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Heritage Cameras Description

High power auto and manual flash unit for many Canon manual focus film cameras (and usable on some others – see below)

Auto flash for Canon manual focus SLRs & others
Tilt and swivel for bounce, 28-85mm+ zooming flash
Guide numbers up to 46m, 7 auto modes, 5 manual
Dedicated for Canon FD, can set speed/aperture
Large LCD control panel, slow-sync on Canon A-1
Semi-dedicated on many EOS film or digital SLRs
Non-dedicated on many hot shoe digital cameras
Low, safe trigger voltage of 4.8v for film or digital
Includes copy of instructions and 4x AA batteries

This is a very versatile high power flash unit with tilt, swivel and zoom head, LCD display, dedicated auto flash control, seven auto exposure modes and five manual settings. It's designed for suitable Canon FD manual focus 35mm film SLR cameras with flash ready indication shown in the viewfinder, plus auto setting of shutter speeds and/or apertures on suitable models. It also works on some digital cameras with semi-dedicated or non-dedicated operation. The flash is in good used condition, fully working order, supplied with batteries and a copy of the instructions. Please read the full description for more important compatibility information.

The flash head tilts up to 90 degrees and swivels over 300 degrees for bounce flash in vertical or horizontal positions. Bounce flash gives much softer, more natural lighting than direct flash. The zoom flash head is adjustable for 28mm and 35mm wide angle, 50mm standard to 85mm (and longer) telephoto lenses or the equivalent on other formats, giving wider coverage or longer range as appropriate. Even wider lenses can be used with bounce flash.

Powerful guide numbers vary with the zoom setting, from around 22-46 (m), 70-150 (feet) with ISO 100. Programmed auto flash on suitable cameras, setting shutter speed and aperture automatically. Seven auto exposure modes, using apertures from f/1.4 to f/11 with ISO 100 with ranges from 0.7 to 23m (2 to 75ft). There's a full power manual setting, plus 1/2, 1/4, 1/8 and 1/16 for reduced power and faster recycling – ideal for close up shots or to keep up with an auto winder. As with all flashguns, actual range will depend on the conditions. Thyristor circuitry for faster recycling and more flashes per set of batteries at closer distances, in auto or low power manual modes. A slow-sync switch allows shutter speeds slower than 1/60th in shutter priority and manual modes (on the Canon A-1 only) if required.

The very comprehensive LCD control panel on the rear of the flash provides distances in feet and meters, zoom settings, apertures and film speeds. The display can be backlit for easy reading in low light. The LCD instantly shows the auto range or correct manual distance setting once the aperture and film speed have been set. This description is copyright © Heritage Cameras. An auto check indicator confirms correct exposure after the shot has been taken. There's a bright flash ready light, plus a test button.

This Cobra D650 LCD flashgun for Canon is nicely made, measures around 175x79x52mm (6.9x3.1x2") and and weighs approximately 380g (13.5oz) without batteries. It accepts 4x standard AA batteries including disposable alkaline (supplied), or NiCd and NiMH rechargeable types. The captive battery cover can't be lost unlike the removable types. There's a standard hot shoe fitting with locking collar for secure mounting.

An extremely useful flash unit for users of many Canon manual focus film cameras, and some others.

Compatibility

This flash is usable on Canon manual focus SLR cameras (and others) with a hot shoe, providing dedicated features with selected models as follows:

Canon FD manual focus
It can set the shutter speed and aperture automatically on the Canon AE-1, AE-1 Program, A-1, T50, T70, T80 and T90 (no TTL flash modes), plus the F-1N ("New F-1"), though a motor drive or winder is required to set the aperture automatically. It can set the shutter speed automatically on the Canon AT-1, AV-1 and AL-1. The aperture must be set manually to match that set on the flash with these models. Flash ready status is shown in the viewfinder by a change of shutter speed and/or aperture (except on the AT-1), plus the letter F (on the A-1) or a flash symbol (AE-1P).

It's usable on the Canon EF-M with shutter speed and aperture set automatically when charged, and flash ready status shown in the viewfinder. This camera has a fixed aperture with dedicated flash (f/5.6 with ISO 100, f/11 with ISO 400, etc.) so one of the auto modes will be usable for each film speed.

Canon non-dedicated SLRs
The flash can be used on non-dedicated SLRs (such as the FTb, FTbN, EF, TX, EX Auto, T60 and similar models), compact cameras (such as the Canonet 28 rangefinder, G-III QL 17 and 19, Canodate E and Datematic, plus other cameras with a hot shoe fitting, in auto or manual flash modes with shutter speed and aperture set manually.

Semi-dedicated on Canon EOS
FD flash units like this are not fully compatible with Canon EOS film or digital cameras which use a different dedicated flash control system, but they can be used with shutter speed and aperture set manually on the camera in M mode, and the flash adjusting its output automatically depending on the distance in conventional (non-TTL) auto modes. Some cameras may set or limit the shutter speed automatically and/or display flash ready status in the viewfinder, but the aperture must be set manually.

Other cameras including digital
This flash is not recommended for cameras with dedicated flash control (using a hot shoe with more than one contact), other than those listed above. The flash will work fine on many other cameras with a standard (non-dedicated) hot shoe, with the shutter speed and aperture set manually on the camera in M mode, and exposure controlled by the flash in auto modes. Suitable cameras include the Panasonic FZ10, FZ20 and FZ30, Fujifilm S7000, S602 (and Pro), S9500, S9600, S100FS, S200EXR and HS10 (down to 28mm zoom) etc.

The trigger voltage is a very low and safe 4.8v which is well within the ISO 10330 standard of 24v, and even the most voltage-intolerant cameras usually accept up to 6v.

Please contact us before buying if you have any questions about compatibility with your equipment. E&OE. Text and images are copyright © Heritage Cameras 2024, and may not be used without permission.