At the same time as bringing the Sony A7 III to market, a new flash has arrived in the form of the HVL-F60RM – Sony’s flagship flashgun that’s designed for serious A7-series photographers.
With high-power flash output and a maximum guide number of 60 (ISO 100), the HVL-F60RM covers illumination from 20mm to 200mm, providing wide-range zoom coverage with continuous shooting for up to as many as 220 flashes.
Improvements over the existing HVL-F60M include superior heat resistant materials and the use of new advanced algorithms, which are claimed to increase the heat resistance by as much as four times.
The recycle time between flashes is rated at a hasty 1.7seconds, but this can be further improved to just 0.6 seconds with the new external battery adaptor (FA-EBA1).
As to be expected, flash synchronisation is maintained during continuous shooting to minimise flash misfires and ruined shots.
The flashgun is equipped with Sony’s quick shift bounce function that allows users to quickly shift from horizontal to vertical orientation, however unlike the ingeniously designed and recently released Canon Speedlite 470EX-AI, the head isn’t motorised.
Functions can be freely assigned to the unit’s four-way controller and it’s possible to memorise the TTL flash output and recall it in manual mode to save time.
As well as being dust and moisture resistant there’s a new optional rain guard (FA-RG1) to provide added protection between the flash and camera, while, it can also be setup to be used as a transmitter to fire as many as 15 other off-camera units, assigned in up to five groups.
When it goes on sale in April, the Sony HVL-F60RM will cost £620. The optional external battery adaptor (FA-EBA1) and rain guard (FA-RG1) will cost £270 and £27 respectively.
Read our first look of the new Sony A7 III – the third generation entry-level full-frame mirrorless A7 series camera, offering a new sensor, improved speed, upgraded autofocus and impressive battery life.
Sony RX0 receives release cable
Another new product to arrive from Sony is the VMC-MM2 – a new cable specially designed for the company’s RX0 camera.
The idea behind the cable is that it’s used to pair the RX0 with Sony A7-series or other Cybershot cameras for dual-camera shooting, giving photographers the opportunity to capture two totally different perspectives at the same time.
The VMC-MM2 cable supports simultaneous photo/movie shooting with a single press of main camera’s release button and has a coiled design with a right-angle connector to keep it clear of the EVF during shooting.
The VMC-MM2 will be available in April and will cost £50.
