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I inherited Metz 35 CT2 flash from my grandfather and I don't have an idea how to set it up for use with my old manual Praktica camera. There is a "slider" which has lens hood numbers on it, DIN numbers above and distance in meters below. Then there is a chooser with options: TTL, M, yellow A, blue A, red A (these colors are also marked in the distance below the slider). How should I set the slider and chooser when I want to take photo with my all manual Praktica? Can someone roughly describe what does all the options mean?

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2 Answers 2

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Googled at some Pentax maillist archive:

User interface - very simple. Switch for mode selection - 3 auto (f2,f4,f8 apertures at 100 iso), manual, ttl. Above it is Exposure OK Check light. At top of back panel is f/stop & distance calculator, where you set iso and see instantly color-coded auto f/stops as well as maximum TTL/manual distance at any aperture.

So I guess the slider at the top sets power for manual mode, where aperture/ISO/distance table is a guide for setting the correct power. Colored auto modes might be build-in metering for different f-stops, and TTL should be TTL metering work with some Metz-compatible camera.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ But how does manual and colored automatic modes differ? If I understand this, by setting manual mode and moving slider to position according to used iso, I can read maximum distance for each f/stop. What would change if I choose colored A mode (or why should I use it instead of manual mode)? \$\endgroup\$
    – calavera.info
    Commented Sep 25, 2010 at 21:51
  • \$\begingroup\$ My guess is that automatic mode uses some kind of built-in sensor to measure refrected light and adjusts the output power, while manual mode simply fires what you set on the slider. \$\endgroup\$
    – che
    Commented Sep 26, 2010 at 11:51
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    \$\begingroup\$ I finally understand my mistake. The colors are displayed on the distance ruler and that confused me. Now I understand that it is not distance related at all. Instead, it is related to the slider above where it marks the aperture for the current iso. So for example the "yellow A" mode means that built in sensor gives you enough light for f8 if I use iso 100 (independently of the distance), but if iso 200 is used, then it is enough light for f11. So the slider is just a calculator, but for two diferent things. iso+aperture->distance in manual mode and iso+color mode->aperture in automatic mode. \$\endgroup\$
    – calavera.info
    Commented Sep 28, 2010 at 9:27
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Since this old question seems to never have been properly answered:

Flashes that have a couple of "Auto" modes with different colors associated with them are so called "computer" flashes, they can do TTL-like metering independent of a TTL-capable camera by using their own photocell. This usually works quite well, and it does not need more camera communication than a simple sync connection.

There is a slider to set the ISO, you must set it. From the decals on the flash unit, there is now an aperture number associated with each "A" mode (in this case, there should be a number displayed or pointed at for blue, red, yellow). With some flashes, the associated apertures change with the ISO you set, with some they do not. With camera in manual mode, set your lens aperture to match the choice you made on the flash. Set camera to its X sync speed. Take photo.

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