>>
The Vivitar 285 is probably the very finest non-slaved flash ever made. It
is basically a 283 with a zoom head. Both have two faults though: Big and
Heavy. It is unnerving to have them mounted on your prism and then try to
jostle around with it. I've never broken a mount and they are much more
rugged than you think, but still, psychologically, it can be nerve-wracking.
The sensor in the 285/283 is excellent and very accurate. Only on rare
occasion have I had it fooled by sunlight or some other lightsource.
Dialing in fill ratios doesn't get any easier and it has sufficient power to
burn retinas in daylight. I've used the 285 zoomed out and with 400 speed
film to light subjects 200 feet away. Try that with a pipsqueek flash.
Disadvantages of the 285/283: Big, Heavy, no advanced camera
communications--just flash sync, therefore no OTF.
>>
I concurr. I own a 283 and it works rather nicely: the sensor is very accurate
and model solid.
The only draw back is that it will fire when it has no power. It faked me out
big time once:
lost two rolls of film. But, if you like to shoot slow-sync with OM (like I
do), you can't get
TTL (as I have very recently found out) so you must use the flash in auto mode.
The problem
with the T-32 is that the large aperture end is not that large: f8 @ ASA 400.
So you are stuck
at 1/2 or 1 sec exposures to "burn-in" the background. The 283 will go down to
f4 at that speed
and you can sync at 1/8 and not blurr the hell out of the background while
"burning" it in.
>>
Oh, and the sensor can be removed from the flash and with an
extension cable be mounted on the camera while the flash is somewhere else.
>>
Ken, what is that sensor extension cable called. I am really interested in
getting one! The
283 + that cable will give me and my OM1 "virtual slow-sync TTL".
A comment on the Metz 32-Z2. I bought one with the attachments, ie OM SCA
adapter, OM TTL cord.
I sent it back for essentially two reasons. One: everything is made of
not-too-impressive
plastic (OK, OK, so what did I expect for $150? I know, I know). Two: when you
try to change
the bottom plate (which is where all adapters go) from a hot shoe to an
off-camera cord, it is
a bitch to do quickly. I was constantly afraid of breaking something while
sliding the adapters
in and out. It just would not do for me. The T-32 is great that way: you can
always use the TTL
cord all the time, whether you put it on the shoe or hold it in your hand. The
Metz would work
fine for set shots and on camera TTL but it is not designed for quick changes.
It also suffers
from the above problem: largest aperture too small, like the T-32. I guess that
is a function
of how quickly the electornics can quelch the flash. The T-32 and Metz 32-Z2
are not as fast as
the 283.
By the way, I am relatively new to the list and have only posted a question
here and there.
But, I have learned a tremendous amount since subscribing. Thank you. I hope to
repay the list
in the future.
Ara Oshagan
Santa Monica, CA
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