Help with pre-flash on E-410

[Diviniti]

I just got an Evolt E-410. It's my first digital SLR and I'm really excited. I'm taking my time and learning a lot on my own, but there's one thing I can't figure out.

How do I disable the pre-flash on the camera? It seems to "strobe" about 5 times before it takes the picture. This is frustrating for me and confusing to the people whose pictures I am taking. They have no clue when the photo is actually being snapped because of all the flashing.

Like I said, I'm new to this...so be gentle with me!

Thanks a bunch!

 

[Sideburns]

that's the red eye reduction. Turn it off.

 

[Big Mike]

Welcome to the forum.

That might be to help the auto focus work when it's dark.
I'm sure the answer to your question is in the owner's manual somewhere.

 

[Diviniti]

that's the red eye reduction. Turn it off.

I have read a few places, even in the manual, that the pre flash is the red eye reduction working. However, it does not tell you how to turn the red eye off. Any suggestions with that??

 

[Diviniti]

Welcome to the forum.

That might be to help the auto focus work when it's dark.
I'm sure the answer to your question is in the owner's manual somewhere.

Thanks for the welcome!

I have read and reread the manual, and can find nothing...

 

[djrichie28]

Welcome to the forum.

That might be to help the auto focus work when it's dark.
I'm sure the answer to your question is in the owner's manual somewhere.

I think Big Mike is right. I just upgraded from an E-500 and the strobe effect on the flash was "low light focus assist". Not sure if the menu is set up the same on the E-410 but you should look something that says 'focus illumination assist' somewhere in the set up section of the menu.

If the strobe effect is indeed focus assist, you should hear the 'beep' and the green dot in the viewfinder indicating the focus has been acheived once the stobe has stopped.

 

[lockwood81]

I think Big Mike is right. I just upgraded from an E-500 and the strobe effect on the flash was "low light focus assist". Not sure if the menu is set up the same on the E-410 but you should look something that says 'focus illumination assist' somewhere in the set up section of the menu.

If the strobe effect is indeed focus assist, you should hear the 'beep' and the green dot in the viewfinder indicating the focus has been acheived once the stobe has stopped.

Yep, what he ^^ said

 

[Diviniti]

I sure appreciate the help!

Will keep you posted...

 

[Diviniti]

Before my post here, I had sent an email to Olympus but had not gotten a response.

They sent this response to me just a second ago:

This repeated pre-flashing is called the AF illuminator or AF assist beam, and it helps the camera auto focus in low conditions. You can disable this feature by going into the camera's menu and setting the "AF ILLUMINAT." to the OFF position. Please keep in mind that turning this feature off may require longer auto-focusing times or Manual Focusing for very dim lighting conditions.


Regards,

E-System Digital SLR Technical Support
Olympus Imaging America Inc.



Thanks to all of you who solved this for me before the response came through. I appreciate it!