Hello,

Once, at an art opening, I saw a photographer using a Leica M. He had this little winking flash, about the size of a plastic pop bottle top (1 1/2 in. tall, 3/4 in. wide), sticking out of the hotshoe. I asked him about it, and he said it was for giving a little catchlight in the eyes of his subjects.

This appeals to me, as that's usually all I want to use a flash for. Does anyone know of such an animal?

-- David Carson (dave@davidcarson.com), September 20, 2001

Answers

Saw some itsy bitsy hot shoe flashes in the Adorama catalog.

-- Andrew Schank (aschank@flash.net), September 20, 2001.

I think there is something made by Prinz that fits that description. The SF20 turned down a few stops in auto mode might do the same job, but also give you added flexibility if you need more punch or TTL in other situations.

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), September 20, 2001.

I searched for Prinz at B&H and Adorama's web sites; couldn't find anything.

Could you guys tell me where to find Prinz stuff, and what the brand names of the small flashes at Adorama were?

Do you think a small slave flash would work? I've never used one.

-- David Carson (dave@davidcarson.com), September 20, 2001.

The catalog I have is a couple years old, but the part number was MRMSP and the unit was called "Mini slave plus". Can be used as a hot shoe flash or a second unit remotely with its built in slave. Size is a tiny 2.25 inch by 2.25 inch by .85 inch . Was $39.95 in this catalog.

-- Andrew Schank (aschank@flash.net), September 20, 2001.

David:

The Prinz label has been gone for several years. You might find one on eBay or Photo.net.

-- Jack Flesher (jbflesher@msn.com), September 21, 2001.

Maybe this?

(I tried "mini slave flash" on bhphoto.com, got a hit for "Morris mini slave flash," which I googled to get the above link.)

-- TSW (tsesung@yahoo.com), September 21, 2001.

The mini-slave looks cute but I second Jack on the SF20, for auto and TTL capabilities. If you can afford one, go for it. They can be found new from roughly USD 170 up. If you are looking for a less expensive alternative including a bit of glueing and drilling you might check out . Have fun.

-- Lutz Konermann (lutz@konermann.net), September 21, 2001.

The mini-slave looks cute but I second Jack on the SF20, for auto and TTL capabilities. If you can afford one, go for it. They can be found new from roughly USD 170 up. If you are looking for a less expensive alternative including a bit of glueing and drilling you might check out this here. Have fun.

-- Lutz Konermann (lutz@konermann.net), September 21, 2001.

Really depends whether you have a ttl or not. For my Leitz M6 Classic, I use a Metz 34cs-2, which can also double as a slave. An outstanding little flash for not too much money.

-- Leicaddict (leicaddict@hotmail.com), September 21, 2001.

Hey guys, thanks for all the responses. I'd definitely get an SF20 for TTL flash, but what I'm looking for is just a small burst of light for catchlight only, and something real small so it doesn't look like an obnoxious flash (normal flashes always seem to upset the balance of a camera too) and is easy to carry.

Those little morris slaves might work. It looks like they'd hook into the pc terminal, right? A little glue and plastic to make a shoemount, and maybe that'd work. What do you think?

-- David Carson (dave@davidcarson.com), September 21, 2001.

Check out the Olympus S-20. It is the exact same flash as the one that comes with the Hexar RF and also the Leica CF for the Minilux Zoom, except the Olympus doesn't have any dedicated contacts, and it costs about $50. Runs on 2 AA's, has 2 auto-aperture settings and can hide in the palm of your hand. Best of all the flash tube is high enough above the lens axis to elminate most red-eye.

-- Jay (infinitydt@aol.com), September 21, 2001.