I forgot my SD card ONCE. After that I carry a little SD card case looped onto my neck strap with SD cards in it. Then the other day I got a new strap and forgot to hook the case onto the strap. FORTUNATELY at the last minute before going out the door I saw the case sitting on the counter and sloppily hooked it around by its velcro closer the neck strap. Got to the job and yep, had left my primary SD card home in my PC. So the fact that I had at the last minute brought the SD case with me saved me again. During the shoot the case fell off the strap, so when I got home I went through the slow process of undoing the neck strap and put the SD case on the strap properly. I always carry two spare SD cards with me in that little case. Sure comes in handy during my brain dead times....

The title of your post should most likely have been called "COMMON mistake." Modern digital cameras have so many settings and features for us to use it's a wonder we don't have more of these mishaps. Even when in iA or iA+ mistakes can happen. ISO can jump around all over the place in Auto, depending on how the camera decides the settings. Sometimes shutter speeds can go so slow you'll get blurry prom dancers rather than clear shots. We need to decide the size of our shots, i.e., how many mp's are we going to use, the white balance, shutter, aperture, saturation (vivid vs. normal), etc. And don't forget these "mistakes" I've made, like arriving at a shoot only to discover I've left my SD card back home in my PC, or I've forgotten to bring my tripod plate with me after I took it off and left it on my desk to get at the SD card (fortunately no longer necessary on my NEX6). Now I have an SD card carrier attached to my neck strap, and I always either leave the tripod plate on my camera OR on my tripod. Nothing like trying to take shots for stitching a panorama on top of your tripod without the plate to attach the camera to the tripod. Duh. So yes, you have LOTS of company when it comes to making "common" mistakes....

Yes, bouncing it off the ceiling would take a more powerful flash, which I suspect I may purchase one of these days. For now I had to adjust in PSE 10, and it worked out okay. Time consuming though.... Thanks.

Yes, that makes sense as the tiny little flash I have almost weighs less than the adapter! ha. I'd still love to get that larger Sony flash again someday, now that I have the adapter to use it. I had a less than satisfactory photoshoot yesterday of some interiors. Some of the shots were okay, and properly exposed, while others were WAYYY too underexposed. It was my first time using the little flash on a real estate photoshoot, and I'm thinking I probably didn't wait long enough for it to recycle between shots, so while it did flash, it obviously wasn't charged to full power so I only got a partial flash. Here is a link to some of those photos. I also discovered after the fact that I was using center-weighted metering, not multi mode, so perhaps that may have contributed to the problem. Any thoughts on it would be appreciated. These were still images that our local MLS stitches together for "video" panoramas.... Mandatory to use this process, and it has always worked fine before. I'm sure the problem is with me as some of the photos are lighted properly. Duh. Have a portrait photoshoot this morning, and may use it for a few shots today, but I prefer to shoot portraits using available light whenever I can. Still learning... learning... learning.... Geesh.

http://bobdumon.smugmug.com/Photography/Sony-NEX-flash-test/29107692_3wC9K9#!i=2477965458&k=j4978GS

P.S. I shoot a lot of home interiors for real estate agents, and use the little Sony 16mm f/2.8 "pancake" lens with the Sony ultra wide-angle adapter on the lens for extra width, very handy for those small bedrooms and home offices. However... that adapter has a built-in lens hood which creates a shadow on the photo when using it with the NEX's built-in on-camera pop up flash. Using the HVL-F20AM and ADP-MAA adapter completely eliminates any trace of a shadow as it sits up high above the lens/WA adapter. Using the on-camera pop up flash required having to manually tilt and hold the flash up a little while shooting in order to avoid creating the shadow from the WA adapter's non-removable lens hood. Sometimes I could hold it in the same spot, but not always, so it was a hassle. The F20AM/MAA combo eliminates all of that. I haven't tested it yet, but it seems like with the flash up high like that it might also help avoid the dreaded red-eye effect. We'll see....

Well the new, replacement NEX 6 arrived and my account has been credited for the return of the defective camera. That's good news!

So... after reading reviews on dpreview about the current Sony ADP-MAA adapter and little HVL-F20AM flash combo, and after seeing the comparisons, including photos, between that flash and the one coming out in May from Sony (see photo), it looks to me like the new one is basically just the same flash but with an adapter built into the flash unit. There were a couple positive comments that made me decide to order the ADP-MAA adapter and HVL-F20AM current flash. Both arrived yesterday and here are my initial pros and cons for use of this combination on the NEX6:

PROS
+ True TTL capability!
+VERY light weight. Hardly know it's on the camera, which is nice for the small NEX6.
+ Flip up on, flip down off is a nice feature.
+ Bounce flash on/off slide lever.
+ Wide-angle diffuser built-in.
+ Auto-LOCK accessory shoe (slides in and auto-locks. You have to push a button to release it from the ADP-MAA adapter to take the flash off the camera, a secure arrangement).
+ GN 20 vs. only GN 6 with the on-camera pop-up flash. (vs. GN 43 on the $350 HVL-F43AM flash). See attached photo of our home theater taken with the room almost entirely dark. Taken in the "Direct" position, not bounce.
+ Black color to match the camera unlike basically the same flash for my old NEX-F3 which was silver.

CONS
+ No ceiling bounce capability when shooting in portrait/
vertical mode (bounces off side wall only, not ceiling - does not swivel).
+ Not as powerful as some other non-TTL Manual only flashes that might work in the ADP-MAA adapter (but based on my past experience I am afraid to try any).
+ Requires Sony ADP-MAA adapter to work on NEX 6 camera.

NEUTRAL
+ Requires two AAA batteries, unlike previous flash which ran off the power from the camera battery, very convenient! Use of AAA batteries allows longer use of camera since this flash doesn't drain the camera's battery, so it's a trade off.

ADP-MAA ADAPTER
+ I'd read where this adapter, when used with the $350 Sony HVL-F43AM flash, was fairly easy to knock off, thus endangering the expensive F43 flash. My early impression is that it would be extremely difficult to accidentally knock THIS adapter/flash combo off the camera. The adapter fits VERY snugly into the hotshoe on the NEX6, and then is screwed down for an even more secure fit, and as noted above, you have to push a button to release the HVL-F20AM flash.
+ The little black adapter is so small I'm going to leave it on the camera all the time.
+ Having this adapter does allow for a flash upgrade at a later time IF I find I need or want to upgrade to the more features rich HVL-F43AM flash.

This ends my saga of seeking an external flash for my NEX6. Had I done this in the first place I wouldn't have had to go through the hassle of trying those other FIVE non-Sony flashes, the first of which apparently blew the hotshoe on my former NEX6. Be aware of the potential for this to fry your camera's hotshoe as well. Hope this helps. Thanks to all who have contributed to this thread....

NEX6 w/16mm-50mm zoom lens and F20AM/ADP-MAA combo.


Flash comparison of current vs. coming Sony flashes (from Dpreview).

Okay, I agree with everything I read on page 1 for this topic, e.g., a name brand camera and good glass do not make a "pro" photographer, etc., but the other side of that coin is this. In today's economy there are a lot of young people getting married who don't have the MONEY to hire a "pro" photographer for their wedding. Out of economic necessity they are forced to make compromises in their wedding plans. So quite often friends and/or relatives with a rep for being a good photographer are drafted to "take our photos for us... please, Uncle Bob!" Sure, these kids would rather have a "pro" photographer, but at what trade-off? No food for the reception, or drinks, or flowers, etc., just so they can pay a "pro" to take the pictures? While I suspect we've all taken lots of photos at weddings, I personally have only agreed to be the "main" wedding photographer once, for my wife's nephew's wedding. And while they were very happy with the results, I haven't done it for anyone else since because it's a LOT of work, both during and after the wedding, and because I don't want to deal with that much pressure. I've also read enough Kelby and other books and articles on the topic to know doing it right is more than I want to take on even though I have a lot of the "right" equipment (umbrellas, reflectors, etc.). However I do not condemn others who agree to shoot a wedding in order to help out a friend or relative (as I reluctantly was drafted to do). Not everyone can AFFORD to hire a "pro" for their wedding, and I don't condemn folks who've been sucked into having to be the photographer for a friend's/relative's wedding. I also see nothing wrong with these "photo enthusiasts" asking for help here from the "pro" photographers on this site. Given their druthers, I'm sure any couple getting married would RATHER have a true "pro" photographer for their wedding... it's just not affordable for many young couples starting out in the marriage game these days. Yes, they'll get what they DON'T pay for... a photo album taken by an "amateur" who's most likely a fairly decent photographer with maybe a "NIKON" or a "CANON!" If the guy/gal wasn't known in the family/friends circle as a good photographer the kids probably wouldn't have chosen to ask that person. Would I ever NOT recommend using a true pro wedding photographer? No. If they can afford it, by all means ALWAYS go for a "pro." But if that's not affordable, then sure... ask whoever they know to be a pretty good amateur with a decent camera and have the newlyweds cross their fingers. If not "pro" level quality, the photos will surely at least be a lot better than the ones taken by guests using those cheesy little throw away cameras often seen sitting on wedding reception tables.... JMHO.

By the way, part of my "research" before my one wedding shoot was to Google and look at the portfolios taken by real pro wedding photographers to get some excellent composition ideas. Also read articles books and articles on wedding photography, and found lists on suggested "mandatory shots" at a wedding,etc. Lots of help is available everywhere on the Internet....

Thanks. I saw the term "Universal hot shoe" in the Dpreview on the NEX6 and based on that I stupidly assumed I could slap any flash on it and it would work, just as I did on my Panazonic FZ150 (used a Vivitar 383 on it just fine with no adapter). A friend of mine is using a NEX-F3 with a cheap adapter and is using a couple of Yongnuo flashes in manual mode with no problem adjusting the flash power up or down. He takes a couple test shots, adjusts the flash's power (one is a Yongnuo YN560II for Canon, the other is a Yongnuo 460ii for Canon). And then there is this video showing a guy using the Yongnuo YN-565 EX TTL Flash Speedlite for Canon DIRECTLY on a NEX-6 in "ETTL mode." NO adapter. Take a look here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX7-gYm8t-g

How do you explain that? Someone said it is fired when the shutter release button is depressed. Clearly that flash is working attached DIRECTLY into the NEX6 hotshoe with no adapter. What are your thoughts on this? It certainly SEEMS to be working just fine without an adapter. Now I'm still totally confused....

Unfortunately, although some guy on the Sony tech support site told me any "Nikon or Canon flash will work on the NEX 6." ??? Doesn't sound right to me, but maybe. I so cynical now I'm not going to try another flash for a few months, until others have tested it first....

If/when I ever get ready to buy a flash again... IF... I will contact you first! (eating crow... eating crow....). Thanks....

That's what I'm afraid of as well. I only tried new flashes, and most were inexpensive. The first one actually flashed, but the pic was wayyy overblown... totally washed out, and after that it wouldn't flash again... Nothing would! I sent my NEX6 back today and ordered a new one. Eventually I may try another flash, maybe after the NEX6 has been out for several months. Hoping someone will make a flash that will work on it without an adapter someday, other than Sony's cheapest and/or most expensive units. Duh.

Sony's $350 HVL-F43AM arrived and did not even fit on the NEX 6. I discovered I would need a Sony $30 ADP-MAA adapter on the NEX6's hotshoe in order for their Sony flash to work, so I did some research (user reviews) and found that even when tightly screwed down onto the NEX camera, that adapter with a flash on it is prone to being easily knocked off. Rather than risk using an adapter/flash combo that could fall off the camera, I returned both the flash and my NEX6 with the defective hotshoe and ordered a replacement NEX6. I had considered getting a NEX7, but really prefer the features and control knobs on the 6, so I will stick with it, crank up the ISO and go with available light whenever possible, using the on-camera flash only when absolutely necessary. Maybe some day someone will announce a decent (tilt AND swivel) flash that doesn't cost $500+ and will work on the NEX6 without an adapter. Fingers crossed....

Agreed. I think Peekayoh is probably right. I suspect I have a dead hotshoe! I'll find out tomorrow when I get the Sony flash. If THAT doesn't work Peekayoh is right. It's a defective camera and it's going back for a replacement.

Well that latest flash also did not work, so I bit the bullet and have ordered Sony's $350 HVL-F43AM Flash Unit. If THAT doesn't work, then as someone said here earlier, the camera is defective and I'm returning it to Amazon for a replacement. The Sony flash arrives tomorrow so I'll let you know. VERY frustrating to have such a great camera and such a sucky "universal" hotshoe! Either its defective, which sucks... or it will only use expensive Sony flash units, which also sucks. : ( Stay tuned....

The people at B&H said this flash will work on the NEX 6 FOR SURE, so I ordered one. When it arrives I'll post something here to let everyone knows if it works from the NEX 6 hot shoe or not. Stay tuned:

Photoflex Starfire Shoe Mount Digital Flash $128 from Amazon or B&H (or Adorama). More than I wanted to spend, but it has all the features I want (tilt and swivel) so I bit the bullet.