Bower Cameras - Recent Questions, Troubleshooting & Support

If you are not a professional, you should take it to a service center.. it has complicated elements which are arranged inside , you might feel it to be hard to assemble it once again after opening it out.. But most elements have threads in them.. check if it's a screw type then you can thread it in , just by turning it.. you need an specific screw driver like stuff for the purpose if it is very deeply located.

Why need a manual? the lens only can be used in complete manual mode. Once connected to your camera, the f /8 makes it impossible for your camera to focus automatically. Even if there was a focus motor it would not work. And it has only one focal length 500 mm, so there is also nothing to change. Then most cameras won't be able to set the aperture, so you have to set that yourself to. Best way to use this lens is to put your camera in M (manually) and dial in all settings yourself, till you have a good shot.

You might already know this but use great caution when opening any photo flash. The capacitor inside can generate enough of a shock to kill you, even with the unit off and the batteries removed as it stores a "charge".

You need a PC sync socket on the camera. PC stands for Proctor Compur and this meaning of PC goes way back to the days of cameras with bellows and the photographer under a black blanket. You can buy an adapter: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ns=p_PRICE_2%7c0&c... But from reading reviews, you may not be happy with this flash unless you use your camera in manual mode. I hate when people answer questions by suggesting the poster buy something else, so notice I did answer the question first by mentioning the adapter. For a less expensive flash option that will work right on your camera and be truly automatic, consider a used Canon 420EX from Ebay for about $100. If you intend to go into photography in a creative way, (more than point and shoot) sell the Rebel and get a used Canon 40D or 50D ($200 to $300) so you don't come up short on features like the missing PC sync port and other things you won't know about until you need them. With the Rebel you'll keep finding other limitations. With the used cameras I mentioned, they'll work great, have lots of features and control, and won't depreciate much (because they already have) so you can upgrade every year or two by adding just $100 to the sell value. That's how I went from a 10D camera up to a 1D pro camera over a five year period. Finally here is a "positive" review I found of the Bower flash, notice the caveats: "Had this flash for a Sony and now for my Nikon D300. I also have a SB-600 flash unit which is of course way better, but also way expensive - I guess nobody here should expect the same quality for 1/4 of the price. The build is overall cheap but okay for the price, it will last a while when you take care of it. The major downside is that it's not really a TTL flash. The title says something about "automatic", I'm really unsure what they mean with that. Fact is, it produces a strong flash, you can swivel the head (even at the wall behind you) but it doesn't communicate with the camera. You can still use it on-camera though, but it's more like a manual flash gun, so operating the camera in auto-mode will most likely produce an overexposed photo. If you're unsure if you should buy it... it's an okay budget flash which will give you more options than the popup-flash, but if you're more like the I-use-my-SLR-only-in-auto-mode guy than better invest $100+ in a TTL flash which will get more information from and to the camera than: Fire flash now! But here's the deal: Buy a remote FM-trigger (I use the "CowboyStudio NPT-04 4 Channel Wireless Hot Shoe Flash Trigger Receiver for Canon EOS, Nikon, Olympus & Pentax Flashes Other products by cowboystudio") and use this flash as an off-camera remote unit. Again, manual mode operation of your camera is recommended, but you can achieve great results with this off-camera set for $70 (flash + trigger). Combine it with a lighting stand, camera bracket and umbrella, and you have a portable studio lighting set for about $100-$130. This flash does even fit better on the remote trigger than my SB-600 because it has a screw-ring (not shown in the product picture) to tighten it to the flash-shoe-mount."

If the menu item is gray it means that you are in a mode that does not allow you control of your flash. You are likely in an auto mode. Change the mode to Manual, Shutter priority, Aperture priority, or Program. Diane NYC Photo Safari

The dark halo, is caused, by the size of the lens. The convertor lens, is smaller than the front lens of your Samsung and blocking the light on the sides. That is the halo you see. If you want a conversion lens for your Samsung, you need a bigger one.

There is no problem. The lens simply does not have the electronics for the camera to detect. You need to use the lens in Manual mode (turn the mode dial to M). You'll have to set both the shutter speed and aperture yourself, without any help from the camera's exposure meter. You can take a picture, look at it on the back of the camera (preferably with the histogram) and adjust the exposure accordingly. Repeat until you get a good exposure.

What exposure are you setting? Try pointing your camera out the window during the day, with the ISO at 200, the aperture at f/8, and the shutter speed at 1/125. Don't worry about holding the camera steady, we're just trying to get the exposure. Does it still come out black? Try slower shutter speeds (1/60, 1/30, etc.). Any change?

I have the same problem. I've found using the diffuser or bouncing the flash helps.

It probably isn't worth it to fix it...buy a new one!

The flash button has been pressed off

Just because someone claims a battery is compatible does not make it so. Nikon knows the specs of their batteries. Third-parties have to reverse-engineer to work out the specs, and they don't always get everything right.Stay with Nikon batteries, unless you want to jeopardize your camera just to save a few dollars.

The battery grip is likely defective. Bower is not know for their high quality, but rather their afford-ability. If it is under warranty, I would recommend returning the unit and requesting a replacement from either the manufacturer or the retailer from which you ordered it. There is no setting in the menus to enable the vertical shutter release on the grip.
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