Sunpak Super 383 Flash
by SUNPAK
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Customers in the UK,
Buy this product at amazon.co.uk
for British Pounds
Digital Photo Product Details
Manufacturer: SUNPAKModel: 383
Product features:
- Features bounce/swivel head, 3 f/stop auto ranges, manual control with power ratio from full to 1/16, exposure OK lamp
- Auto Range: 2.3?60 ft
- Supplied with PC cord and uses 4 AA batteries or external battery packs
- Covers 35mm lens
- Guide No. 120
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- Sunpak 10" Coiled Sync Cord, Sunpak to PC for the 522, 544 and 383
Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Sunpak Super 383 Flash
Customer Review: Great all around flash
Summary: 5 Stars
This was my first external flash, mainly used with my Canon 350D (About 1/250 max sync speed). After reading around the photography forums, I was between this and the Vivitar 285. The Canon line of flashes were way beyond what my budget was set for, and quite honestly, I was looking to learn and use the flash manually, which meant I would not be taking advantage of the TTL technology as often. The 383 offered light output comperable to the 580EX at a fraction of the price, and offered 3 automatic modes if I chose to be lazy about metering and test shooting. As others have mentioned, the automatic exposure modes are typically accurate, and perform exactly as you'd like whether you use it as direct flash, bounce, or for fill (Although using it as fill flash when your subject is backlit may be tricky for the sensor).
I chose this flash over the Vivitar, as I found the swivel head would be much more useful than the zoom, which is still very true today. Like other have mentioned, the battery consumption is about or above "average" (a set of batteries will last you an evening out with friends, but will not last a serious photo shoot), I shoot with the flash occasionally, and seldom need to recharge the batteries. The recycle time, although highly dependant on battery type, is realistically very usable, but occasionally slows me down, which is honestly helpful in promoting me to carefully frame the shot first before pressing the button as a side benefit (a quality over quantity thing).
After becoming familiar with using the external flash and becoming familiar with the controls and exposure, I ordered a set of wireless triggers off ebay. Use of the strobe (a flash not mounted to the camera body) has opened up new horizons for me, and has become a whole other tool. The Sunpak 383 is a great budget flash with high output that has been able to fill my needs for the past year. I will be picking up another Sunpak 383 soon to compose more complex lighting setups. It is incredible to be able to do all of this with less money than I would have spent on a single 480ex Speedlite (which has lower light output). Of course different users will have different needs, but as an amatuer, this will be able to fit the bill for the next couple of years to say the least.
However, I do have 2 small complaints about the Sunpak 383:
1) The back label with the settings/instructions on the flash has delaminated, and started to look like it is "bubbling up", this is such an insignificant thing considering the price and functionality. You wont get "space age" anything with this, just so you know what to expect.
2) The external trigger port is a miniplug jack that I've heard is proprietary to Sunpak, it is just slightly different enough from the universal size for it not to work with radio shack parts. This became an issue when there was a short somewhere in the supplied wire, and wouldn't fire when using the wireless triggers. I have to Mcguiver and solder something to make it work with the wireless triggers again.
All in all, this was a great buy for me, and would recommend this products to others.
Description of Sunpak Super 383 Flash
Powerful flash used by enthusiasts and professionals alike. Features bounce/swivel head, 3 f/stop auto ranges, manual control with power ratio from full to 1/16, exposure OK lamp. Guide No. 120. Auto Range: 2.3-60 ft. Supplied with PC cord. Uses 4 AA batteries or external battery packs. Covers 35mm lens.Flashes
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