How to make your fully manual film camera into an auto-exposure flash camera.

An easy solution for nighttime event photography and parties!

[@thespectre4196]

I have this exact Vivitar flash system but on a Yashica FX-3. Thank you very much for posting this tutorial as this helps me a lot with getting into analog photography as a hobby!

[@clickroach]

I love cheap auto thyristor flashes. Though I believe that knowing how to read the scales and use them in manual mode is quite important. Mainly because we've gotten really good in the reflective coating technologies. The presence of street signs, road cones, safety vests, or even the thin reflective piping that a lot of athletic and bicycling clothing that people wear casually are good enough these days to totally fool the thyristor causing it to underexposure.

[@paulgreen6903]

You missed the PRETEST FLASH . Before you shoot, wait for the GO/ORANGE glow light. At this time you press the orange light, and if you are with-in the AUTO F stop range, you will get a GREEN light. With that done,you , then take the photo.

[@robertknight4672]

I have a Sunpak 522 with that feature. very useful when bouncing it of the ceiling.

[@robertknight4672]

I have a Vivitar 225 which is similar just without the bounce capability. The green light on the bottom of your flash is just to tell you if you have enough light for a good exposure with your chosen aperture when you hit the test button. The 225 does not have this feature. The manual mode blocks the thigh restor completely tricking The Flash into using full power.

[@maheshmehendale9210]

So nice !! these days I was trying once again to use my old AE-1 with 155A speedlite. Found your video very useful. Thanks for posting. Very motivating.

[@JD-nr9qg]

I’ve been searching for this video for over a year now. Thank you .

[@lisetteolivera1]

This is the camera and the flash that I have. You’ve helped me so much. thank you!

[@spookisghostly4619]

This combined with zone focusing and a power winder if you choose and you have a point and shoot tank of a camera

[@sadworldwide]

This was so helpful! Been shooting digital for so long and finally got my hands on film. Would've helped if you put thyristor somewhere on the title so it'd be easier to find this for other people trying to figure out this flash. Thanks!

[@nickfanzo]

Hope your film adventures are working out.

[@KelseyHazelKeller]

This was exactly what I was looking for! Thank you!!

[@Orionsbell]

Awesome man, I've got my vivitar flash on my minolta and I'm gonna shoot a bunch. I'll come back to let you know how it turns out. Thanks for the quick and simple video.

[@dukenukem5768]

So how did it turn out?

[@adamski017]

@@dukenukem5768 he didn't make it

[@jawlinejawlinejawline]

@@adamski017 😔

[@fagocitotico]

finally a correct explanation

[@DarkDragoone]

Thank you, that's a great video !

[@calebdowers1594]

extremely helpful; thank you so much!

[@btrdangerdan2010]

This is very helpful thank you!!!

[@ryanisbored8273]

Hi I have a sakkar Automatic Multi-Dedicated bounce zoom thyristor flash, could anyone tell me what cameras I can use it on? I don’t know a lot about cameras and can’t find much info

[@djamelmeziane5341]

I have a zenit11 camera 📸 and flash but I can not make it work .help

[@sednasix6608]

Awesome. Now if you’re pushing film I’m assuming you’re going to set your flash to the ISO you’re metering at as well? Say I’m shooting a 400 film at 1600 then my flash will also be at 1600 (in this example closest is 1000) - so that when I push the film in the lab it’ll come out as if I shot my 400 film at 1600 (1000) and flash would look correct on those shots Am I understanding this right ?

[@wolftolbert1032]

That is a great question Iggy, I'm trying to figure that out too.

[@dukenukem5768]

Yes

[@LooseCharm]

I feel like I missed how you were directed to use f/8 after setting the ISO on the flash. You set ISO to 400, and then without specifying what changed or where you were looking, said "that tells me to use f/8".

[@yvesd967]

The aperture chosen is dependent on the distance of the subject. In their case, f/8 was chosen because the subject is 20 ft or 8 meters away. This is shown on the distance guideline below the apertures. I typically base the distance by an eye test or you can use the focus of your camera to determine the distance away.

[@moshdee456]

​@@yvesd967still not getting it

[@BellaWhite-gp7qd]

Does this apply for very dark scenes like wedding receptions etc? And what if your subject is closer than 10 feet- I know it’s ok to over expose, but say your subject was at 3-5 feet and your aperture at f16- would it still be extremely overexposed?

[@AntiDeepState]

youre the man thanks dude

[@phil_aesthetics]

My flash causes the mirror to stay up and only when I press the red button the flash goes off and the shutter releases, not sure what I am doing wrong

[@imam-icereyan5471]

Can i use pentax k10d ?

[@gmmill66]

What about the cable from flash to the socket on the front of the camera will this make a difference

[@galiduzit]

Random but to you think vivitar 2800 compatible with Nikon FM10

[@MrTama93]

I didnt understand how the flash tells you which aperture to shoot at?

[@dukenukem5768]

Look @1:42 (freeze it there). He has used the slider knob at the top to match the flash to the speed of his film (ASA/ISO 400). He has already set the mode switch on the front to the Blue (Auto) mode. The blue horizontal line at the bottom is showing the range of distances the flash will cover, and the up-tick at its left end is opposite 6 metres and F8. 6 meters is the max range in this mode, and F8 is the aperture you should set. If he had set the red mode on the front, he would have used the red line. I wish flash makers would drop the old markings for feet and DIN, they make it confusing.

[@rolls_8798]

@@dukenukem5768 I wish everyone would stop using feet, it's an absolute mess and a waste of human intellect and physical resources

[@dukenukem5768]

@@rolls_8798 I guess that Viv 2800 was made c1990 but still has DIN film speed markings. Who the heck still needed DIN numbers in 1990? I have a Sunpak 26DX and the "26" means it has a guide number of 26 _metres._ Yet the distance scale is _only_ in feet! Many Sunpak flashes had two different names, one for the USA and one for the rest of the world, for example 555 (USA) and G4500DX (rest of world). The rest of world name includeded the Guide Number in metres (45 in that case). Yet both versions had both feet _and_ metre scales on an already very complex and cluttered back! The only difference between them was the name sticker.

[@rolls_8798]

@@dukenukem5768 Wow, that sounds immensely annoying, i even find the focus guide on lenses very distracting with the two different sets of numbers. it's a shame that this stuff comes from japan which has it's very sensible (and practically universal) metric measurement system, but because of the market influence of america, end up trashing their products for themselves and the rest of the world

[@EmilySweet]

Helpful! What is you can't change the shutter speed on your SLR?

[@dukenukem5768]

You are up the creek without a paddle. What SLR is this?

[@Ryan-lu9km]

@@dukenukem5768 He meant that, when you're using a flash, you can't at all change you shutter speed ABOVE the flash sync speed, but slower speeds are possible, although bellow 1/60 it's not ideal to shoot handheld. So, if your sync speed is 1/60, you can't shoot at 1/250 or 1/1000, because you'll only expose part of the frame. Usually, you'll only use 1/60 and not change it, because the flash determines the exposure, not the shutter.

[@dukenukem5768]

@@Ryan-lu9km I was thinking Emily Sweet has a camera which automatically sets the shutter at sync speed when you attach a flash (eg a 1980s Pentax M-Series camera with a Pentax AF160/200/280T flash) and you can't over-ride it. Advanced users might want a slower speed to lighten the background as the video says. With a wide angle lens you can hand hold at lower speeds.

[@HarveyG.]

whats a good replacement for tightening nut? cuz i lost mine.

[@yozfilm6275]

If my camera’s light meter doesn’t work , then I still have to change to the sync speed or it doesn’t work?

[@mynewcolour]

The camera’s light meter is not relevant with this setup. The speedlight is doing the metering.

[@lydiarobinson8959]

This is super helpful thank you! But one question, if I am shooting at 1/60th of a second likely I would need a tripod to stop blur right? Normally the lowest I could go on my OM10 would be 1/125th hand held.

[@RobbieHilton97]

This depends on your focus length. Usually the lowest you can go is 1/(focal length), so a 50mm lens should be at 1/60, and a 100mm lens should be 1/125, etc

[@edoardogamba6141]

The flash is actually on for something like 1/1000, so no need for tripods or anything as most of the exposure happens in a very short time

[@Xisbrezatsgzormd]

Try to shoot more a little, its possible to make good photos without blur on 1/30 easily

[@arcp_]

Excellent

[@livefast-xc8lm]

How is it 5.8 when it says f 4 to shoot at at 400 ISO right there??? Or am I reading it wrong

[@juniornlondock]

I was thinking the same thing bro

[@eduardochew3881]

I think he's using 5.8 bc it aligns with 20ft which he stated is the scenario. Chuck, correct me if I'm wrong!

[@rudradavesar6755]

Can someone help me out how can I use this in my dslr

[@dukenukem5768]

Don't. This flash has a high trigger voltage intended for old mechanical cameras and it could damage a modern camera.

[@nickfanzo]

Requires a hot shoe though, doesn’t it

[@robertknight4672]

I'm not familiar with this particular Vivitar Flash but many of them do also have a PC sync port. Does a possibility this flash may have it. It's usually just a hole on the side of the Flash usually built into the Flash's hot shoe area. Just keep in mind with Vivitar the end that goes into the flash is a very weird proprietary connector.

[@21edwardcabral]

Hi, your video was great! I bought this same flash, but I didn’t know that it was possible for a flash to fry a camera. I’m planning on using this with my Minolta x-700. Do you know if this is ok?? I can’t seem to find any info on the voltage that my camera can handle. Any info you have would be much appreciated. Thank you.

[@dukenukem5768]

The Minolta X-700 was introduced in 1981 when most flashes still had high trigger voltages and cameras did not have much electronics. It is highly unlikely that it could not withstand those high voltages.

[@galiduzit]

Does the same thing go for a Nikon FM10

[@21edwardcabral]

@@dukenukem5768 appreciate ya Duke 🫡