The Ultimate Sony HVL-F43M Review!

Today we are going to be covering the Sony HVL-F43M camera flash as we try and work our way through reviewing as many flash units as possible. Our Sony HVL-F43M review will cover the three main aspects of a flash that we usually cover while also providing our final verdict at the end of the review.

Although the HVL-F43M is a higher price point flash unit on the market compared to what we usually cover for our readers, we have seen a number of people reaching out for advice on the HVL-F43M. If you are on a tight budget but want to pick the HVL-F43M up then it may be an idea to consider picking up a second hand or fully refurbished flash unit (Click here to check for product prices and availability) as it can end up saving you a fair amount compared to its list price.

Being one of the only half decent premium flash units on the market for the Sony camera range it is no surprise that the HVL-F43M has proven to be a hit with the community. Many photographers who use the Sony HVL-F43M as their go-to camera flash of choice have decided to post their own third-party reviews online (click here to read some of them) that you can read to get a great external insight into how the flash unit performs for the people who use it on a daily basis.

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Table of Contents

User Interface And Control System

Just like the majority of other Sony flashes available on the market these days, the hvl-f43m external flash has a slick, clean, and easy to use navigation menu and control system to help save you time when needing to tweak the settings of your flash unit. The image above shows the basics of both the control system and navigation display and as you can see, the system is based around the standard directional pad and button system.

The actual navigation menu on the hvl-f43m is very similar to the majority of other modern Sony flash units and if you have used other modern Sony camera flashes then you will pick it up very quickly. On the flip side, if you are brand new to the Sony flash navigation menu then we still think that you will be able to pick it up with minimal time spent playing with your new toy.

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The control system on the hvl-f43m is also very simple to pick up and is familiar to the other popular flash units on the market right now, even the units from the competing brands. Essentially, the directional pad is key and operates like the directional pads or rotary dials on other flash units with the surrounding buttons being used for select various settings quickly.

For example, the flash mode button on the hvl-f43m allows you to switch between the various flash modes such as TTL flash and manual flash as well as a number of other supported modes within seconds. All in all, we really do think Sony has done a great job of designing the interface system on the flash and struggled to find fault with it.

Performance And Functionality

As you would expect for a flash unit at this price point, the hvl-f43m is jam-packed with a large number of features that allow you to tweak the unit’s performance to match whatever your flash photograph session required. Off the top of our heads, we are unable to think of any single flash-based situation where you would not be able to tweak the settings of the hvl-f43m for optimal performance.

That said, its high power illumination and variable recycle time can definitely take its toll on the total number of flash activations that the hvl-f43m can achieve. Although the officially listed number is around two hundred flash activations, you will likely get around one hundred and fifty activations per full set of batteries.

The lamp mode on the flash unit provides you with a constant source of illumination if need to use it for any type of videography in low light conditions although it can rapidly drain your flash units battery power.

The “quick shift bounce” technology on the flash unit essentially lets you quickly and easily rotate the flash head left or right through ninety degrees to maximize flash bounce performance. The flash unit also has a maximum tilt range of -8 degrees to 150 degrees offering even more flash bounce potential if required.

Click Here To Read Independent Third Party Reviews Of This Product!

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Build Quality

Again, as you would expect for the price point of the hvl-f43m, it has an excellent build quality as standard. The majority of the camera flash body is made from a high-quality plastic that is very lightweight ensuring that you are able to support the weight of your camera of choice with the flash mounted without noticing much of a difference. The plastic flash body is also very robust allowing you to rest assured that the hvl-f43m will be able to take plenty of bumps and knocks during use.

Sony has also added additional dust and moisture resistant technology to the hvl-f43m that ensures that the more common faults with cheaper flash units do not occur when using it. The hot shoe attachment on the flash is made from a robust metal alloy to ensure that its shape will not warp over time due to excessive use ensuring that you can always mount or unmount the flash unit from your camera with ease.

Our Verdict

That brings us to the end of our Sony HVL-F43M review, we really did struggle to find fault with the flash unit due to Sony doing such a great job when designing and building it. We have no doubt that it will improve your flash photography image quality if you do choose to add it to your camera accessories. On the flip side of this, it does come with a premium price tag due to being one of the higher quality flash units on the market right now.

Click Here To Read Independent Third Party Reviews Of This Product!

Click Here To Check For Prices On This Product!

The video below offers an additional third-party, independent review for the Sony HVL-F43M to offer our readers an independent opinion of the product.