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I've discovered that my Sunpak 383 flash won't work automagically with my Nikon D70s since they don't talk much with each other. That's not great, but I can revert to manual mode on my 383 and still get some use out of it.

There are 3 measurement scales on my 383 to assist in getting the right exposure:

  • ISO
  • Distance to subject in feet
  • F/stop

I understand the first two because they're pretty self-explanatory. It's the last one that confuses me.

It lists the F/stop with numbers that correspond to the typical aperture sequence (2, 2.8, 4, 5.6, etc). However, there's nothing that suggests a shutter speed. Obviously, setting the aperture to this number without considering shutter speed isn't going to lead to the correct exposure. I've also seen this sort of absolute f/stop numbering system in other places (ex: light meters).

Is there a way to take a single f/stop number and create an equivalent aperture/shutter combination(s)? (Or is there a chance that my flash f/stop scale refers to aperture and is assuming a specific constant shutter speed?)

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The flash should be providing sufficient light if the distance is set correctly. (the light reaching the target at the appropriate time). As to shutter speed, this review at Amazon says that the correct flash sync speed is 1/1000. The sunpak website provides a range of Approx. 1/700-1/20,000 sec.

My guess is the range on the sunpak website is only meaningful if your camera will speak to it with the flash sync cord. The default may well be 1/1000 but I can't find anything to back that up.

The sunpak website no longer has (never had?) English documentation on the flash, however the japanese documentation is here. The japanese documentation is more detailed than the specs on the english site. The sync speed on auto is 1/700 - 1/20000 however on manual it is (only) 1/700 - 1/10000. You may want to have a look through the japanese manual anyways. The tables have good information even if you can't read the other bits and has a few things to keep in mind. e.g. The switch on the back, on the left, should be up for manual, down for auto, and adjustments based on light quality.

Just a quick legend on the docs:
光 = light.
GN / ガイドナンバー　= Guide Number
ミリ　= millimeter

Unfortunately, I'm not fluent in Japanese so I'm not able to read everything -- I just get the gist, really. let me know here if you want more detail on any of the sections

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