2017-10-19T14:50:18
Rated 4 out of 5
More than adequate
I now have four of these units and use them for charity work in the studio. They are very reliable, and and work well with regular and rechargeable batteries. The guide number is more than adequate if using them for direct lighting but I use two or three umbrellas and find doubling them up beneficial. My only gripe is that they don't have a 'Manual' mode and I have to resort to black tape over the sensor; not really a problem. Reliable, consistent and good value.
John W.
2017-09-04T09:52:18
Rated 2 out of 5
Switch failed after three uses
I am a beginner. I ordered numerous books, researched my best camera options. I bought a bridge camera--simple enough for point and shoot and advanced enough to set all manual functions. I expected to grow into all the manual settings to manipulate effects for artistic choose and expression. Bought the bower digital flash SFD328 as it was a good entry level price. You might as well light a cigarette with the money you would spend on this item. The activation switch failed before I had taken fifty pictures. Buy up and don't bother with the headache that comes with this flash.
katrinakatra
2016-01-01T11:44:41
Rated 4 out of 5
Good Value
OK, so the recycling time is longer than most cameras, about six seconds, but what can you expect from 4xAA batteries?
I use it on-camera, or more often as a slave in studio settings, with an umbrella, made easy by the 180-deg swivel.
I like the simplicity, but wish it had a 'fully manual' setting - I usually end up sticking a small piece of electrical tape over the sensor.
But I have to say I use it more often than any of the other flash units in my bag.
John W.
2013-03-06T19:00:00
I bought this to replace my similar flash, but my camera, even with the flash having full batteries, would shoot faster than the flash could handle. No matter what I did, the bottom half o every photo was completely black. I changed all of my settings in an attempt to fix this, but nothing worked.
Babette D.
2012-02-14T19:00:00
Rated 3 out of 5
Adequate bang for the buck.
I purchased this as a stop-gap necessity as the budget wouldn't run to a SpeedLite. It's been very satisfactory, especially considering the price, and it's compatible with nearly all my cameras (Except some Minoltas, but nothing is compatible with them.) but the instruction leaflet is woefully inadequate. Trying to guess a Guide Number from the data is not easy (insuffiecient data) and they have a curious theory about how light bounces off a ceiling.
It's a pity it doesn't have a 'Manual' or 'Full Output' mode; I frequently end up masking the sensor.
John W.
