540 ??

Buy a new one or still using 540 ??

Thanks a lot.

The exposure is controlled by the K10D. If you find P-TTL a problem with the AF540, you will find it a problem with the Metz

Please read my post about P-TTL and flash control: https://www.pentaxuser.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4950
(I hope you can translate it!!)
Matt

Thanks, MattMatic.
I thank I know how to control the flash on my k10d.