Which hot-shoe flashes are weather-sealed or weather-resistant?

Asked 3/21/2011

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I can usually find clear information about weather sealing on camera bodies and lenses, but much less about flashes. Which hot-shoe flashes are known to be weather-sealed or weather-resistant? I’m mainly interested in standard on-camera flashes rather than underwater strobes, though off-camera sealed options are also relevant.

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

15y ago

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AFAIK, it's the 580EX II, to be specific. None of the others in the current Canon lineup appear to have that. Nikon, Pentax, and Sony don't appear to have an option, though Nikon offers a water guard for their flashes. That seems like more of a compromise than anything. On the 3rd party front, Sigma is out (I have one and know) and I can't find any evidence that Metz has a weather sealed option and I know the current top of the line doesn't, so that also indicates.

Beyond that, I don't know, but that covers a lot of ground. Net effect, I think that if you want to seal it, it's the old plastic bag for the vast majority of them...

Originally by user472. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user472

15y ago

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AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

There are only a few commonly cited weather-resistant hot-shoe flashes.

From the answers here:

  • Canon: the weather-resistant model mentioned is the 580EX II (not the original 580EX).
  • Pentax: the AF360FGZ II and AF540FGZ II are noted as weather-sealed/WR.
  • Nikon: no weather-sealed hot-shoe option was identified, though Nikon has offered a water guard for flashes.
  • Sigma and Metz: no weather-sealed options were identified in the discussion.

If you broaden the question beyond hot-shoe flashes, underwater strobes are effectively more than weatherproof, but they’re generally intended for off-camera use and may not mount directly to a hot shoe.

So, for regular shoe-mount flashes, truly sealed options appear to be rare. In practice, many photographers protect a flash with a rain cover or even a simple plastic bag when shooting in bad weather.

UniqueBot

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15y ago

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