Looking at getting a Canon Speedlite 430EX II but I have some questions

LaurenceGough

LaurenceGough

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Laurence
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Hi all,

Not sure if this should be in lighting or not but please move if it is.

I am looking at purchasing a Canon Speedlite 430EX II for my Canon 550D.

I kind of regret not getting a 600D now after learning it has a wireless flash function. In the future I am thinking of picking up another flash to use off camera wirelessly.

My question is if I was to get this 430EX flash over the 580EX which has a transmitter to fire other flashes, could I upgrade to say one of the higher end future bodies and use the body to fire off camera flashes?


I can't think of another way to word it clearer but I hope you can understand.

Cheers,

Laurence
 
If you upgrade to the 600d or the 7d you can receive the signals to either gun. There is a slave mode on both.

Hope this helps.
 
If I understand you correctly, there is no reason you can't in the future upgrade to a 600D/60D/7D etc which has the wireless trigger functionality. You can also buy a wireless flash trigger for the 550D which plugs into the hotshoe - i'm sure someone else in the know will be able to recommend you one.

For what it's worth I recently bought the 430 EX II for my 550D and I think it's great. Although I don't currently have any need for wireless triggering, it's good that the 430 EX II has the capability as I will be upgrading the body at some point in the future!
 
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trickards said:
If I understand you correctly, there is no reason you can't in the future upgrade to a 600D/60D/7D etc which has the wireless trigger functionality. You can also buy a wireless flash trigger for the 550D which plugs into the hotshoe - i'm sure someone else in the know will be able to recommend you one.

For what it's worth I recently bought the 430 EX II for my 550D and I think it's great. Although I don't currently have any need for wireless triggering, it's good that the 430 EX II has the capability as I will be upgrading the body at some point in the future!
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Thanks very much to you both these forums are really helpful (y)

I am in the same situation as yourself - I currently do not need to use the flash wirelessly but I wanted to know if I upgrade my body later (maybe in a year or twos time) that I can use my 430EX II off camera from the body's internal flash signal.

Save me buying the more expensive 580EX :LOL: as I really only want to use flash to prevent nasty shadows.

I take it the 580EX's master function has the same functionality as the body's built in trigger?


I saw the price of those wireless triggers, they were very expensive, I might as well upgrade to the 580EX unless I'm missing something :).

p.s how do you guys think the range will be with the 70-200mm?

I love the servo zoom head, absolutely amazing technology!

Cheers,

Laurence
 
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That is my understanding yes. I am sure the 580 as a master can trigger the 430 EX II as a slave in the same way the newer bodies can, but I don't know if the 580 does any more singing or dancing other than its increased range.

To be honest I am using my 430 EX II with a Canon EF-S 17-55 f/2.8 IS mostly indoors at the moment so range isn't really an issue, I am just experimenting with bouncing flash etc. I see you do some RC Heli stuff (pretty cool by the way!) so I guess you'll be outdoors. However, I did buy it to help as a fill flash for outdoor portraits too so I'd have no worries in the respect either really.

Check out some reviews online and your best bet might be to buy from amazon - take it out for a few test shots and if it doesn't feel sufficient exchange it for the 580.

I will warn you though, with 4 x AA batteries in the 430 EX II is already quite big on the 550D so the 580 EX might be too top heavy. If you're thinking about the 580 I'd test it in a shop on your 550D.
 
Thanks Tom :).

Yeah - RC Helis are my other hobby flash isn't really for that but friends weddings (low budget) and for portraits of family and friends. I'm looking for the smooth pop you get with a decent flash, outdoors too but I'm willing to accept that these flashes might not be powerful enough for outdoors.


Good point with the 580 EX, I have got my 550D gripped with a heavy base at the bottom, might help...


I'm going to look more into the rage difference between the two but I don't think the price increase is justified for my needs, I would rather put it towards another L lens :).

Cheers
 
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The 430 has a max zoom range of 105mm where as the 580 is 200mm (maybe more.. i shoot nikon)

In terms of what that means for your photo.. not sure.
 
adobbins said:
The 430 has a max zoom range of 105mm where as the 580 is 200mm (maybe more.. i shoot nikon)

In terms of what that means for your photo.. not sure.
Click to expand...

580 is also 105mm max.
 
Thanks guys :).

I don't know if I should create a new thread or not but my question now is how often do people use full 1:1 with TTL deciding?

Of course the main difference is with 1:1 between the two. I'm swaying towards the 580 but many people are using the 430.

The worst case I am thinking of is shooting in the sun and I want to use the flash to fill a bit - not overpowering though. 430EX owners - is it enough?

:help::thinking:
 
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By 1:1 do you mean a full power flash? With ETTL deciding I wouldn't know, unless the exif contains data on it. I can tell you with my relatively short lived experience with it I haven't had a situation where it hasn't had enough power. I shoot in manual and let ETTL do the rest - so it would be noticeably underexposed if the flash wasn't up for the job.

I'm sure plenty of people use it as an outdoor fill flash - in fact I'm sure it's often seen that people use the built-in for that purpose too.

Edit: In hindsight that looks like I'm pushing you towards the 430 - not my intention! I'm just happy with my purchase so far! :D
 
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I am in the same situation as yourself - I currently do not need to use the flash wirelessly but I wanted to know if I upgrade my body later (maybe in a year or twos time) that I can use my 430EX II off camera from the body's internal flash signal.
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Of course you can if you get the right body like a 7D.

Save me buying the more expensive 580EX as I really only want to use flash to prevent nasty shadows.
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Best using the flash OFF camera then as on-camera flash indoors can throw up some nasty shadows of its own if used direct at the subject. Will help though.

For an ETTL trigger look at the Canon ST-E2. Second hand usually around £120 mark I think.

A 430EX is a powerful flash and only slightly less powerful than a 580EX.

THe zoom for on-camera flash will work up to around a lens of 105mm but so long as you are close enough to the subject it should work fine even with the 200mm lens.

Flash Exposure Compensation (FEC) allows you to up the exposure what the flash thinks is right by +3 stops (which may be 1:1 and may not) depends what the flash thinks the exposure should be.

If you want 1:1 switch it to M and easily done. You just need to swich to an appropriate aperture setting to get the exposure correct (simple if you have a flash meter)

I'm not sure how often the 580EXII is at full power but it can get there especially outside on a sunny day. With the loss of power on the 430EX you will find recycle times longer more often if you are using it close to full power.

Regards the sun it depends how strong the sun is and how much you want to over power..... If you don't want to over power you'll be fine and will have a nice white background/sky.

Read up a bit more on the use of the flash - You sound as if you have an idea but you're missing the points in a couple of areas.
 
Hi Laurence, not seen much from you of late, hope you had a great xmas and new year. How are you getting on with that 70-200 2.8 now, all problems sorted I hope.
If you are after a really good flash I can really recommend the Nissin Di866, it's around the same price as the 430EX but has the power and features of the 580EX. Alternatively, the Nissin Di622 is around half the price of the 430EX and has very similar features meaning you could get 2 of these and set one of them as a wireless off camera flash. I got one for the wife recently when I passed my 550D on to her when I got my 5D2 and can highly recommend this model too. I use my 580EX and Di866 as master and slave on my 5D2 or can use both as off camera with my 7D and get some great results.
 
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If the Canon ST-E2 appeals as a master unit, there's a Yongnuo ST-E2 clone that has a good rep. I've not used one, but the spec is better than Canon's and it's only £80 off the bay.

NB, one thing that many cheaper guns don't have is high speed sync, though some do. All Canons have it.
 
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HoppyUK said:
If the Canon ST-E2 appeals as a master unit, there's a Yongnuo ST-E2 clone that has a good rep. I've not used one, but the spec is better than Canon's and it's only £80 off the bay.

NB, one thing that many cheaper guns don't have is high speed sync, though some do. All Canons have it.
Click to expand...

2nd curtain sync is useful too.
 
Hmm How far are you going to upgrade your body in the future ? as the 1D series can not trigger off camera flash.

Personally for me the biggest advantage of the 580, it the ability to use an external battery pack for MUCH faster recycle times and prolonged shooting.
 
Whoops! Sorry guys I had a messaged typed up but I never sent it - just been sitting in a tab (I open too many tabs at once...)

Hi Stuart haha... I've been involved with the helis too much... It wasn't bad mate thanks, I hope you had a great one.

I've just realised that even L lenses have there problems, but using other lenses is not as nice as the L ones. I think you have to go prime to get rid of the last bit of CA but to me it's not worth the lack of zoom.

Many thanks all - I am very new to proper flash photography having used just the on board flash when necessary, which I hated doing.

I'd rather stick to Canon especially for things which make a difference to image quality, sorry I just haven't had the best of luck with 3rd party products so far.


Over the last few weeks I have constantly been switching my choice between the two flashes - I'm looking to get into Photography more as a career choice in the future after I know my gear perfectly and have much more experience. For this reason I have decided to go for the Canon 580EX II.

The main reasons I am going for this are as follows:

Ability to swivel fully in any direction around.
More power for bounces in open buildings
More power for greater range outside
Ability to use a battery pack (and attach that to your cam/strap) if I ever really need to use it a lot.

Only disadvantage is cost for me...


Thank you all for your replies!
 
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