SONY HVL-F20M FLASHGUN

 COMPACT LIGHT

If I choose to use my SONY A6000 camera for some casual 'snapshots' and I need a little more light than the built-in popup can provide (GN6), then I'd normally turn to my Sony HVL-F45RM but boy, that thing looks HUGE on the A6000, so I looked around for a compact flashgun which would match the dimensions of my smaller camera.

 

There's another reason why I wanted a small flashgun - to provide me with a wireless trigger for my Sony HVL-F45RM on the RX10. The little F20M is the perfect gun for the job, so this second role made it a very easy purchase. Bear in mind that this gun cannot be used as a slave itself.

The HVL-F20M has a Guide Number of 20 which is fine for most indoor applications, plus a little fill-in light outdoors as long as the main subject remains pretty closeby. Apart from having a decent level of power for such a small gun, it also has a Zoom feature for when using a short telephoto or zoom - this is a manual operation, not automatic like on bigger flashguns.

  

The HVL-F20M also has a Bounce setting which allows you to soften the light by bouncing from a ceiling. This really does provide pleasing results and if the ceiling is a little high, just adjust your Flash Compensation in the camera's menus.

Rather uniquely, the flashgun is switched on by standing it up on the hotshoe! I find this a little bit odd, but then again I can't really fault it. In its upright position, the gun charges up and led indicators on the rear let you know when you're good to go. Power-up time is about 5 seconds from cold with fully charged AA batteries (2).

 

The HVL-F20M RRP is listed on Sony's website at £150 which seems like an awful lot of money for such a small flashgun, but of course in addition to the smart technology within the unit, you are also paying for that compact size which allows you to slip it into a pocket!

Personally, I found a MINT+++ 'virtually unused' one for just fifty quid. I would not have paid full price (I never do).

So there you have it - a fabulous little flashgun which will work perfectly with the A6000 and will double up as a wireless trigger on my RX10 to fire the Sony HVL-F45RM.