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[OM] E-1 with generic auto-thyristor flash

Subject: [OM] E-1 with generic auto-thyristor flash
From: Peter Klein <pklein@xxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Thu, 01 Jun 2006 23:53:36 -0700
Is there some issue with old "auto-thyristor" flashes and digital cameras 
that would lead to inconsistent exposure? Somebody told me that when you 
combine auto-thyristor electronic flash with a digital sensor, the digital 
sensor may not "see" what the thyristor does. Anyone know more about this?

I was fooling around with my E-1 and a generic automatic (non-TTL) flash--a 
Vivitar 2500. I hadn't used the flash for a while, so I used the E-1 to 
test it prior to shooting candids at a wedding with B&W film and an OT 
rangefinder camera.  I found that the flash overexposed close up and 
underexposed *drastically* at medium to far distances (supposedly within 
its auto ranges). Almost as if the sensor wasn't working. I got the same 
general results with direct flash, bounce flash, and a Lumiquest "Pocket 
Bouncer."  The little "exposure OK" light on the flash lit, but the camera 
did not see things that way.

I tried this with an even older flash and got similar results. (Yes, the 
flashes' trigger voltages were within the E-1's tolerances, and I shot at 
1/60--a little below the E-1's maximum speed for flash synch).

The Vivitar 2500 worked fine when used with film--a little variation from 
near to far, but well within film latitude.

What gives?

--Peter 


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