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Sony HVL F42AM High Power Digital Flash for Sony Alpha DSLR Cameras
Manufacturer: Sony
Customer Rating:
 
List Price: $299.00
Sale Price: $185.88
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Product Details
  • High-power illumination (guide number: 42)
  • Longer effective range of over 30 ft. (10.5m)
  • Versatile bounce angles: 90° up, 90° left, 180° right
  • Auto white balance (signals color temp. to camera)
  • Retractable wide-angle panel (16mm angle)

Video Reviews
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Customer Reviews
Sony HVL F42AM High Power Digital Flash for Sony Alpha DSLR Cameras Wireless is perfect Very powerful
 
Review Date: October 17, 2008
Reviewer: Kevin, Flushing
This is well worth the money .This flash is a huge improvement over the HVL-F36AM it recycles really fast no wait. I can light up a 15 foot room with one of these.Try putting a gary fong or Stoffen diffuser on this it will even your light out and spread it around the room. A Bare bulb only fires straight forward only filling the forward portion of the room .

On some of these reviews when they say this is a weak flash are uninformed and unaware of their equipments potential.If you buy any flash and use only the bare flash firing forward it will not fill a room it will fire straight forward the way it was intended to do.You will see some idiots fire a bare flash at peoples faces and wonder why it doesn't work .

Try bouncing it off the ceiling preferably a white one a green ceiling will turn everyone into green people aliens.
And also invest in a diffuser or umbrella for it a stoofen or gary fong or a 1 dollar frosted tupperware bowl and cut a hole in it . . Or get a 24x24 softbox and soften it up a bit.

In WL mode it does have to be in line sight with the camera and it is very reliable .(Hint for newbies put the flash on the camera power on camera. Turn on flash head .Select menu on camera go to flash select wireless. Remove flash head from camera then flip camera flash up you are now in wireless mode) ( you can also just push the WL button on the back of the flash and select wireless flash in the camera menu , then flip up the camera flash and you are in wireless mode.
I use two of these and they do everthing that I need them to do and then some .I use only one with a 60" soft white umbrella and get everything I need from that. I will use two on large groups of people 8 or more ... well worth the money I would buy again if needed .
...Highly recomended You can get a hvl-56AM or Hvl-58AM which are more powerful but the 56 is discontinued and don't support white balance mode and the 58 is very expensive but worth every penny (plus the HVL-F58AM will control this flash and fire a flash off the camera at the same time no annoying pre-flash ...The TTL is very nice also ...I chose this over the Sigma after long researching . I get mixed reviews from people using sigmas saying some work great and some don't .
I just wanted it to do what it is supposed to do with no hassels and this is why I chose these flashes and glad I did. I also just ordered the HVL-F58AM I will have two 42's and a 58...I will update later..

I am updating this I have been using the HVL-58AM all can say is what a flash it is powerful and controls the all the 42's I love them all 42's and 58..

I now have 4 HVL-F42AM's and a HVL-F58AM the F58 can fire all these or you can use Radio triggers like the RF-602 canon or Nikon sets with a SC-6 adapter and a FS-1100 adapter for the camera .. The HVL-F42AM have to be mounted on camera to fire Radio triggers just disable the standby mode so they don't go to sleep in 3 minutes or extend it..

I want to tell you that you will see bad reviews from people lacking skills the tools are only as good as the photographer ..A good photographer learns how to use and make the best out of his equipment a bad photographer complains about the equipment ..

You can buy any camera you want in a DSLR it will not make you a better photographer learn to master what you have GO to [...] and find strobist and learn lighting skills 101
Sony HVL F42AM High Power Digital Flash for Sony Alpha DSLR Cameras Exceeds Expectations
 
Review Date: October 24, 2008
Reviewer: Michael J. Foran Jr., USA
I've owned the F42AM flash for about 3 months now and am very pleased. I think it is the most powerful flash out there for the Sony mount for under $300. It 'zooms' the flash focus in conjunction with your camera lens zoom, has a click out wide angle dispersion filter so it works with wide angle lenses, does bounce/angle/rotate orientation, and its wireless capability is not equaled at this price. In auto mode snapshots are consistently right on. Manual or custom control settings are simple and easy. When in off-camera wireless mode using bounce mode with a diffuser it is almost like having a room full of studio lights. I know its big brother has even more power and features that the pros need, but for advanced amateurs or beginner pros this flash can't be beat.