Bolt vs-570s, User Manual

Page 1: ...Inspiration strikes Inspiration strikes VS 570S SMI for Sony WIRELESS TTL FLASH User s Manual ...

Page 2: ...pyright 2016 Gradus Group Bolt and other names of Bolt products are trademarks of Gradus Group Other product and corporate names mentioned herein are trademarks of their respective holders 2 Introduction ...

Page 3: ...ash Among the benefits you ll enjoy Full compatibility with Sony s TTL metering system Wireless TTL control with multiple flash units and groups Automatic and manual zoom from 24mm to 105mm Tilt and swivel head 90 up 120 right and 180 left 1 8 inch backlit LCD Seven manual flash levels full to 1 64 power Autofocus assist for low light photography High speed sync Rear curtain sync Built in reflecto...

Page 4: ... Turning on the Flash and Firing a Test 15 Extended Interface 16 Using the Automatic TTL Flash Mode 17 Using High Speed Sync 18 Using Flash Exposure Compensation 19 Using the Manual Flash Mode 20 21 Controlling Flash Coverage Zoom 21 23 Using the Autofocus Assist Light 24 Bouncing Your Flash 24 26 ...

Page 5: ...0 as a Wireless Master 30 33 Wireless Master Summary screen 34 35 Using Your VS 570 as a Wireless TTL Slave 36 39 Using Your VS 570 as a Wireless Manual Flash 40 41 Positioning Remote Flash Units 42 Upgrading the Firmware on the VS 570 43 Troubleshooting 43 44 Specifications 45 Guide Number Chart 46 One Year Limited Warranty 47 ...

Page 6: ...6 Overview 1 2 4 17 19 18 8 16 12 3 5 20 6 7 9 11 15 14 10 13 VS 570 VS 570SMI ...

Page 7: ...ng foot 7 Mounting foot lock 8 Mode button 9 Up button 10 Down button 11 Zoom position button 12 Ready light Test button 13 Power switch 14 Automatic exposure confirmation light 15 Flash head position indicator 16 LCD 17 External power socket 18 PC sync socket 19 Firmware upgrade socket 20 AF assist Wireless ready indicator light ...

Page 8: ...8 Overview 32 GROUP B GROUP A GROUP C H TTL EV M S EV 21 28 29 30 31 22 23 24 25 26 27 ...

Page 9: ...nc status 22 Slave mode 23 TTL mode 24 Wireless TTL mode 25 Manual mode 26 Manual flash output Slave channel 27 Slave group 28 Zoom mode 29 Zoom position 30 Flash compensation value 31 Camera aperture f stop 32 Stand Tripod mount ...

Page 10: ...nside that can produce a hazardous electric shock Keep this product and its batteries out of reach of children Use only the power sources specified in this manual Always switch the flash off before changing the batteries Always install AA batteries of the same type brand and age Do not combine different types or brands or old and new batteries This could cause batteries to leak overheat or explode...

Page 11: ...g Take the product to an authorized service center for repair Do not drop or otherwise cause a strong physical impact to the VS 570 as this could cause a malfunction that may cause it to explode or ignite Remove all batteries from the VS 570 before long term storage in order to prevent the product from igniting or leaking corrosive liquids Do not store or use this product at temperatures above 104...

Page 12: ...re the VS 570 is turned off and follow these steps 1 Press on the battery compartment cover and slide it in the direction of the arrow to remove it 2 Insert batteries in the orientations indicated by the illustration inside the compartment 3 Replace the battery compartment cover by pressing and sliding it into place in the opposite direction of the arrow on the cover Important Replace all four bat...

Page 13: ...teps 1 Make sure the flash is turned off 2 Rotate the locking wheel counterclockwise to loosen it 3 Slide the mounting foot all the way into your camera s hot shoe 4 Rotate the locking wheel clockwise until snug Be careful not to overtighten To dismount the VS 570SMI from your camera follow these steps 1 Make sure the flash is turned off 2 Rotate the locking wheel counterclockwise to loosen it 3 S...

Page 14: ...m your camera follow these steps 1 Make sure the flash is turned off 2 Push and hold the locking release button while simultaneously sliding the mounting foot out of your camera s hot shoe Mounting the VS 570 on the included stand You can mount the VS 570 on the included stand in the same way you would mount it on your camera This allows you to set the flash up on a flat surface or attach it to a ...

Page 15: ...ht Test button Automatic power saving function After 3 minutes of inactivity the flash will automatically enter power saving mode to conserve battery life The LCD will display a single OFF indicator and the Ready light will turn off To reactivate the VS 570 simply press any button on the control panel or tap your camera s shutter release button During long periods of inactivity it is recommended t...

Page 16: ...operate PC Sync You can synchronize your VS 570 with a camera by running a PC cord between your camera and the VS 570 s PC sync socket This lets you position the flash away from the camera thus giving you more lighting options Note The PC sync socket on the VS 570 is only for synchronous signal input and not output To access the extended interface follow these steps 1 Pull back the contact cover o...

Page 17: ... TTL is shown on the LCD 2 Make sure your camera is set on a programmed or automatic mode or on a priority mode such as aperture priority 3 Press the shutter release button on your camera halfway to ensure that the camera is communicating with the flash The camera s aperture setting will be displayed on the flash LCD and a flash icon will appear in the camera s viewfinder 4 Press your camera s shu...

Page 18: ...ially useful when using large apertures in bright situations or when freezing motion To activate high speed sync mode on the VS 570 press the Mode button repeatedly to cycle through the flash modes until the high speed sync mode indicator appears on the LCD To turn high speed sync on or off press the up or down buttons ON will appear in the top right corner of the LCD when high speed sync mode is ...

Page 19: ...t incrementally just as you would adjust exposure with the exposure compensation function on your camera To apply flash exposure compensation press the up or down buttons on the flash to increase or decrease flash exposure by 1 3 stop up to 3 stops total The LCD will display EV or EV next to the exposure value to indicate whether it is increased or decreased H TTL EV ...

Page 20: ...dly to cycle through the flash modes until M and the flash output level indicator show on the LCD Press the up or down buttons to set the desired flash output level The output level will cycle through in both directions 2 Set the exposure settings you want to use on your camera The highest shutter speed available will be your camera s flash sync speed To use higher shutter speeds switch to automat...

Page 21: ...sh Coverage Zoom The VS 570 s angle of coverage can be adjusted zoomed to match the focal length of your lens so that your image is evenly illuminated from edge to edge When the flash zoom setting is adjusted the position of the reflectors inside the flash head shift in order to make the angle of coverage wider or narrower The available zoom positions are 24mm 28mm 35mm 50mm 70mm 85mm and 105mm Au...

Page 22: ...igital data transmission with the flash do not support the automatic flash zoom control The manual zoom control must then be used Manual zoom control To manually select a setting that corresponds to the focal length of your lens press the Zoom button to make the M indicator for manual mode appear Then continue to press the button to cycle through the available focal length settings Note Manual zoo...

Page 23: ...lector panels out of their slot in the flash head 2 Push the reflector back in and let the diffuser lay flat against the flash lens The diffuser also softens the light providing an alternative when no surface is available for bouncing the flash see Bouncing Your Flash on page 24 1 2 ...

Page 24: ...on halfway to autofocus The camera will then be able to autofocus by locking onto the projected light Bouncing Your Flash Using flash to directly illuminate a subject often creates harsh unnatural and unattractive shadows To avoid this the flash can be tilted or swiveled allowing you to aim your flash at a large white or neutral colored surface such as a ceiling a wall or a reflector The light wil...

Page 25: ...vel of light falling on your subject will be reduced The farther away the bounce surface and your subject are the more illumination will be reduced Tip Bouncing your flash off of colored surfaces can create a color cast in your images Bouncing off of a white or neutral colored surface will not alter the color of the light while bouncing off of a gold toned surface can give portraits a warmer look ...

Page 26: ...reate catchlights in your subjects eyes when bouncing your flash follow these steps 1 Position the flash head at the 90 degree angle pointing straight up to bounce your flash off the ceiling or an overhead reflector 2 Pull the built in reflector and diffuser panels all the way out of their slot in the flash head Push the diffuser back in while leaving the reflector extended 1 2 ...

Page 27: ... the beginning of the period when the shutter opens or it can fire near the end of that period The former is called front curtain or first curtain flash sync and the latter is called rear curtain or second curtain sync Front curtain sync causes motion blur and light trails to appear in front of moving subjects while rear curtain sync makes them appear behind moving subjects That means rear curtain...

Page 28: ...de the camera s built in flash or a dedicated wireless controller The master controls how the slave flashes operate in wireless TTL mode Only one master flash is allowed in a multiple flash photography setting Note that not all cameras and flashes offer master capability Slave or remote flash Flash units that are not directly connected to the camera and are controlled via the master flash or a con...

Page 29: ...t your remote units from being triggered by the master unit of another photographer working with the same type of system nearby Groups With the VS 570 s wireless system you can assign remote flash units to either of two groups A or B and set the mode and power ratio for each group as well as the master ...

Page 30: ...ol up to two groups of flashes and adjust power output in ratios In CL1 mode only the master and group A fire and power output for the two is set at a ratio For example if the ratio is set at 2 1 the master fires at twice the power of group A In CL2 mode the master group A and group B fire As in CL1 mode power output is set at a ratio For example if the master is set to 8 group A is set to 4 and g...

Page 31: ...igation buttons to select CL1 or CL2 3 Enable wireless master mode Press the mode button so the TTL mode screen appears 4 Press and hold the Mode button until the wireless master summary screen appears For more information on this refer to Wireless Master Summary Screen on page 34 5 Select the wireless channel Press the Mode button and use the up or down navigation buttons to cycle through channel...

Page 32: ... the wireless master summary screen At this point the VS 570 s wireless TTL master setup will be complete and you will be ready to start shooting 7 Set the power ratios After enabling group ratio selection press the Mode button so the master ratio indicator appears onscreen Use the up or down navigation buttons to set the ratio value to off 1 2 4 or 8 8 Press the Mode button so the group A ratio i...

Page 33: ...ill be ready to start shooting B In CL2 mode continue with step 9 below 9 Press the Mode button so the group B ratio indicator appears onscreen Use the up or down navigation buttons to set the ratio value to off 1 2 4 or 8 10 Confirm your settings Press the Mode button to return to the wireless master summary screen At this point the VS 570 s wireless TTL master setup will be complete and you will...

Page 34: ...34 Wireless Master Summary screen 1 2 3 5 4 ...

Page 35: ...Wireless Master Summary screen 35 Wireless Master Summary screen 1 Wireless TTL mode 2 Channel number 3 Zoom mode 4 Zoom position 5 TTL master summary setting ...

Page 36: ...set to automatic TTL mode 2 Select the appropriate group and channel on the master unit Consult the master s user manual for more information on this topic 3 Press the VS 570 s Mode button repeatedly to cycle through the flash modes until the Wireless TTL mode icon appears on the LCD Use the up or down navigation buttons to select Sony Nikon or Canon TTL slave modes A For Sony TTL slave mode the S...

Page 37: ...TL To set the VS 570 as a Canon TTL slave continue with Nikon and Canon TTL Slave Modes on page 39 Sony TTL Slave Mode The VS 570 incorporates two Sony wireless TTL group selectors which are SL1 and SL2 When the master flash is set to CL1 master mode then the SL1 group selector is available When the master flash is set to CL2 master mode both the SL1 and SL2 selectors are available The CL1 and CL2...

Page 38: ...buttons to cycle through the slave mode and channel combinations A If the flash is set to CL1 it will cycle through SL1 channels 1 4 B If the flash is set to CL2 it will cycle through channel 1 SL1 channel 1 SL2 channel 2 SL1 channel 2 SL2 and so on 4 If desired adjust the flash coverage angle by pressing the Zoom button repeatedly 5 Make sure that the red light on the front of the VS 570 is blink...

Page 39: ...avigation buttons to select the channel and group The flash will cycle through channel 1 groups A through C then channel 2 groups A through C and so on A When using a single slave flash set it to the same group and channel as the master B When using multiple slave flashes select the same group and channel for all units in the same light position 3 If desired adjust the flash coverage angle by pres...

Page 40: ...vel selected manually follow these steps 1 In Manual mode use the up and down buttons to select the power output 1 through 1 64 2 Press the Mode button once to enter Slave mode 3 Set the slave mode as desired see below 4 If desired adjust the flash coverage angle by pressing the Zoom button repeatedly 5 Make sure that the master flash on your camera is on and set to the appropriate mode If you don...

Page 41: ...s on the LCD A In mode 0 the flash will fire on the first or only burst of light Use this mode when the master flash is set to manual B In modes 1 and 2 the slave will ignore either one or two pre flashes respectively Use these modes when the master flash is set to TTL or automatic modes Whether the master emits one pre flash or two will depend on the camera and settings always take a test exposur...

Page 42: ...n master and remote flash units is approximately 33 feet 10 meters in the front position and approximately 16 to 23 feet 5 to 7 meters at both sides These ranges may vary depending on the ambient light The flash head should not be aimed directly into the camera lens The wireless sensors are located on the front of the VS 570 Make sure that sensor is facing the master flash and that there is no obs...

Page 43: ...n with new cameras or to add new features Visit www boltflashes com firmware to check if a new firmware version has been released Follow the online instructions to upgrade Troubleshooting Problem Solution The flash is stuck in the camera hot shoe Make sure that the mounting foot release lock is pushed Page 14 The flash is turned on but won t fire Make sure that fresh batteries are installed and in...

Page 44: ...too high Page 42 The flash is set up as a manual optical slave but the light is not noticeable in the picture Make sure that the flash is set to the appropriate slave mode Page 36 The edges of images look dark Make sure that the flash zoom setting corresponds to the focal length of your lens Page 21 There s a whining sound coming from the flash This is normal and does not indicate a malfunction Wh...

Page 45: ...cle time 0 5 9 seconds AA Ni MH Manual mode power output 1 1 1 2 1 4 1 8 1 16 1 32 1 64 Wireless transmission method Optical pulse Wireless transmission range Up to 33 feet 10 meters Wireless channels 4 Controllable wireless slave groups 3 Canon 3 Nikon 3 Sony 2 Slave timing modes Instant sync skip one pre flash skip two pre flashes Power source 4 AA lithium Ni MH or alkaline batteries optional ex...

Page 46: ...0mm 45 148 85mm 47 154 105mm 50 164 at ISO 100 FCC Compliance This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules Operation is subject to the following two conditions 1 This device may not cause harmful interference 2 This device must accept any interference received including interference that may cause undesired operation ...

Page 47: ...t cover damage or defect caused by misuse neglect accident alteration abuse improper installation or maintenance EXCEPT AS PROVIDED HEREIN THE WARRANTY PROVIDER MAKES NEITHER ANY EXPRESS WARRANTIES NOR ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE This warranty provides you with specific legal rights and you may also...

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