Why won’t my Neewer speedlight fire on an Olympus OM-D E-M10 hot shoe?
Asked 12/1/2017
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2 answers
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I’m new to flash and trying to use a Neewer NW985 on an Olympus OM-D E-M10 (Mark I). The flash will trigger wirelessly from the camera’s built-in flash, but it won’t fire reliably when mounted directly on the camera hot shoe. I’ve tried the camera in fill-in and manual flash modes, and I’ve also tried different flash modes, including manual. The flash fires once when I slide it onto the hot shoe.
Does the OM-D E-M10 work with any hot-shoe flash, or only Olympus/Panasonic dedicated models? If this Neewer is a Canon/Nikon version, should it still fire in manual from the center pin? Could this be a settings issue, a compatibility issue, or a physical hot-shoe contact problem?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
8y ago
2 Answers
3
Is it a 985C or 985N? 985C is for Canon and 985N is for Nikon. Neewer has flashes for Olympus, but I don't think there is a 985 model?
It should work in flash Manual mode (only in flash manual mode), including on hot shoe, on a PC cord, or as optical slave. Camera mode doesn't much matter, A,S,P or M should work, but a non-dedicated flash has to be in its M mode. However you seem to be saying it does not work on hot shoe in flash Manual mode?
The flash foot has one large center pin which triggers it, the same on all brands, and about 3 or 4 smaller pins that are dedicated to the camera brand it is made for. Every brand has different pin arrangements on the smaller pins. Any automation or communication certainly has to be the right brand model.
Originally by user38978. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user38978
8y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes, the E-M10 can use external flashes, but compatibility depends on how you want to use them.
If your Neewer is a Canon- or Nikon-dedicated version, TTL/HSS and other brand-specific communication will not work on Olympus. However, it should still usually fire in plain manual mode via the hot shoe’s center pin.
Based on the answers, check these things:
- Make sure the flash is not in any slave/wireless mode. In slave mode, it may ignore the hot shoe and only wait for an optical trigger.
- Put the flash itself in manual mode.
- Verify which NW985 version you have; brand-specific pins differ between Canon, Nikon, Olympus, etc.
The fact that it fires when attached suggests the camera is making some contact, but one answer reports a known mechanical/contact issue with some E-M10 bodies and single-pin manual flashes/triggers. A hot-shoe adapter with a larger center contact can solve that.
So: your camera is not necessarily broken, and Olympus is compatible with external flashes. For full compatibility, use an Olympus/Panasonic-compatible flash. For manual-only use, this flash may work if set correctly—or may need a hot-shoe adapter if contact is the problem.
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