Pentax AF-360 FGZ Autofocus P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash (Guide No. 119'/36 m at 85mm)

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

Works with my K-r, K-100 and *ist DS !
AF, A and fully manual lenses!
ie great value
Good even coverage and white balance.
Thinking of buying another one.
ie One on-camera and one off-camera; wireless sync.
Like the locking style of attachment vs the old screw-down-til-tight style.
Full auto everything works great for 99% of my shots.
Some modes, like wireless, take some learning how it's done.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I used the flash for a wedding. It was so much better than my built in flash

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

[...]Had been needing the flash for a while and they had one at a lower priced than anyone else I found.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

Bought this flash primarily for outdoor use where subjects are backlit. Very impressed with the functions of this flash for the price. Wireless functions flawlessly which is nice in a pinch when you are looking to manipulate the lighting indoor. This flash does not swivel however when the flash is detached you can adjust the show by holding the flash or using a bracket. Can't beat it for the money.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I purchase the AF-360 flash as a wire less companion to my AF-560. it works so well in wireless mode that i purchased a second one, i am using them in a studo set up thru an unbrella, it works very good. i have also been trying it as an on camera flash. and in most situation works as well as the AF-560, but is considerabley lighter and less bulky.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

The flash itself is great and will do all the things I need it to do and more but it will take some work to figure things out because the manual was written in 2003. It is badly outdated and vague. It regularly refers to variables based on which Pentax camera you are using with it but, of course, those references do no include any of the current cameras they sell.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

Needed a flash w/high speed sync without breaking the bank. I use this for weddings and portraits along with an old af500ftz which can also reach out and touch someone.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I was surprised with the features and performance based upon the price point.
So far it works as well an any flash I have used: Canon, Olympus and Sigma.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

Love the flash and Pentax products. Feel the AF 360 FGZ battery compartment cover could have a better latch system. Wears out to easily

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I use the AF-360FGZ for indoor photography only. I usually use two units together, one, on the camera k-X, one, off the camera (wireless), or both units off the camera.

Generally, the unit is powerful and gives a lot of light for anything indoor. The flashgun head can be tilted up (90 degrees) and down (10 degrees) which is really useful for bouncing the light of the reflectors. Zoom is automatic and is synchronized with camera zoom. It doesn't swivel sideways, but I don't find that very important.

What would be great about this flashgun?
The device is both mechanically and electronically made very solid, which is not that common in today's mass production. It can be triggered by camera built-in flash in "Auto mode" and in P-TTL mode only when the built-in flash is in control mode, not master mode (however blame k-X for that, not the flash). It can be triggered by another AF-360FGZ from the camera in P-TTL, Auto or Manual mode. Can be triggered wirelessly in all three modes by radio waves (3 channels), or in Auto and Manual mode by light impulse from another flash - including camera built-in flash (Pentax). Contrary to Pentax manual the unit does NOT need off camera hot shoe adapter F to work wirelessly, however it needs it if mounting to tripod is required. When lithium batteries are used, the charging time is relatively short approximately 2 to 3 seconds, depends on light intensity discharge.

What would be not so great about AF-360FGZ?
The main reason I am giving 4 stars instead of 5 is user manual. It is really confusing and way out of date. It doesn't include many newer Pentax cameras and their options and doesn't explain important settings. It doesn't give a clue how the things are working together. I have read the manual several times and still had to figure many things myself.
Another thing which may look like problem is P-TTL mode. When the flash is in P-TTL mode, there is a feeling that it underexposes. Special care must be taken when shooting against any shiny or reflective surface. I often increase the flash/es output/s for 1 step to get normal histogram. That can be annoying as it resets to zero every time the flash is turned off. Decrease of the output is available down to 3 steps, but increase is only up to 1 step. Sometimes more flash output increase is required and would be very helpful to have an option to increase the output for 2 or 3 steps. This is nothing to do with the flashgun power as it has enough power to overexpose the photograph many times in Auto or Manual mode.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I used the flash on a K7. It works well on the camera but I had problems with the wireless function. Actually I tried two different AF360FGZ both with problems in the wireless mode - either no function or inconsistency in the channel selection.
I have later on upgraded to a 540 which works well in the wireless mode with my K7 (running with firmware 1.10).

If the wireless function worked on my camera I would probably have given 4 or 5 stars.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

This is the first flash I've purchased so my experience is limited. However there was nothing else in this price range that offered the same features. After installing it to my Pentax K110D I immediately noticed that taking indoor pics the difference was night and day in terms of picture lighting quality. I can't believe I waited this long to buy one. Warm up time is very quick, only a few seconds when you turn it on before it's ready to go. It is fairly battery heavy running on 4 AA's just like the camera itself. The only downside I can see is that it only angles up and down and doesn't rotate from side to side, but few amateurs will need that feature anyhow. All in all an excellent purchase.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

This is a very versatile flash unit; I use it for flash shots not capable of being reached by the on-camera flash of my Pentax K5 DSLR.

Although it's got a lot of bells and whistles, I found very quickly that I could just set the switch on both the flash unit and the camera to the "green" setting and fire away. Every shot I took using this technique worked to give me perfect exposures. I'm sure I can use it in other modes, including wireless, but for now, this basic simplicity really rings my chimes.

It is obviously a quality piece of equipment - not flimsy like some units that just fall apart in your hand if you squeeze them. It's made to work with Pentax DSLRS, and obviously the engineers did their job.

The only downside is that the flash head does not swivel from side to side, but it does swivel up and down, including slightly down for close-in subjects. I suspect I would use any side-to-side capability very sparingly if at all, so it's no big deal.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

all right

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

THis flash was exactly what I needed! It worked perfectly with my MInolta k7 and my minolta k20d. [...] Perfect transaction!

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

excellent flash . I am learning to use this on my K20D & istDL . Very easy to use in the P-TTL mode
the AF-360FGZ and the camera do all the work with great results I might add . This allows you to think about composition of the photo. I am new to Flash Photography so I have a lot to learn but i am very satisfied with this flash unit. Wireless Mode off camera flash is easy with this flash you can use the on camera flash to trigger this unit mounted at a remote spot for side lighting. recommend you see the pentax website for operation in the wireless mode it's a great help .

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

It does what is is meant to do. That is satisfactory for me.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I bought this flash for Pentax K-X . I always had a problem to make a good photo with built-in flash , so I decided to buy external . It is a big difference !

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I use this flash on a K-10D. Works well as bounce flash, controls seem easy to use. Have not tried the wireless yet but plan to in the near future. The only thing lacking is a swivel head, but I knew it did not have one.

Comments about Pentax AF-360 FGZ P-TTL Shoe Mount Flash:

I bought this for my Pentex K-x after having been a cruise ship recently and not being happy with the inside pictures. I haven't used it too much as most of my pictures have been outside since I've bought it but I've been happy with what I've taken so far. I would have given in 5 stars but I felt the directions were not written very well.