Holga Electronic Flash 12Mfc with Color Filters

I also read the bad reviews and was nervous about purchasing this flash, but it worked perfectly for me...even after I dropped it a couple times. Loved the effects it gave my photos!

First one I got didn't work. Ready light came on, but wouldn't flash either from TEST button or hot-shoe connection to 2 cameras. Luckily Amazon has a killer return policy, so I ordered a 2nd one.This one works, fairly well. You have to jiggle the on/off switch a bit to get it to turn on, and since there's no power light, you have to listen for the high-pitched squeal which means the cap is charging. I didn't want to send back a 2nd, so I'll keep this one.Charges fairly quickly for a 1 AA battery flash, about 12 seconds till the Ready light comes on. Flash is bright, and the color filters work great. Not sure on the long-term use of the filters, they're all connected one on top of the other, and held on with a single screw. If they come loose, there's no way to keep them in place. But it looks like it will be good for quite a few uses.I snapped a few pics on my Lubitel, have to wait till I finish the roll of film and get it processed (ah, the old days). Also fit it on my Nikon D90 and tested the color filters, they work very well for a cheap/little flash. Obviously you won't get any real range out of this, it's good for candids up to about 3m, but that is exactly what it's designed for.Overall I'll give it 4 stars, mostly based on the price and the "look". It's cheap enough, and matches the cheap-o Holga/Lomo cameras very well.

The flash never worked, I tried a few different batteries and the flash would not fire when I pressed the test button nor when I mounted the flash on the hot shoe of my Holga 35mm. I ended up returning the product and instead bought a Neewer slave flash kit that also works as a normal flash (which is how I use it). It was less expensive and actually works really well! I wished that I had paid better attention to the rating this flash received, it would have saved me a lot of time and hassle! Others might have better luck with this product, but I would recommending looking into other brands!

The idea is fine, but the execution is sketchy. The flash base doesn't really fit well in the Holga's shoe, so every other shot fails to trigger the flash, which leads to wasted film/double exposures constantly. I might not buy this again.

One of them did have a problem with the indicator led.

This holga combo flash is exactly what I was looking for at a fraction of the price that I have found on other websites.

OK, so here's what this flash isn't: reliable, sturdy, flexible, powerful, or quick to recharge.It is, however, cheap as all heck, teensy tiny, very light, and convenient. Use it to add a little touch of color here and there, don't rely on it as a primary flash, and stick a high-output rechargeable in there to help with the reload time, and it's a really great deal.You would rather drop $500 on a 580ex II to add a little blue on your background?

I got this as a cheap replacement for my ringflash which is a hassle sometimes. The first 10 times or so I fired the flash, it was fine, did exactly what it was supposed to do, and I loved it. Then there was that loud pop (which freaked me out lol) and now it's totally dead. When I bought it there were no reviews so I had no idea, but had I known, I would not have bought this. Either this product line is entirely bad, or at least a good number of them are, because I've been coming across a lot of reviews that say the same thing. Save your $13 or whatever it is and invest in a decent flash that won't die on the first day :P