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Sony HVL-F20M - hot-shoe clip-on flash

Mfg # HVL-F20M CDW # 3053837 | UNSPSC 45121600

Quick tech specs

  • F20M
  • 20 (m)
  • Hot-shoe clip-on flash
  • for Cinema Line ILME-FX3; Handycam FDR-AX43; a VLOGCAM ZV-E10; a7 IV; a7C; a7s III
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Compact, easy-to-use flash for advanced lighting.
Availability: 4-6+ Weeks
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Sony HVL-F20M - hot-shoe clip-on flash

This Item: Sony HVL-F20M - hot-shoe clip-on flash

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Sony HVL-F20M - hot-shoe clip-on flash is rated 3.80 out of 5 by 35.
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Perfect extra flashgun for Cybershot DSC-HX400V I was looking for an integrated flash for my HX400V and already have a Canon TTL flashgun. There isn't much I could actually do with that except use it in manual mode - rather negates the idea of an automatic camera! I was not after a huge flashgun and I saw this one that seemed to fit the bill. Guide number 20 which is about 4 times more powerful than the built in flash on the Cybershot. The flash is semi-automatic in that wide angle or telephoto has to be set manually, but this is a small niggle for a flashgun that works through the lens and integrates as a wireless sender for remote flashguns as well. It can also be used as a bounce flash. In my (limited) usage I have found it to be very reliable and produces good light coverage against camera settings. Now for the not so good. The head can not be switched on and off manually except by either lowering it against the shoe mount or switching off the camera with the flash attached. This is a nuisance as the OFF position leaves the hot shoe at a 90 degree angle and this bungs up your camera bag. The flash cannot be used effectively in bounce mode with the camera in portrait orientation as the flash does not twist. Other than that it does the job.
Date published: 2017-02-25T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Performs well This very light flash performs very consistently. I'm happy with its compact form and power level.
Date published: 2016-05-24T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Faulty Sony I bought this product 3 weeks ago and sorry to say that having bought Sony products for over 30 years without a problem, this was the first faulty item I have ever received. Item returned for full refund from seller. Wont change my high opinion of Sony products but with this item I have a problem as it is the only type available for my A3000 camera.
Date published: 2015-02-05T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from A great little Flash A useful , lightweight portable flash that overcomes the built in flash's limitations, able to "bounce" light effectively. Only downside is that the unit's off position is "folded" so soaring in a amore streamlined fashion will drain batteries so if not using for some time take the batteries out (always good practice!) I would recommend this for use with NEX models and possibly withe the new A7's too.
Date published: 2014-06-09T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Just what I need. This little flash is perfect for what I need, usually a little fill flash outside or to brighten up a dull interior. It's not to powerful but used with my hx400v has enough features for what I need and folds down ready for use, just perfect.
Date published: 2019-12-22T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Small and light I don't use flash very often, just for fill-in and photographing documents, so I was looking to replicate the convenience of the built-in pop-up flash on the NEX 7, on my alpha 7R. The F20M is the smallest unit I could find; it is small and light but seems rather fragile mounted on the shoe for outdoor use. In terms of performance it is overkill of course being more versatile and powerful that I really need. It is a pity that 'professional' cameras don't include built-in flash units.
Date published: 2017-12-19T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Compact, Lightweight, Easy to - just what I need! Ok so it's not the fanciest flash on the block, but it combines seamlessly with the camera via the hotshoe and is ideal as a fill-in for those situations that need a bit of a boost.
Date published: 2018-06-14T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Good travel flash at a great price I wanted a flash to add to my 6500, for occasional use on holiday. The F20M is physically small and light, and does a great job. I was also pleased to find that it was able to control the off-camera wireless flash that I had bought with my Sony A100 over ten years ago. That was a nice bonus, and makes me even more happy with the purchase, especially at the low price.
Date published: 2019-07-06T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Small and light I don't use flash very often, just for fill-in and photographing documents, so I was looking to replicate the convenience of the built-in pop-up flash on the NEX 7, on my alpha 7R. The F20M is the smallest unit I could find; it is small and light but seems rather fragile mounted on the shoe for outdoor use. In terms of performance it is overkill of course being more versatile and powerful that I really need. It is a pity that 'professional' cameras don't include built-in flash units.
Date published: 2017-12-19T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from A Must Have For a6xxx Cameras This flash is a"jewel" on my A6000. More power and flexibility than the built in flash. Light weight and compact for travel. I love the "fold flat" feature whilst walking around. Fits the concept of compact mirrorless cameras.
Date published: 2020-03-20T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from All you really need I have purchased large flash guns in the past but came to realise that it is better to have a smaller flash for fill in. This is a brilliant little flash. It has been all over the world with me and remains on my camera almost all the time.It is so light I do not even know it is there. It provides enough illumination for 95% of all circumstances and it is brilliant that it also comes with an internal "wide" filter and has the capability to "bounce" also. When in the "off" position, you can fold the flash down, whist on the camera making the whole unit (camera+flash) very compact indeed. I am writing this review now as I have just purchased another one after I managed to break the last one after almost 6 years! Initially used on my A7R and now on my A7R3.
Date published: 2019-12-05T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Great product, Does exactly what I wanted. Small compact flash to give you that extra light when needed, only wanted something small to have in the bag, Very happy
Date published: 2019-02-01T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Works well for my needs I bought this to simply use as a trigger to fire my F60M flashgun off camera and works well for this
Date published: 2021-03-20T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Small and fits my A7 camera fits my camera and arrears to work well for failry close up use
Date published: 2019-05-15T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Excellent addition for basic flash photography Excellent entry level on camera flash for enthusiast who wants to progress their photography to the next level
Date published: 2019-07-02T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Good features Bought this for my Sony camera different angles of flash works well
Date published: 2018-02-26T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Small but powerful Very compact wee unit and very versatile.Perfect with my RX-10M3
Date published: 2021-10-13T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from All you really need I have purchased large flash guns in the past but came to realise that it is better to have a smaller flash for fill in. This is a brilliant little flash. It has been all over the world with me and remains on my camera almost all the time.It is so light I do not even know it is there. It provides enough illumination for 95% of all circumstances and it is brilliant that it also comes with an internal "wide" filter and has the capability to "bounce" also. When in the "off" position, you can fold the flash down, whist on the camera making the whole unit (camera+flash) very compact indeed. I am writing this review now as I have just purchased another one after I managed to break the last one after almost 6 years! Initially used on my A7R and now on my A7R3.
Date published: 2019-12-05T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from F20M Review Bought this for my Sony NEX-6. Previously had an HVL-F20S on an NEX-5N camera. This one uses its own separate batteries, which can be both good and bad. Not had it long enough to know how long batteries will last, but expect ~90 shots from 2 Duracells and even more if I used externally charged rechargeables. Unit seems well made and works well - as expected. Interestingly, unlike HVL-F20S this one does not come with a plastic diffuser cover - I wonder why not? Only criticism is, as specified no ability to swivel flash head. However I knew this when I bought it. All in all a good unit.
Date published: 2017-12-12T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Perfect extra flashgun for Cybershot DSC-HX400V I was looking for an integrated flash for my HX400V and already have a Canon TTL flashgun. There isn't much I could actually do with that except use it in manual mode - rather negates the idea of an automatic camera! I was not after a huge flashgun and I saw this one that seemed to fit the bill. Guide number 20 which is about 4 times more powerful than the built in flash on the Cybershot. The flash is semi-automatic in that wide angle or telephoto has to be set manually, but this is a small niggle for a flashgun that works through the lens and integrates as a wireless sender for remote flashguns as well. It can also be used as a bounce flash. In my (limited) usage I have found it to be very reliable and produces good light coverage against camera settings. Now for the not so good. The head can not be switched on and off manually except by either lowering it against the shoe mount or switching off the camera with the flash attached. This is a nuisance as the OFF position leaves the hot shoe at a 90 degree angle and this bungs up your camera bag. The flash cannot be used effectively in bounce mode with the camera in portrait orientation as the flash does not twist. Other than that it does the job.
Date published: 2017-02-25T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Great little flash! I don't understand why people are complaining about the build quality... I use this flash, I hold it in my hands and for what it is, the flash is very well built. Maybe is a later model that they had!? Yes, is not a tank, but considering how small it is, this thing is built as good as it can get. Works flawlessly on my a7m2 and a6000. My only complain will be about the price (that's why the 4 star only)... maybe a little high for what it is. I only purchased it because I used my points and brought the price considerably low enough to make it worth (around $130 with taxes). I would like to buy another one, but only if price gets considerably lower than what it is now.
Date published: 2015-07-25T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from great flash, poor construction I had this flash on my sony rx100. I'm a pro photographer and use a dslr, but also like to have a small point and shoot. This flash really brings the rx100 to a new level and I love the picture quality it gave me. I dropped the camera and the flash broke instantly. I bought a new one, dropped it, and the same thing happened. It broke in the exact same spot, the very thin point where the flash meets the attachment screw. I think Sony should redesign this flash and make this pivot point wider. Yes, I know I dropped it, but it did not drop very far either time (I'm short...from my hip to the ground), and all of my other equipment has gone through so much more without ever breaking. Probably will not buy a third one. I'd recommend the flash if you're careful!
Date published: 2015-02-19T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Perfect for the A6000 A great flash for the A6000, this is my first flash so I cannot really compare it to others but it works great. This is my first flash that lets me take bounce flash pictures. Over the holidays, I took several hundred pictures with it and I have been really impressed with its performance. I used my Sony (CycleEnergy, 800 mAh) AAA rechargeable batteries and they worked great with the flash and the fact that it only uses 2 batteries is a plus since I can swap out them out for another pair fairly quickly.
Date published: 2015-01-07T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Good for small places Was visiting family for Christmas and I did not like the flash results on my A77. I wanted something small to easily take with me and use while taking pictures of family in the house. You are able to bounce the light so that your subjects do not have that glossy flash look. I was really happy with the Christmas pictures. It worked well also taking pictures of groups outside at night close up. The only down side is that after a few shots with the flash it takes some time to recharge. I missed a couple shots because of that. I found that if I shut it off (folding flash down toward the camera) then turned it back on (flipping back up) it helped recharge a little faster. There is also a etched piece if plastic in the flash that you can turn down so that a direct flash is not so harsh. Works up to 100 ft IMO but better 75 and under I did not need any adapter for this to fit my A77. I am pleased with the purchase.
Date published: 2014-01-01T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from This was all I needed. I already owned a bigger Sony flash but wanted a smaller one to carry with me for those times I didn't think I would even need a flash. And, I wanted this one to serve as the "controller" flash to flash my other flash off camera. I was told this would do the trick. And it does. Very simple to operate. This flash works well. It's basic and it's small, and that's what I wanted. It does have a switch to change between direct flash and bounce flash.
Date published: 2020-01-15T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Flash does not fit the NEX 7 I purchased this flash for my NEX 7, because it is listed as compatible. It is NOT compatible.
Date published: 2013-08-16T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Great flash Great value flashgun, very easy to use, much better that built in unit.
Date published: 2017-11-18T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Perfect compact flash gun A great compact flash gun with good range of features. Very useful on camera contoller for multi flash environments.
Date published: 2019-05-12T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Won’t shoot higher speeds than 200 This one sucks so bad, it won’t let me shoot higher speeds than 160 on Sony 6,000. Why buy it it, might as well just use the flash your camera has.
Date published: 2018-04-03T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Remarkably powerful It may only have a GN of 20 but it still packs a punch. Light enough to keep in the bag for any occassion.
Date published: 2017-12-16T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Efficient Surprisingly packs alot of power for a flash so small.
Date published: 2020-03-05T00:00:00-05:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from What they fail to Mention I was very excited to finally get an external flash for my camera, as I take many portraits. I have a Sony a65. The description for this item says its compatible with the camera, however they fail to mention that in order to make it work you must purchase an adapter. Thus the flash is useless until you buy an adapter as well.
Date published: 2013-10-08T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Outstanding Value and Performance Very compact and adds great clarity to my photos. I use this as an add on to my A35 and I could not be more satisfied. Huge upgrade from built-in flash.
Date published: 2014-03-31T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Underpowered, unreliable, overpriced I bought this and after the warranty period was over, so was the flash. I loved the compact size and could live with the lack of power, but it just started becoming unreliable. I replaced it with a much better flash from another manufacturer at less than half the price.
Date published: 2019-09-21T00:00:00-04:00
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Nice flash, but poorly constructed I bought this flash to use on my SLT-99V to command my HVL-F58 flash wirelessly. I used it one time in this manner and it worked amazingly well. However, when I took the flash off of my camera, using extreme care as I had been warned about the frailty of it's mount connector, the mount connector separated from the flash and could not be reattached. Upon a closer examination I saw how poorly designed and cheaply built the connection was between the flash's mount connector and the main part of the flash. I returned the flash to my vendor and replaced it with a HVL-F43M, albeit at a $250 cost differential. The F43M has given me no problem whatsoever. It's mount connector is outstanding and seems to be constructed to the level of excellence that I have come to expect out of Sony camera products.. unfortunately I cannot say that about the HVL-F20M.
Date published: 2014-01-06T00:00:00-05:00

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