® Power Zoom AF DSLR Flash INSTRUCTION MANUAL DF-383
INTRODUCTION Thank you for your purchase of the ProMaster FL1 Professional Flash. This advanced digital flash provides a variety of automatic and manual features that allows you maximum creativity and flexibility in your flash photography. Please take a few minutes to read this instruction manual and familiarize yourself with the features and benefits of the FL1 flash.
COMPATIBILITY The ProMaster FL1 flash is available to fit a variety of camera makes. Please find the model below that fits your camera.
FEATURES • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Auto and manual zoom from 24-28-35-50-70-85-105mm TTL metering Wireless TTL function High speed synchronization 7 levels of power ratio 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32 & 1/64 2” LCD Control Panel Secondary fill flash Focus assist beam for low light focusing Front and rear curtain synchronization Slow synchronization Red eye reduction pre-flash (for Nikon, Olympus-Panasonic and Pentax mount) Built-in optical slave sensor Power save function Detachable wide angle diffuse
OVERVIEW - FRONT Secondary Flash Wide Angle Diffuser Battery chamber cover Slave sensor Wireless TTL sensor AF Red Light Firmware Update Socket PC Sync Terminal Overview | 4 Mounting foot Metal Base
OVERVIEW - BACK 10 16 4 5 9 8 6 7 12 MODE ZOOM 11 READY TEST MODE ZOOM READY TTL OK / TEST TEST OFF ON TTL OK / TEST 15 OFF ON 13 14 POWER ON / OFF SWITCH OFF OFF ON Type C/N/OP/SA Type P 1. LCD Display 2. Exposure Confirmation Indicator 3. Flash Mode Indicator 4. Manual Mode Output Power Indicator 5. Flash Range Distance Indicator 6. Power Save / Secondary Flash Indicator 7. Zoom Indicator 8. Film Speed Indicator 9. f-Stop Indicator 10. iTTL / BL Indicator (for Nikon only) 11.
SAFETY INSTRUCTIONS Before using this flash, please read the instructions below to ensure safe use and avoid unnecessary damage to the flash and injury to yourself and others: • Do not fire flashes from a short distance directly into the eyes of people or animals. This can cause damage to the retina and may even lead to blindness. • Always use batteries of the same type, brand, and age. Do not combine different types, brands, old, or new batteries.
INSTALLING BATTERIES To install batteries, make sure that the flash is turned off and follow the steps below: • Slide the battery chamber door in the direction of the arrow to remove it; • Insert the batteries in the orientations as indicated in the battery chamber; • Slide the battery chamber door back into place, in the opposite direction of the arrow.
MOUNTING AND REMOVING THE FLASH FROM THE CAMERA • FOR Canon, Nikon, Pentax and Olympus/Panasonic flash (1) Mounting the flash With the back of the flash facing you, loosen the locking ring by turning it to the right until you can easily slide the flash forward into your camera’s hot shoe. Then tighten the locking ring by turning it to the left until the flash is firmly mounted onto the camera. (2) Removing the flash Carefully turn the locking ring to the right so it becomes loose.
MOUNTING AND REMOVING THE FLASH FROM THE CAMERA • FOR Sony flash (1) Mounting the flash Ensure the PUSH button is not pressed into the flash. Slide the mounting foot all the way into the camera's hot shoe. The lock will automatically engage and hold the flash in place. A safety catch can be heard. (2) Removing the flash Press the PUSH button inside and downward while simultaneously sliding the flash away from the camera’s hot shoe.
TO TEST THE FLASH Turn on the flash by sliding the ON / OFF switch to the ON position. The READY indicator will glow red when the flash is ready to fire. If the flash is mounted onto the camera, a flash icon will appear in the camera’s viewfinder. Press the READY/Test button to fire a test flash to ensure the flash works properly. When the ready indicator glows again, the flash is ready to fire.
TTL FLASH MODE When your flash is mounted to a compatible camera, the ProMaster FL1 flash’s advanced programming and computerized circuitry will produce the correct exposure using the camera's TTL metering data. To use the TTL mode, follow the steps below: (1) The camera should be set to P, Auto, or any priority mode such as aperture-priority. (2) When you first power the flash unit, it will automatically be set to TTL mode, and the “TTL” indicator will be visible on the LCD.
HIGH SPEED SYNC The ProMaster FL1 will allow the use of shutter speeds higher than your camera’s top flash sync speed in TTL mode by activating the High Speed Sync. This allows you to use shutter speeds as fast as 1/8000 second. The use of High Speed Sync is particularly useful when using large apertures in bright situations or freezing motion. • FOR Nikon flash The High-Speed Sync is automatically set by the camera. No special operation on the flash is required.
FRONT AND REAR CURTAIN SYNC When you take photos of a moving subject using a slow (1/30 second or longer) shutter speed and a flash, the flash will freeze the subject and the long exposure will cause light trails and motion blur to appear in the image.
RED EYE REDUCTION "Red-eye" occurs when the light from the flash reflects off of the retinas in your subject’s eyes. Many cameras include a "red-eye reduction" feature. When this feature is activated, the camera will instruct the flash to fire pre-flashes before the picture is taken to help eliminate the red eye effect. The ProMaster FL1 flash supports your camera’s red-eye reduction function. Please refer to your camera’s instruction manual for details on how to activate it.
MANUAL MODE You can set the ProMaster FL1 flash’s output level manually to create special lighting effects. Seven manual settings are available: 1/1, 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, 1/16, 1/32, and 1/64. The flash fires full power at the 1/1 setting, and each successive setting halves the light output.To use the manual mode: (1) Press the MODE button until you reach the manual mode. The “M” indicator will show on the LCD. (2) Then press the “ + ” or “ - ” selector button to set your desired output.
AUTOMATIC MOTOR ZOOM CONTROL The ProMaster FL1 flash supports automatic motor zoom control with cameras allowing digital data transmission to the flash. The available zoom positions are 24, 28, 35, 50, 70, 85, and 105mm. When you turn the flash on, the zoom mode indicator on the LCD will display an “A” indicating that automatic motor zoom head control is activated and zoom head is at the default 35mm position.
WIDE ANGLE DIFFUSER If your camera lens is wider than 24mm full frame/16mm digital, you can use the provided wide angle diffuser to extend the flash’s angle of coverage to 18mm full frame/12mm digital. To install the diffuser: (1) Make sure that the snap is facing downward. Hold the diffuser at the attachment clip. Slide the bottom of the diffuser into the lower side of the flash head; (2) Press the diffuser into the flash head and it will snap into place.
INDIRECT LIGHTING TECHNIQUES Using direct flash to illuminate a subject may result in images that have unattractive shadows. The o o o o o ProMaster FL1 allows you to tilt the flash head to an angle of -7 , 45 , 60 , 75 , or 90 and/or rotate it o o horizontally 180 to the left and 120 to the right allowing for softer lighting options. Tilting the flash head or swiveling it to the side allows you to bounce the light off the ceiling or walls.
When the flash-to-subject distance is less than 2m (6.6ft), tilt the flash head down to ensure sufficient o illumination of the lower part of the subject. The ProMaster FL1 allows you to tilt the head down -7 to achieve this purpose. • SUB flash Using bounce flash may still cause unwanted shadows on your portraits. The ProMaster FL1 features a small secondary flash below the main flash which provides a fill-in light to help reduce shadows.
• SUB flash (cont’d) After you have activated the secondary flash, it may be used in the TTL, Manual, or Slave mode. Press the MODE button until you enter your desired flash mode. Make sure that the correct mode indicator is displayed on the LCD. The “Sub” indicator will be displayed at the bottom right of the LCD if the secondary flash is activated.
MANUAL SLAVE FLASH You can use the ProMaster FL1 off of the camera as a manual slave unit by activating the optical slave feature. When this feature is activated, the flash will fire whenever it “sees” another flash firing. This works optically, using the built-in optical slave sensor. To use as a manual slave flash: (1) Press the MODE button until you enter Manual mode. The “M” indicator will show on the LCD. (2) Select your desired power level by pressing the “ + ” or “ - ” button.
CHOOSING THE MANUAL SLAVE MODE Your Master Flash (the flash used to trigger the slave) may emit more than one burst of light in quick succession before the main flash. These are called pre-flashes, which are controlled by the camera and fired to help the camera to determine the correct exposure for the photograph or to reduce the "red-eye" effect. If the slave flash is not set to the correct mode, it may fire before the camera’s shutter opens.
WIRELESS TLL SLAVE OPERATION The ProMaster FL1 is equipped with advanced wireless TTL flash feature, so that it can be used off camera while still maintaining full TTL control. Take a moment to familiarize yourself with the following terms in order to understand how to work with multiple wireless TTL flash units: Master This can be the camera’s built-in flash, a flash mounted on the camera, or a dedicated wireless controller.
To use this flash as Wireless TTL slave flash: (1) Make sure that the master flash or controller is on and set to TTL automatic mode. (2) Set the setting for each group of flash units in the master flash or controller. Assign the master to one of the channels. Please refer to your master flash’s manual on how to do this. (3) Press the MODE button of this flash until you reach the Wireless TTL mode. The “STTL” indicator will show on the LCD.
SLAVE FLASH SETUP You can create a professional lighting setup by putting slave flash units into different groups to function as main, fill, accent, side, or other lights. Set the output power level of each group appropriately to achieve specific effects for your photographs. While positioning the slave flash units, please keep in mind the following points: (1) The effective shooting distance between the master and remote flash units is approx. 10m (33 ft.) or less in the front position, and approx.
(3) When taking pictures outdoors or under bright ambient light, the sensitivity of the sensors may be reduced. (4) To avoid interference between flash units, using more than three flashes in a group is not recommended. (5) Avoid aiming the flash directly into the camera lens. PC SYNC TERMINAL The ProMaster FL1 can be used with cameras without a hot shoe. Some cameras have an x-terminal to allow flash synchronization.
FLASH EXPOSURE COMPENSATION In TTL mode, you can apply flash exposure compensation by pressing the flash exposure compensation button on your camera and adjust the flash exposure level up and down with your camera’s controls. The range and control of flash exposure compensation vary between different camera models. Consult your camera manual for more information about this feature.
FIRMWARE UPGRADE The firmware of the ProMaster FL1 can be upgraded to allow compatibility with future camera releases. For more details on the upgrade of the firmware, please contact your local dealer.
SPECIFICATIONS Type: On-Camera and Wireless TTL Automatic and Manual Flash with Secondary Fill-in Flash Guide No: 55(m) / 180(ft) at 105mm position and ISO 100 Full Frame Flash Coverage: 24 - 28 - 35 - 50 - 70 - 85 - 105mm (18mm with wide angle diffuser) High Speed Synchronization: Yes Flash Recycle Time and Duration: 0.
Power Zoom AF DSLR Flash INSTRUCTION MANUAL DF-383
