Yongnuo 560

First things first, this flash is manual!

   I thought I'd mention this first because it is the most salient feature - or lack of feature! - prospective buyers should be aware of when considering purchasing this product. The fact the flash is manual shouldn't put you off though; in some ways it can be a virtue while in another way it is a hindrance.

   The hindrance - if you need operability or speed in shooting - is that is doesn't do e-ttl metering meaning you have to set the power yourself. Stop reading this review if you need this feature! This is a double edged sword though.  If you need speed and convenience you can attach the flash and fire away happily - and also pay double the price of this manual flash. If however, you are comfortable with power ratios you can dial in a flash power ratio and then shoot away happily as long as the conditions remain the same - and, here is a big asset of a manual flash for me, the flash exposure will remain consistent. This would be as long as your settings remain the same and the ambient light stays stable.

   In order to alleviate this hindrance/virtue in disguise, you can of course change the power setting on the flash as well as fine-tuning it further. My version of the Yongnuo 560 is the first version. If you were to purchase the quite-new second version, the practicality of fine tuning the power settings is enhanced with a couple of new features.

   Firstly, on the Yongnuo 560 II (the newer version), there is the presence of an LCD screen showing different power settings etc. Also cleverly implemented with this flash is the fine-tuning power settings overlap so you can run through one full power setting to the next one while fine-tuning, which wasn't possible with the first version that I own. For this reason alone I have heavily considered getting the second version as well.

   If you were willing to give up the convenience of e-ttl then you would be left with a very functional flash. The recycle time on its full power (which is pretty bright) is about 2 seconds. At lower powers the recycle time is much shorter; you would be ready to take the next shot as soon as your shutter finger would be ready. In fact there is even a high-speed option for continuous bursts.

   Then there were the small additions and attention to details that made the flash such an appealing proposition for me. These included a diffuser and bounce-card for different lighting effects, a recycle indicator that could be turned on or off, the option of rear-sync flash if selected on-camera and a robust feeling and efficient-to-open/close door for the batteries. The type of batteries it accepted were either AA alkaline or rechargeables. I would recommend rechargeables. Last but not least the flash could be triggered by other flashes (at pleasantly long distances and in daylight), the camera's in-built flash (in a slave mode that ignores pre-flash) or on-camera. Also the flash can be triggered by a trigger - transmitter and receiver combination - one kind of which I hope to review soon.

   Max flash sync-speed on this flash I found was 1/250 on my Sony a55v, which was higher than the maximum sync-speed of the camera and in my experience was a useable limit on such a cheap flash (compared to a flash capable of high speed-sync).

   So altogether this was a solid outing although with no major weaknesses in my eyes. However, if possible it might probably be better to get the newer version.

Sony a55

A very fun camera too use, which for me was a major factor in my deciding to purchase this particular model. Of course this wasn't the only factor; it was and still is (compared to other brands/models) a very functional and mostly efficient camera. Some features that sprung to mind relating to the enjoyment I have experienced while using this camera though were its responsiveness, innovative design and detail in the images - even handheld - that left me pleasantly pleased. This last point of image quality (handheld) importantly (for me anyway) works with any lens in the alpha mount but I have explored that more later on.

   Maybe the most controversial and conversely unique selling points of the SLT-A55V and its sister model the SLT-A33, that was continued later on with subsequent models was that the 'T' in the model name stands for translucent mirror, rather than reflex mirror on conventional DSLRs. This means that the mirror doesn't get out of the way of the light entering the camera, instead reflecting around 30% to the AF sensor above while the rest goes through to the sensor. This information is readily available elsewhere on the Internet etc. though, so I have decided not to bore you anymore describing this system. In brief this system was designed to help the responsiveness of the camera. In some ways it does and other ways it doesn't in my opinion. I would contribute that, rather counter-intuitively, it helps in a lot of indirect ways but lacks slightly in its main aim of speed.

   The cause of most of my perceived benefits and detractors lie in the camera's EVF (electronic viewfinder) that is a consequence of the translucent mirror. It is a very good quality viewfinder, albeit maybe only for non-moving subjects. First I have listed the negatives and then some of the more 'unsung' virtues that have been implemented.

   Negatives:

• when panning the camera there is a 'tearing' of colour making it hard to follow movement accurately - this has been improved in some subsequent SLT's newer EVFs though.
• there is a blackout when shooting at the camera's impressive maximum 10fps burst mode between frames. This unfortunately continues on the 'HI' continuous setting
• it obviously has less perceivable detail when looking through it compared to an OVF as that kind of viewfinder is a (small) window of the world. This is most apparent with fine detail like someones hair blowing in the wind.
• the EVF always 'gains up' to suit the immediate scene, which makes it practically unusable in most studio situations
• the last negative of this EVF could also be seen as a positive - that is there is less dynamic range than an OVF so high contrast areas can appear blown-out (highlights), or blocked (shadows).

Positives:

• so I'll start with the same point about this EVF compared to an OVF as I did with the last negative point: its dynamic range. For me I found this lacking dynamic range occurred only in scenes of extreme contrast. I found in fact it helped in assessing the right exposure for a given scene. This was because the viewfinder would automatically adjust to what it thought was the 'right' exposure. Then, I would decide whether the light and dark areas were 'balanced'.
• there is the option of a live histogram in the viewfinder to aid with this
• I found the spirit level invaluable - it has both horizontal and vertical aids
• a major feature for me - the depth of field button (which can be assigned in the menus) does not get darker as you stop down like with OVFs making it genuinely useful.
• the focus magnifier (also assignable in the menus) is a master stroke for me in aiding manual focus and I understand in newer SLT models there is the further aid of 'focus peaking', which would probably be even more useful
• interchangeable grid lines!
• the EVF again 'gains up' in the dark. Yes, it becomes more noisy but in my opinion this is better than not being able to see much at all through an OVF.
• in most scenes I usually achieved what I deemed to be the 'right' exposure quickly and maybe more quickly than someone using an OVF camera as the camera always! adjusts according to metering

   This showed the positives (for me) of the EVF were numerous compared to the negatives but more importantly the positives were also more crucial for my way of shooting.

   So most of the  advantages of the T part in the SLT-A55V are somewhat inadvertent. However, I did find the auto-focus to be very snappy indeed and there is no 'mirror slap' or need for mirror-lock-up as the translucent mirror does not move. I was a bit dubious how influential no 'mirror slap' is to image quality even at critical shutter speeds though.

   Then there were the advantages of the Alpha system over others - the main one for me was the in body image stabilisation with any lens. Yes, the view through the viewfinder becomes more choppy the longer the focal length but for my style of shooting (short focal length prime lenses) this was a compromise I was willing to make.