Flashgun wanted with a twist

[chuzzers]

Ok I have currently got three cameras. Nikon F65, Olympus C4000Z and Holga 120N.

I want to get a flashgun which can be tilted and twisted.

I'd also like to be able to use it with all of my cameras. So features that co-operate with the above cameras is what i'm looking for. For example the Holga works with f8 or f11 and 1/125 fixed so i'd want the flash to. Olympus is digital.

The question is how and which flash gun - I maybe being stupid but i'm not sure how to work out this compatibility situation or if it's possible.

Nikon and Holga both have hotshoes - no problem with any flashgun that works through hotshoe?

Olympus doesn't and has a 5 pin external flash socket and is digital - does that cause a problem? When I go to the olympus website it doesn't say that any of the flashes they sell are compatible with the C4000Z. Is that the case that despite having a flash socket nothing is compatible? Sounds rediculous and is just a useless website that is no good for old models of their products.

The Holga is a very light camera so putting a heavy flashgun on the hotshoe will probably be clumsy. So I guess it's best to purchase a flash with a built in bracket or one sperately?

Any suggestions as to a solution would be brilliant.

My idea for a solution is a Metz Mecablitz 45 CL-4 NC and buying two seperate wires. One to connect to a hotshoe and the other going to the 5 pin flash.

However. Will the flash be compatible in that situation? and what connection does that Matz flash have? Any other problems my confused flashgun novice mind cannot anticipate?

chuzzers!!

[another view]

With the Nikon and the Holga you shouldn't have to worry - if it fits, it will work. One thing to double check would be the sync voltage of the flash - some older hotshoe flashes (older, not recent Vivitar 283's, etc) have a high sync voltage than some newer cameras can handle. I believe that Nikon told me that all of their cameras can handle 250v so you should be OK - but wasn't specifically asking about that camera. You might want to check the manual or better yet, get a newer flash. It doesn't have to be new, but something like a used SB26 or SB28 will give you a lot of power and flexibility (including twist & bounce) for a reasonable price. Anything will work on the Holga!

For the Olympus, you could use the internal flash (assuming it has one) to fire an optical slave that would trigger the external flash. The nice thing about the SB26 is that it has one built in; you'd have to buy a separate slave for most other flashes. When it sees the small amount of light from the camera's flash, it fires the other flash. It's not perfect and/or foolproof but works pretty well in most situations. If you can, turn down the internal flash power in the camera so it doesn't affect the lighting of your shot (unless you want it to).