Customer Reviews

Olympus FL-36R Electronic Flash for Olympus Digital SLR Cameras

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I purchased the FL-36R to use with my E510. Olympus only makes two flashes worth considering for general use with their E(volt) line of DSLRs, the FL-36R and the FL-50R. The FL-50R is significantly more powerful than the FL-36R (guide number of 50 vs. 36), but it is also substantially bigger, heavier and twice the cost. For me, the FL-36R was the obvious choice. There are also non-Olympus flashes that are cheaper and claim to work in the TTL (though the lens) mode, but many reviews cast doubt on this claim.

There are a couple of reasons to buy an external flash as opposed to just using the built-in flash.
1. Focusing at low light levels is much improved because the red focusing light emitted by the external flash does a much better job than the white light given off by the built-in flash. Unlike the built-in flash which could take 4 or 5 flashes to focus, the FL-36R usually managed much more quickly.
2. The built-in flash has only about 1/3 the power of the FL-36R. Having said that, the built-in flash is certainly adequate for many situations. However, if you are constantly trying to fill a mid-sized room with light, either of the external flashes will be a big improvement.
3. The FL-36R has a flash head that can be swiveled and tilted. This allows the flash to be bounced off ceilings and walls, in many cases providing a softer and more pleasing light.
4. Because the FL-36R is raised over the lens, red-eye is not nearly as big a problem as with the built-in flash. Also, tilting the flash head just a little virtually does away with red-eye.
5. The external flash has the ability to synchronize with the camera at much high shutter speeds (Super FP mode) allowing fill light for action shots.
6. The external flash can be set off to the side and, in the manual mode, be triggered by the camera's built-in flash. Having multiple light sources can add interesting effects to pictures.
7. The flash gun seems to be sturdy, well built, and of reasonable quality.

There are a few minor negatives to this flash.
1. Using bounce flash sometimes resulted in underexposed photos even with the TTL mode and a white ceiling.
2. Although this is a small and compact flash, it is still a lot of extra weight to drag around.
3. The manual, although generally clear, is short on details and examples.
4. Initial start up time is slow, about 30 - 40 seconds even with freshly recharged batteries. I consider this to be minor. Some reviews complain about a slow recharge time or 5 or 6 seconds. For me this recharge time has been plenty fast.
5. Finally, two hundred dollars for a flash is a lot compared to the cost of the camera. I'd be tempted to really learn the built-in flash first before spending the money on an external flash.

I just purchased the Olympus E510 digital camera with this flash for my work - and I love it! Aside from the Olympus digital SLR camera being pretty amazing, the flash is outstanding. You can twist it a million different directions and give it different lighting situations. You'll want to read the manual to learn all about it. The best feature is the slave. So handy and it works like a dream. I couldn't ask for a better flash for any of my cameras. My only complaint is that the charge time is SLOW!!!! I'm looking for an AA battery alternative, but the only one I can find is $400! If you don't mind waiting for the charge, this flash is amazing.

This flash unit is very well built and practical. The head tilts 90° and swivels 180°, it is light, compact and very well built. You can get CV-R3 lithium ion batteries for it, which being a single unit is more practical than two AA batteries.

It does not charge as fast as bigger, meaner models such as the Metz Mecablitz 48 AF-1, and it lacks the 58 AF-1 secondary fill-in flash lamp. But because of its compactness it is a good fit for compact cameras without remote flash capability as the E-510; for the E-420, get the wireless version FL-36R.

Lacking the secondary lamp, it is a good fit for cameras that have a built-in flash at a offset from the hot shoe so as to be useful as a secondary fill-in flash lamp, such as the E-330, Panasonic L1 or Leica Digilux 3 -- but these cameras being bigger perhaps the Metz Mecablitz 58 AF-1 might be a nice fit too.

For the E-1, E-3 or Panasonic L10, get the Metz Mecablitz 58 AF-1, or the FL-50R if you can live without the secondary lamp or if you need the wireless capabilities now -- the Metz is awaiting a firmware option to interoperate wirelessly with the Four Thirds cameras.

I've been using this flash for over a year now with my E-510. It has been good, but I'm just not happy with the refresh rate on it. I just bought the FL-50R, and it is so much better. I know it's a lot more money, but when you miss an opportunity because you're waiting for the flash to charge can be really aggravating! Save your money and get the FL-50R. I'm passing this one down to the wife to use on her OLY 570-UZ (great camera).

Purchased this to use with my Panasonic GF1 and was pretty happy with it- it's reasonably compact for its power, integrates well with the camera features etc. The recharge times can be a little on the long side but are acceptable for non-professional situations.

Unfortunately, my FL-36R failed at 14 months (2 months outside of the warranty) despite very infrequent use (probably fewer than 75 flashes)... it never even left the house! At first it started missing flashes despite being charged, and soon after would not fire at all, even from the TEST button. I followed Olympus procedures to send it in for a repair estimate and was told that $94.11 for a flat rate repair (with six month warranty) is the only option other than letting them recycle the product (which is free). I found a few other people on dpreview and fixya who experienced the same failure with this model within the first year or two, but Olympus flat-out refused to acknowledge a problem. Very frustrating...

I wanted to make an upgrade to my camera and was deciding between a new lens or a flash unit.

Quick background: I am an amateur for sure, with an E-520 and the kit 14-42 lens, but very active. I did have a limited budget as well. The majority of my photography occurs either indoors or late afternoons/evenings. I was at first deciding to upgrade my lens for something with a larger aperture vs a more powerful flash. Obviously, I decided to go with the flash for multiple reasons:

- The flash (specifically the FL-36R) is more affordable than any of the Zuiko HG lens, which I will eventually buy into when my budget permits. I could have waited longer to save the money required to purchase the FL-50R, but I felt that I wouldn't need that amount of power (GN 50) considering most of my indoor shots are in your typical home/apartment.

- Admittedly, one of the main reasons why I bought the 36R was for the focus assist. My subjects would mock me due to the annoyance of the strobe assist. The FL-36R helps speed up the auto-focus with it's built in red focus-assist beam. The difference in the time it takes my camera to lock on subject is night and day! No one complains now.

- With a GN of 36, I pretty much have enough light to cover most of my photographing needs. I mainly bounce the flash off the ceiling and the difference is amazing with my photos. If I have to use the flash, I'll reach for the 36R instead of using the built-in flash.

- I no longer have red-eye problems with the vast majority of my shots, since the flash is further from the lens.

- Eventually, I'll look into playing with the remote functionality and see what creative effects I can get with the built-in flash in conjunction with the 36R. It came with a little table-top stand that you can mount on a tripod.

If you want to kill as many birds as possible with one stone, than consider purchasing the FL-36R before upgrading your kit lens; of course this applies primarily to those who take most of their pictures indoors and/or in the evenings. On a side note, if you were to upgrade your kit lens to any one of the many larger lens available, you could end up with a shadow on the bottom edge of your photos by using the built-in flash when shooting wide. Catch 22? You won't have this problem if you first get the FL-36R (or both the flash and lens at once, $$$).

After using the FL-36R on my vacation, I really can't see how much better my photos could've been if I had purchased the FL-50R. And considering that the 50R is slightly larger/heavier and requires more batteries (and more expensive), I have no regrets. Indeed, the 36R just barely fits perfectly in my camera bag (Lowepro SlingShot). When mounted, my camera is just a little top heavy but nothing you can't get used to; if it was the FL-50R, it might be annoying to walk around with it (and the camera) strapped to your neck after awhile, but not so much the FL-36R.

Anyways, just quit your hemming and hawing. Get this flash. You will wonder why you haven't done it any sooner!

Bought the FL-36R 2 weeks ago to take pictures at my nephew's wedding and I was not disapointed. I used it on my E-500 and one of the biggest plus's was quicker focusing times in low light. I opted to purchase rechargeble batteries instead of the standard AA's and was not disapointed on their performance. When freshly charged the batteries provided a fast recycle time (1 or 2 sec). When the batteries start pulling down you the recycle will definetly get longer which is your prompt to switch out the batteries

I also purchased the Phen diffuser that was shown to be a companion purchase with the flash and the combo produced a nice even light with out the usual harsh shadows you get from the pop up flash. Good product and a good combo with the Phen in my opinion.

Shipping and delivery beat estimated delivery times without any issues.

Wonderful flash for the 4/3s system. Very good in small rooms and comes with a focus-assist lamp to help in those dark areas (no more strobing!). The remote functionality works well, takes a little while to fully understand though. I would suggest Eneloop batteries with this guy, they last a long time and shorten recycle times. Just know that it can take up to 5-6 hours to fully charge them back up to 100%.

I bought the Olympus FL-36R flash for my Olympus SP-570UZ.It was a little more than the FL-36 but it is worth the few dollars more. It takes 2 AA batteries which i like and is gives out a decent output. You can adjust the flash head to different angles for bounce light. It communicates with the camera and adjust the zoom flash head according to the zoom position that you use on the camera.It will do all sorts of TTL features that you need for a nice flash. Excellent quality and reliable performance.
RobertLZ on flickr

Great!

I was not sure to buy 50R or 36R but now after using for a while I am very glad of my decision. Especially with an Olympus PEN 50R would be so BIG. 36R is good enough for almost no light at a range of my preactical usage which is max 3-5 m distance to subject.

The communication is also very handy and works great. FP mode is fantastic, I can shoot with even 1/500 sn! RC mode, etc. I will practice more to learn shooting with external flash.

Recharging time is reasonable. I was using (trying to use) Nikon SB800 before this one and it was of course much better from this point of view but it was completely uncompatible with my PEN so useless. I sold it and now I am happy with 36R.

I recommend to all Olympus users especially for PEN users.

Regards.