First flash

hobodan

hobodan

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Dan
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Hi, I'm looking for my very first flash to mount on my Canon 40D!

It would only be for indoor shots of family; I find the onboard flash a bit to harsh so would like to experiment with bounce etc..

I like the look of the Canon 430 ex ii but I'm not sure I want to pay that price :D

From what I can gather its better to have ETTL? & have been looking at the very cheap YN-465 (around £40)
Can anyone recommend this as a first flash? I don't make money from photography & have no intention to so I wouldn't expect a £40 flash to last 10 years

Many thanks
 
I have a YN-560 and have found it great for learning about flash. Very powerful as well. It does have massive limitations though, since it is fully manual. It worked best for me with static subjects, or in locations where I could set up and get my exposure bang on, then just fire off shots whenever needed. I've shot some mountain biking, and it worked fine with some equally cheap wireless triggers (obviously don't need the ETTL of the expensive ones), as I could get my exposure and composition right, then just get the bikers to ride past a few times while I shot. Shooting indoors I found acceptable one I got used to the way it lights a scene at different distances and angles, but still not the best for capturing sudden one-off moments due to set up time before almost every shot.

Definitely planning to get a proper TTL/ETTL flashgun next time though, as it would be far more convenient shooting events or indoors with rapidly changing light conditions. I guess the ideal would be to get a canon 430 ex ii somehow, since it would be most useful in the conditions you stated.

Hope this helps!

Dan
 
If you want a flash that has about the same power and features as a 430EX II and to have ETTL I suggest you have a look at the Nissin Di622. It is a hell of a flash and you can pick them up for around £90 which is about half the price of the 430 EX II. I bought one of them for the wife to go on her 550D and I have its big brother the Di866 which has similar specs to the 580 EX II but at under £200. Both are excellent flashes and work flawlessly with the Canon EOS cameras.
 
Another vote for the nissin 622 but get the mark ii version. Ive found it extremely reliable and got photos of my niece in low light that would have been impossible otherwise.
 
I had the YN 468 for my first (and atm still only) flashgun and it's been excellent. I've had it about 1.5 years now and it's still going strong. Will probably upgrade to the YN565 very soon though.
 
Thanks. I think I'll have to give the YN a go, the pricess are just so low compared to the rest of the market
 
Razor-BladE said:
I had the YN 468 for my first (and atm still only) flashgun and it's been excellent. I've had it about 1.5 years now and it's still going strong. Will probably upgrade to the YN565 very soon though.
Click to expand...

+1 on this. My 468 sees fairly light use, but I've been very happy for the price.

Didn't know about the 565, not sure it's worth me upgrading, but looks pretty good value.
 
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