Shoe-mounted flashes are handy tools. Where space or weight is a concern, a kit with two or three shoe-mounted flashes is much easier to carry than even the smallest power pack/head combo or a low-output monolight, and more versatile.

This is the most powerful and sturdiest flash I own. The metal shoe and sturdy battery door are welcome, as is the overall feel of the construction. The power is there, and the secondary flash is very helpful when bouncing.

Powerful; sturdy; Touch screen menu; flash trigger

May overheat and shut down; Menu learning curve

Little adjustment needed when shooting in variable light areas and a very quick recycle.

The new Metz 64 AF-1 digital flash gun is the top of the range Metz flash gun, and offers one of the highest outputs of any available flash gun at GN 64. The Metz 64 AF-1 is available for Canon, Nikon, Olympus / Panasonic, Pentax, and Sony, priced at £329.

Built in forward facing flash for use with bounce flash; Very good value for money; Belt pouch and slave stand included; Abundance of options; Tilts down 9 degrees; Rapid mode; USB updates; Powerful 64GN rating

Some may prefer a video light to be built-in; Doesn't have battery level information

First my limitations: I use a Canon 5D MkII and my previous experience was solely with a Canon 430EX flashgun. I cannot speak for other camera types or makes. I originally bought a Canon 430EX flash as the (then) top-of-the-range 580EX seemed way too expensive.

Easy to Use; Massive Range Of Function; Powerful And Flexible; Superb User Interface

Wonderful! It's much better than Nikon SB-910.

Huge disappointment! After reading reviews that the secondary light has a tendency to noisily explode, rendering the whole unit useless I thought I would be one of the ones that it won't happen to but boy was I wrong!