mostly sports Posted October 1, 2012 Share Posted October 1, 2012 <p>I frequently shoot with a small studio setup, consisting of a flash unit aimed into an umbrella, and another bouncing off a low, white ceiling. Shooting with a Canon, I have used an ST-E2 radio transmitter on the camera to trigger the flash. The other day I tried to use my Sony a57 with a macro lens, and because the macro was stopped down to f/32, my electronic viewfinder was too dark to see anything. (I was going to use my pop-up flash to trigger slave units.) Is there a work around?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parv Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 f/32, with Sony A57? Brave and mad you are! From your description, problem seems to be during composition when you are near blind; problem is not in subject lighting. Then again, title of your post gives the opposite impression that for some reason you were not able to trigger the external flash. Could you please clarify? In case problem is being blind during composition: Sony A57 may have some setting to not show the scene in "DoF preview" mode but show as if shooting "wide open" (the quoted words are my terms; ** camera manual ** may differ in description). Have you tried shooting in "live view" mode? (I do not have, or used one, a camera similar to Sony A57.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mostly sports Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 <p>Shooting small objects with macro lens, one needs all the depth of field that can be mustered. At high ISO, with plenty of light, f/32 gives maximum depth of field, and whatever is lost due to diffraction seems inconsequential. The problem is "near blind composition" with electronic viewfinder. However, your suggestion about "live view" sent me to the right place in David Bushch's camera guide. Under "Live View Display" he describes the problem, and the solution: "With the feature activated, the modeling lights in my studio didn't provide enough illumination to produce an image on the LCD at ISO 100, f/22, and 1/60th second--the camera had no idea I was going to use flash. All was well when I switched to Setting Effect OFF, however, and the standard image at full brightness was displayed. I've had about a dozen emails since then from readers with the same problem, so I know I'm not alone in needing to remedy this vexing complication." What had me stumped was he doesn't mention it at all in a several page section devoted to studio flash. So thanks for your response...the answer is turn live view off.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parv Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 "All was well when I switched to Setting Effect OFF, however, and the standard image at full brightness was displayed ... the answer is turn live view off." -- Phil S. Phil, did you mean then that turning off "Setting Effect" is same as turning off "Live view" and "Setting Effect" option is not independent of "Live View" mode? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mostly sports Posted October 2, 2012 Author Share Posted October 2, 2012 <p>Electronic viewfinders are in "live view" mode as a default. With a57, press the menu button, go to "gear" 2 (*2), then down to "live view" and your choices are "setting effect ON" (you will have dark viewfinder at f/32) or "setting effect OFF." (you will have bright viewfinder, but not live view.) "Setting Effect" is simply the choice affecting "Live View."</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parv Posted October 2, 2012 Share Posted October 2, 2012 Much appreciate the clarification, Phil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oleg_kosyakovsky Posted October 4, 2012 Share Posted October 4, 2012 <p>I resolved this problem on both A55 and NEX-C3 in the following way:<br> I do not connect the flash or trigger directly to a camera even when possible - cameras with Minolta hot shoe don't detect standard flashes.<br> Instead, I raise the built-in flash (on the SLR) or attach the accessory flash (on the NEX), and then use properly adjusted Seagull SYK 5 "digital" optical-slave trigger to fire whatever device I want - either radio trigger or the standard flash.<br> In order to block the built-in flash light from reaching anything but the trigger sensor, I put a small carboard box on it - open only on the side where the slave sensor is located.<br> This way the camera assumes it's able to light the scene by the built-in flash, and the LCD/EVF works as a regular viewfinder - without exposure preview.</p> <p>Hope this helps,<br> Oleg.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike_hessey Posted October 8, 2012 Share Posted October 8, 2012 <p>Sorry for the late reply. I use almost exactly the same solution as Oleg on an A55, except I constructed a plastic fitting to cover the pop-up flash. Glad to hear the A57 has a better solution, but so disappointed it has lost the GPS which the A55 has.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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