Metz MECABLITZ 34 AF-3 M User manual

TV • VIDEO • CAMCORDER • MECABLITZ

MECABLITZ 34 AF-3 M

Operating instructions

Foreword

Dear Customer,

We thank you for your conﬁdence in our meca-

blitz MB 34 AF-3M.

The MB 34 AF-3M ﬂashgun has been especial-

ly designed for Minolta system cameras of the

Dynax series. IMPORTANT: Never mount the

ﬂashgun in the accessory shoe of any other

system camera, otherwise the ﬂashgun’s foot

or the camera’s accessory shoe can be dest-

royed! The dedicated contacts in the foot of the

MB 34 AF-3M only support the controlling

commands of Minolta system cameras.

The following pages give details for the correct

operation of the mecablitz ﬂashgun and summari-

ze its ﬁelds of application.

Please read these operating instructions carefully,

even if, at ﬁrst sight, some points may not appear

be of interest. Our design work placed

particular

value on ensuring that operation of the mecablitz is

as simple

as possible, but it should be noted that

the system cameras for which the ﬂashgun is

intended offer a great diversity of capabilities.

We wish you much pleasure with your new Metz

ﬂashgun in conjunction

with a Minolta Dynax

system camera to light up the darkest points, and

for creative ﬂash lighting.

Contents

1. Safety instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

2. Preparing the mecablitz for use . . . . . . .24

2.1 Power supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

2.2 Loading and replacing the batteries . . . . . .24

2.3 Automatic ﬂashgun cut-out circuit . . . . . . .25

2.4 Mounting/Removing the mecablitz . . . . . . .25

3. Setting the mecablitz into operation . . .26

3.1 Preconditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

3.2 Switching the ﬂashgun on and off . . . . . . .26

4. Flashgun instructions to the camera . . .27

4.1 Flash-ready indication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

4.2 Automatic ﬂash sync speed control . . . . . .27

4.3 Correct-exposure indication . . . . . . . . . . .27

4.4 Information displayed in the

camera’s viewﬁnder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

5. TTL ﬂash control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

6. Flash synchronisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

6.1 Normal synchronisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

6.2 Slow-synchronisation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

6.3 Second curtain synchronisation . . . . . . . . .31

7. Flash in the individual camera modes . .32

8. Autofocus measuring ﬂash . . . . . . . . . . .33

9. Flash techniques and ﬂash functions . .34

9.1 Automatic ﬁll-in ﬂash . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

9.2 Exposure correction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34

10.

Lighting and attachments

. . . . . . . . . . . .35

11. Care and maintenance -

Manual ﬁring button

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

12. Technical data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37

Lighting distances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

1. Safety instructions

•NEVER ﬁre a ﬂash in the immediate vicinity of

the eyes! Flash ﬁred directly in front of the eyes

ofapersonoranimalcandamagetheretinaand

leadto severevisual disorders- evenblindness!

• Spent batteries should be immediately remo-

ved. Chemicals leaking out of spent batteries

will damage the ﬂashgun.

• Do not short-circuit batteries! DANGER OF

EXPLOSION!

• Batteries should not be exposed to excessive

heat, for instance sunshine, ﬁre and the like!

•NEVER throw spent batteries in a ﬁre!

• Do not expose the ﬂashgun to dripping or

splashing water!

• Protect the ﬂashgun against excessive heat and

high humidity levels! Do not keep the ﬂashgun

in the glove compartment of a car!

• In the event of ﬂash shots with full light output

observe an interval of at least 3 minutes after a

series of 20 ﬂashes. This will protect the ﬂash-

gun against overload.

•

NEVER place material that is impervious to light

in front of, or directly

on, the reﬂector screen.

The reﬂector screen must be perfectly clean

when a ﬂash is ﬁred. The high energy of the

ﬂash light will burn the material or damage the

screen if this is not observed!

•NEVER dismantle the ﬂashgun! DANGER: HIGH

VOLTAGE! There are

no components inside the

ﬂashgun that can be repaired by a layperson.

Disposal of batteries

Do not dispose of spent batteries with domestic

rubbish.

Please return spent batteries to collecting points

should they exist in your country!

2. Preparing the mecablitz for use

2.1 Power supply

The ﬂashgun can only be operated with 2 CR2-type lithi-

um batteries. This type of battery can be stored for many

years with practically no loss of energy, thus making it

ideal for occasional amateur ﬂash photography.

Batteries have become discharged or spent

when recycling takes more than 60 seconds.

The batteries should be removed from the

mecablitziftheﬂashgunisnotgoingtobeused

for a prolonged period.

2.2 Loading and exchanging batteries

• Turn off the ﬂashgun with the main switch.

• Press the unlocking catch, slide the battery

compartment lid to the right and fold open (see

ﬁg. 1).

• Insert the batteries according to the indicated

battery symbols.

The supplied lithium batteries are expendables

and, as such, are not subject to our warranty pro-

visions.

After the batteries have been inserted, fold down

the battery compartment lid, and push to the left

until it engages audible with the unlocking catch.

☞

☛

➭

Fig. 1: Unlocking and exchanging batteries

2. Preparing the mecablitz for use

When loading the batteries ensure correct pola-

rity.Incorrectlyloadedbatteriescandestroythe

ﬂashgun! All batteries must be of the same

make and have the same charge level.

Exhau-

sted batteries must not be thrown into the

dustbin! Contribute to the protection of the

environment and discard exhausted batteries

at the appropriate disposal points.

2.3 Automatic ﬂashgun switch-off

To avoid accidental battery discharge the ﬂashgun

automatically switches itself off to save power

approximately 8 minutes after

- the ﬂashgun was switched on

- the last ﬂash was ﬁred

- tripping the camera release, or

- switching on the camera light metering system.

The green ﬂash-ready indicator is turned off.

To turn on the mecablitz again switch the main

switch OFF and then ON. The ﬂashgun should

always be turned off if it is not being used.

2.4 Mounting/Removing the ﬂashgun

• Turn off the mecablitz.

• Press the unlocking catch at the back of the

mecablitz (see ﬁg. 2).

• Slide the mounting foot into the camera’s

mounting shoe.

•

Always turn off the ﬂashgun before it is removed.

•

Press the unlocking catch at the back of the

mecablitz (ﬁg. 2) and withdraw from the camera.

☞

Fig. 2: Unlocking catch

☛

3. Setting the mecablitz into operation

3.1 Preconditions

The mecablitz must only be used with TTL

ﬂash controlled cameras!

The sensor of TTL ﬂash controlled cameras

measures the light reaching the ﬁlm through

the camera lens and instantly cuts out the

ﬂash when the ﬁlm has been correctly expo-

sed. Please refer to the camera’s operating

instructions to ﬁnd out whether your camera

features this function.

A full-power ﬂash is ﬁred if the camera does

not feature TTL ﬂash control!

In other words: Without TTL ﬂash control, the

mecablitz ﬁres an unmeasured ﬂash at maximum

output.

If there is a ﬂashgun integrated in the camera

must be switched off or completely folded

down when the mecablitz is used.

Fig. 3: Switching the ﬂashgun on and off

OFF ON

3.2 Switching the ﬂashgun on and off

Set the main switch in the ON position to turn on

the ﬂashgun. The green ﬂash-ready indicator

lights up to indicate ﬂash readiness.

Set the main switch in the OFF position to turn off

the ﬂashgun.

4. Flashgun instructions to the camera

The mecablitz transmits different signals and

messages to the camera when it is connected to

the camera and is switched on.

4.1 Flash-ready indication

The green light on the mecablitz illuminates

when the ﬂash capacitor is fully primed, thereby

indicating ﬂash readiness. This means that ﬂash

can be used for the next exposure. The ﬂash rea-

diness signal is transmitted to the camera where it

is indicated by a corresponding display in the

camera’s viewﬁnder. On some cameras (depen-

ding on the model) the shutter is automatically

changed to ﬂash sync speed when ﬂash readiness

is reached. The ﬂash will not be ﬁred if the shutter

is released before the ﬂash ready light illuminates

with the result that the exposure may be incorrect

if the camera control circuit has already changed

overto ﬂashsync speed. Please refer tothe came-

ra’s operating instructions for further details.

4.2 Automatic ﬂash sync speed control

Most system cameras automatically change to

ﬂash sync speed when ﬂash readiness is reached.

The ﬂash sync shutter speeds may vary between

1/30th and 1/300th second, depending on the

cameramodel.Pleaserefertothecamera’sopera-

ting instructions for further details.

4.3 Correct-exposure indication (see ﬁg. 4)

The red correct exposure light brieﬂy illuminates

when ﬂash exposure was correct. At the same

time the mecablitz sends an o.k. signal to the

camera for display in the viewﬁnder.

Please refer to the camera’s operating instructions

for further details.

4. Flashgun instructions to the camera

Fig. 4: Exposure o.k.

Permanently

The ﬂashgun is primed and

illuminated

ready for ﬁring

or blinks slowly

Permanently The ﬂashgun is primed and

illuminated

ready for ﬁring

or blinks slowly

blinks 2) T

he light output was sufficient

blinks rapidly

for correct exposure

Camera models:

3xi / 2xi / SPxi / 5000i / 3000i

blinks The ﬂashgun is being primed

blinks slowly

The ﬂashgun is primed and

ready for ﬁring

blinks rapidly

The light output was sufficient

for correct exposure

4.4 Information displayed in the camera’s viewﬁnder

Camera models 8000i 1)/ 7000i 1)/ 700si 2)

9xi 2)/ 7xi 2)/ 5xi 2)

Displays in Meaning

viewﬁnder

Permanently

The ﬂashgun will be triggered as

illuminated

soon as the release is pressed.

5. TTL ﬂash control

The mecablitz receives its information exclusively

from the connected TTL-controlled camera.

Exposure measurement in TTL mode (TTL =

through-the-lens) is completed by the camera’s

sensor. This sensor measures the light reaching

the ﬁlm through the camera lens. An electronic

control circuit within the camera transmits a stop

signal to the ﬂashgun as soon as the ﬁlm has been

exposed by the correct amount of light; the ﬂash is

then instantly cut out.

The advantage of the TTL mode is that all factors

inﬂuencing the exposure of the ﬁlm (such as ﬁl-

ters, change of aperture or variable aperture

zooms)are taken intoaccount. Youneed notworry

about adjustment of the light output. The camera’s

electronic system automatically deﬁnes the requi-

red amount of light. You can also utilize various

metering facilities

(e.g. spot , matrix or centre-

weighted overall readings)

offered by some came-

ras.

The table on page 37 gives the maximum range

for the selected aperture. The minimum lighting

distance is approx. 15% of the maximum thres-

hold range.

If the actual distance is shorter than the

minimum lighting distance, then this may

result in overexposure.

The speed of ﬁlms to be exposed under

TTL ﬂash control must be between ISO

25/15°* and ISO 1000/31°. Correct expo-

sures cannot be guaranteed with other

ﬁlm speeds.

Astrip ofﬁlmmust beloadedin thecamera iftests

are to be conducted in TTL ﬂash mode. The effec-

tive ﬂash range can only be checked by the cor-

rect-exposure display (o.k.) if the ﬂash is triggered

by the camera and not with the manual release on

the ﬂashgun!

* With automatic ﬁlm speed setting (DX): ISO 32/16°

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