Customer Reviews

Vivitar DF383 Digital TTL Shoe Mount Power Zoom /Swivel /Bounce Auto-Focus Flash for Canon TTL, Guide Number 45m (147')

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

First, I didn't get my unit here (sorry, Amazon), but I am enjoying it a great deal.

If you're a knowledgeable amateur or a pro on a tight budget, I would certainly recommend giving this flash a try - I think you'll be surprised by the value.

I was impressed by the usability of this little guy. You really do have full manual control over the entire unit, which is something I really wanted after seeing the 420 work without any manual controls to speak of. And all the settings are easily changed/easily read with the LCD (which makes this easily worth the extra price compared to the 283). The power output is very good; I haven't been disappointed yet whether firing it direct, bouncing it or using it as a slave. The built-in diffuser and card do make a very noticeable difference in the photos I've taken.

Slave mode is photometric, meaning that it detects another flash fire and fires with it. That means I didn't have to buy another cheap radio slave for this unit. It works exactly as it should. What else can I say?

TTL works a treat. I've never had a TTL flash before, but it works great. I've always set everything on my camera manually, cheap flash unit included, so that's what I'm used too. But since buying this flash there have been a couple of occasions when I was in a hurry and just popped it on there and switched it to full TTL. The zoom, aperture, and iso all adjust with the camera settings and it's easy to read the effective range of the flash using the LCD. When you pop it up for a bounce shot, it adjusts the beam to 50mm (roughly middle of the road) and adjusts the power depending on your camera settings to still get a great shot. I'll probably still normally use manual settings, but it's very nice to know I've got something better than the popup flash when I'm in a hurry or don't want to think too much.

Happy shooting!

I purchased this unit to use with my Canon EOS XSi. I have used it for about two months without a single problem. The unit has the ability to swivel the flash head to the ceiling when you are taking horizontal photos and vertical photos. This feature is especially useful when taking a portrait very close to your subject since you can use the bounce flash. Another useful feature is that the flash has a retractable diffuser and white reflector for bounce flash. You can use the diffuser only or both the diffuser and the reflector. The camera integrates seamlessly with the Canon camera but you have to be careful to understand how the flash and the camera work together. For example if you set the camera to shutter priority (Tv setting) you must understand that the Canon camera will treat the flash as a fill flash for your scene. One excellent feature of this flash is the fact that you can set it as a slave. I have a point and shoot camera that has limited flash range. However if you use this flash on slave mode, you have the power (Flux) to use bounce flash with your point and shoot camera. All you have to do is hold the flash with one arm and shoot with the camera with the other. With respect to power consumption, I shot about 400 flash photos with one set of Kodak Alkaline batteries. I also have used rechargeable batteries with no problems.

This flash is an adequate inexpensive alternative to a dedicated Canon flash. The automatic focus function does not appear to work with a Canon SX10is, but I can live without it. The auto zoom function works fine. It gives accurate exposures in the eTTL mode. There appears to be no built in sensor when used in the slave mode, so a few trial shots are required. Eats alkaline AA batteries pretty fast, so you may want to invest in rechargeables. Overall I think it is worth the asking price.

I got this flash to be part of my speedlite studio lighting setup, for studio or location photography. (built around David Hobby's Strobist approach) Since this flash also does TTL it works fairly well as a normal on-camera flash.

Let me get into the good parts of this flash before I explain why I don't like it.
-It's cheap for what it is. At $110 when I bought it, it's a really good deal for a flash that has a built-in optical slave and TTL. The price is its only redeeming feature.
-It has a built in optical slave, a great feature for this price range. This means it will automatically flash when it sees the pulse of light from another flash. When working with multiple light setups, this is very helpful and convenient.
-It does TTL. (automatic flash exposure) I don't use this feature since I already have a Canon 430EX that also does TTL, and I only need one TTL flash, but if someone wanted a budget flash for on their camera this is a good way to go.
-The flash head rotates up 90 degrees, and spins 270 degrees.
-It's pretty powerful. Maybe about as powerful as my 430EX but I haven't tested it.
-It works. It hasn't broken on me yet after a couple months of regular use.

And now the reasons I don't like it (in order of importance to me).
-POWER SAVE. I hate it. You can't disable it. When the flash is not in slave mode, it will automatically turn off after 3 minutes or so, seemingly regardless of whether or not I fired it recently. Since I work with this as an off-camera flash, (with a radio trigger) it's aggravating to have to go re-activate it every 3 minutes during a photoshoot or event. The only redeeming thing here is the power save is disabled when used in Slave mode. So if you do get this flash for off camera work, try to always use it as an optical slave.
-Slow operation. When you turn the flash on, the flash head zooms in and out, then it starts charging. It's on TTL mode by default. Press the mode button to go to manual power, and press it again to cycle thru the power levels. You have to go through that whole sequence, minus the capacitors charging, every time you: 1) switch between normal and slave mode, and 2) wake up the flash after it auto powers off every 3 minutes. This leaves me fiddling with the flash for a good 5-10 seconds at a time while my model stands there wondering if I really know what I'm doing.
-Ridiculously slow recycle time. I timed it- with fresh batteries newly inserted, this flash takes 25+ seconds to charge all the way. Especially firing at higher power levels, you'll run down the capacitors quick. Don't expect to shoot very fast with this flash.
-Inconsistent power output. If you fire the flash at a given power level then ask it to fire again at the same power level before the capacitors have charged enough to actually put out that amount of light, the flash will fire anyway, but at a lower power level. You won't be able to tell with your eyes that it was a weaker flash, but when you look at the photos, they'll be underexposed.
-It only goes down to 1/16th power. That makes it a lot less flexible when I need just a little bit of light. Most other flashes go to 1/64th power.
-The optical slave isn't reliable outdoors.
-It's loud. Every flash has a high-pitched whine when the capacitors are charging, but this one is way louder than my 430EX. It gets really annoying.
-Slow and loud zoom action.

In conclusion, this is a decent, cheap flash to get if you need a more powerful automatic flash to be mounted on your camera. If you don't mind not having TTL, I highly recommend the LumoPro LP160 instead. For $50 more, it's a hugely better flash that will leave you grinning instead of pulling your hair out.

I got this flash a few days ago and I am very pleased with it. All the functions worked properly. I think some of the negative reviews come from users not knowing how the flash operates. This is a great flash with a few things you should know.

1. It doesn't come with anything to attatch to a tripod or it doesn't come with a stand so you can use the flash as a slave off camera...no biggie just buy something to attach to the bottom.

2. The flash takes a little time to get used to...the many useful tools on the back of the flash can be a little intimidating at first...I think this is where most ppl get frustrated and either misuse the flash or get another flash because they do not understand the relationship of the increments on the flash in manual mode and the increments on the camera...it is well worth to pick up a book about flashes and learn.

3.The recycle time seems to be an issue with most ppl with this flash....I already had the DC1500 Duracell NiMH rechargeable's and the recycle time for me was less than a second in all formats, which is superb.

In other words, this is a great toy that you need to play with on your own and learn...and take heed to some of the negative reviews about this flash.

Bought this 2 days ago excited to use it with my new 60D, I plugged it in and fired it up. So far so good, there is a loud testing of the zoom feature on the flash and the first capacitor cycle is longish and noisy but nothing terrible. Using full auto mode the flash recognized the eTTL and fired the flash just fine. I checked the picture and it's WAY WAY over exposed. I tried different zoom levels and got the same effect. I used the camera's flash utility and underexposed the image all the way down to -2EV before the shots started looking somewhat normal but honestly could have gone to -2 2/3EV to get ideal. Not liking this much adjustment I decided to turn the power down on the flash and this is when things wen't real bad. I dropped the power down to 1/2 and snapped a pictured. The camera made an ugly sound and flashed Err 20 on the lcd. Thinking it was a fluke I powered off the camera like it instructed and tried again and again. I tried 3 different lenses, multiple power levels and zoom levels and EVERY time the camera flashed Err 20 and make a sick sound. I just hope I didn't mess the camera up at all.

If you have a 60D I DO NOT recommend buying this flash. I've read other web posts from people saying it works great on their T1i (great camera BTW), T2i & XTi so there appears to be something in the 60D's firmware that doesn't agree with this flash.

I own a Canon T2i and this unit integrates 100% with the camera. The TTL feature works flawlessly. What a difference in my indoor pictures. It made me a firm believer in the statement that light is the most important factor in photography. The pictures came alive on my LCD after I took them, with vivid color and detail. I used the 50mm lens and I was so impressed. The built in diffuser works great. You will take your indoor portrait photography to a new level. The swivel is magnificent because you can shoot at any angle without the classic harsh flash look in your pictures and glare. I took quick pictures with the flash with no delays, using top of the line Rechargeable batteries. I am so impressed with this flash. Recommended highly to all Canon owners, you will not be disappointed. One of my fears was that while taking pictures in portrait the flash was going to fall or move from the hot shoe. However, the connection is very secure and stable. It does not look like a $500.00 flash but it will do the job. I hate when I read reviews from people complaining that something cheap looks cheap. If you want it to look expensive spend more money and buy the top of the line or the Canon flash.

Update. Two months later and still going strong. I have taken hundreds of pictures with no problems. Be cautious of people who are too quick to discard a product as garbage. I believe they have an agenda to make you buy something else or the original brand product. I know I am.

Update 04/23/2011
Still going strong, no issues at all. Has not failed once. I use it as a slave now because I purchased a Canon 580 EX II and it works great as a slave inside. However, outside it does not sense the light of the Canon flash. If you are on a budget I recommend this Vivitar flash highly.

If you have been considering a Canon 430 exII but are suffering from sticker shock, consider the Vivitar DF383.

This flash unit functions very well. So far it has performed exactly as I would have expected. It compares feature wise to the Canon 430 ex series flash at half the cost. Auto zoom head works well, it is maybe slightly slower and louder then the canon flash units. Recycle time is pretty good as well. I have not yet tested the slave feature but I'm glad it is present as it will allow this unit to fit in with future needs. There are two features I wish the flash included, A flash stand would have been nice, and a pc port (for use with radio triggers and such).

I'm a new strobist meaning that I'm not sure how much cash I'd like to dump in the bottomless hole of photography gear. The canon strobes where attractive but I just couldn't justify the expense...yet! After a bunch of research I ended up getting the Vivitar DF-383, with the legendary status of the 285 I figured the Vivitar knew how to make a nice flash and in fact the do. I've used this flash in both TTL and manual mode and feel that my frames are pretty consistent and what I expected. In slave mode the DF-383 has fired for me even in brighter outdoor conditions moreover it feels fairly well built...even after a few tripod falls (oops!) it's survived.

Here's what I don't love about this flashgun.

1. The hinge for changing the angle of the flash head for bounce and what not is rather weak, at least on my model. I use a Gary Fong lightsphere (which i LOVE) and I have to hold the head in position when photographing in portrait orientation. My youngnou YN-65 extreme budget strobes have a much better hinge.

2. The backlight for display is rather weak. Or maybe it's my eyes? In either case it's hard to see the full display in low light conditions.

3. The IR beam for focus lock in low light is not so great. Again my youngnou YN-65 performs better in this regard.

This product showed up on time and was in good condition. The fit and finish was very nice. It was an easy setup and the power it produced was everything I wanted. Now the "one" star. The flash had a mind of its own it flashed at random many times and the capacitor would not hold a charge between flashes, it was constantly re charging and loudly at that. I was very disappointed. I contacted Vivitar and had a very hard time conveying the issues due to a language barrier with more than one person. I was promised a call back from a service rep. within 48 hours it never happened. I was forced to return it. So be it.
Ps. The Manuel that came with the unit was for a DF 183 ?