Minolta 2500D flash
Posted on: Sat, 08/30/2008 - 10:18pm
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Minolta 2500D flash
I am considering purchasing a Minolta 2500D flash for an A300 camera. I haven't had a lot of luck finding reviews on that flash, though the few that are out there speak highly of it. I realize it has a low guide # and not much versatility, but I mainly want something small and portable to provide increased output over the camera flash and reduce red eye. And as a light boost to avoid noisey photos with a zoom. I would mostly be using it for closeups indoors. The price tag is much more appealing, as well. Any thoughts?
I have the 2500D flash and I use it on an a700 and 5D. Its's a good flash. It has bounce capability and you can get a third party diffuser for it. The only negative is that it is not wireless like the higher end flashes. It uses 4 (AA) batteries and can take a lot of pictures. You have to learn how to use it. It has a wider operating range but I find that the camera will try to uderexpose vs normal with it (both of them). But that's why they make flash compensation... Also the huge plus considering you have an a3xx, it that the flash has a red focus assist light which works a lot better than the pulsing flash. You can use ADI or TTL (via switch) with the flash.
Vois
Glad to get some input from someone who has the flash. When you say "flash compensation," what kind of compensating are you needing to do with it--just a wider aperture? I did notice on the flash charts from Sony that is doesn't have TTL, but it has P-TTL. Does that mean it only works in Program mode (thus the "P")? Which do you tend to use--ADI or TTL?
TD
I usually bump up the flash compensation a little on the camera...the camera of course tells the flash how powerful to output it's light. I usally bump it a little in-camera. I find very little difference between ADI and TTL. ADI is supposed to be better for highly reflective objects since it takes distance into consideration. I use TTL for the most part. Note that the camera and flash settings need to be the same....both set for TTL or ADI. If the flash is set for ADI and the camera is set for TTL . The flash will use TTL.
Vois
Appreciate the help, Vois. I'll try it and see what happens. Surprisingly, there's very little on the web about this flash--even from several years ago when it came out. Guess it was trumped by the more powerful flashes, which I'm not really interested in at this point. Do you know what the retail price of the flash was?
Think the retail price was around $200 USD
Vois
I have a 2500D flash mounted on my A200. I love it. I managed to snag it on ebay for about £50. It only has tilt, no swivel and as mentioned previously has no wireless functions, but for me these features were nice but not necessary. The real reason I choose this flash over the other ones you never stop hearing about is the price. For an ADI and TTL compatible flash that works in all modes, including auto and gets lovely exposures, this flash can't be beaten on price. Get yourself a cheap hotshoe cable and you get all the benefits of wireless without the cost (except of course you have to put up with a cable). Unless you really need wireless or you are a professional photographer, I really think that this flash can't be beaten, at least not for an amateur like me. It runs rings around the on board flash and the bounce gives just lovely natural looking light.