Budget strobe for TG-5 + Seafrogs

[Asanoth]

Hello,
I am using a TG-5 with Seafrogs housing and would like to buy a general use strobe. 95%+ of what I do are photos. The housing has Sea&Sea optical only.
Now, this is a budget camera, and I do max 20 dives a year, that is when I am lucky. So at this setup, I do not want to spend more on a flash than a camera, or get to 5 USD/image.
I do some photography on air, so I know my way around flash.

No ideally, I want something which does TTL - as far as I understood it, there are two options:

- get a compatible strobe, which would understand Olympus's RC signalling - expensive
- camera flash -> activates preliminary manual flash -> camera modifies exposure -> exposition and flash - battery consuming, but cheaper, not really a TTL, but result is similar

Is my understanding correct? Are there any other options?

To make things even more complicated, I would like a general flash, usable for both macro and large animals: I am planning BDE in Egypt this year, but might go muck diving the following year and would like to manage with one flash.

Ideally, I would like to pay max the same I paid for my Godox V860, which is a professional grade flash (unfortunately does not work under water ). Optical cable and mount are extra.
Now this seems a bit unrealistic, I am willing to buy used, but not keen on, as this is both electro AND underwater, so let's say my price limit is YS-03, which costs 250 € here.

I am based in central Europe.

Could you please make some recommendations for me?

Thank you!

 

[Lewis88]

Buy used. There's always some for sale either here in the classifieds or on waterpixels.

 

[cerich]

AOI UCS-Q1RC


Should work for what you want.

 

[Asanoth]

Thank you, but the model you mention costs 430 €. This is 70 % over the YS-03 (which I refuse now, as I learned it is TTL only, and I think it is better to go M only than TTL only and definitely better to go M only than cheap TTL only).

 

[cerich]

Thank you, but the model you mention costs 430 €. This is 70 % over the YS-03 (which I refuse now, as I learned it is TTL only, and I think it is better to go M only than TTL only and definitely better to go M only than cheap TTL only).

oh, it's less in the states ($365 USD). It also does do manual. It's a far better strobe than a YS-03 and I would argue the YS-01 for the use case you described in your OP. Plus if you get into macro (and should with the TG) it has a decent inexpensive snoot.

The manual, that shows it does manual

I don't have the RC version, just the manual only and do have the first gens YS-03's and YS-01's, and Oly UFL3's, and some old YS27DX (decent manual strobe actually, some YS-D1's, some YS-D2's, some MF-02's, some DS-125's (Ikelite). Anyhow, just my thoughts based on playing with too many of them. (it's a hobby)

 

[scubaozy]

To my knowledge ufl 2 is only fully RC compatible strobe and has been long discontinued. I recommend you to go for a used Inon. Check Kleinanzeigen in Germany for secondhand, I am sure no one minds to ship to CZ as long as you pay the shipping.

 

[cerich]

To my knowledge ufl 2 is only fully RC compatible strobe and has been long discontinued. I recommend you to go for a used Inon. Check Kleinanzeigen in Germany for secondhand, I am sure no one minds to ship to CZ as long as you pay the shipping.

The AOI UCS-Q1RC, OLY UFL3, New Marelux Strobe, Ikelite's with their RC dongle, YS-D3 Duo, MF-2 are all on market and do RC. I may have missed others, that is just off top of head

 

[scubaozy]

The AOI UCS-Q1RC, OLY UFL3, New Marelux Strobe, Ikelite's with their RC dongle, YS-D3 Duo, MF-2 are all on market and do RC. I may have missed others, that is just off top of head

Do they sync in say 1/2000?

 

[Barmaglot]

Do they sync in say 1/2000?

Any strobe can sync at any speed; the sync speed limitations are on the camera side. That said, at 1/2000s, most of the strobe's power will be cut off by the camera shutter, as typical strobes need at least 2-3ms for a full dump.

 

[scubaozy]

Any strobe can sync at any speed; the sync speed limitations are on the camera side. That said, at 1/2000s, most of the strobe's power will be cut off by the camera shutter, as typical strobes need at least 2-3ms for a full dump.

I am talking about Olympus slr/mirrorless specifically. In order to sync high speed shutter, you need both camera and strobe supporting same rc protocol, in the case of Oly, it’s UFL-2. I think there were newer models “supporting” rc mode but not being able to sync in high speeds. The way I see is only advantage of rc is to sync in high speeds, take that out, in my view it does not support rc.