 Susan Bohanon |
Off brand flash??? Okay, I just talked to a rep at B&H Photo and he told me that the Canon 420EX Speedlite that I have WILL NOT act on a wireless system with the Rebel. (with the flash off the camera) However, I DO need a flash that will accomodate this (such as the 550EX). Does anyone know of a different brand/model that is the equivalant to the Canon 550EX? That flash is over $300. ~ouch~ Also is there an different brand/model from the Canon SP-E2 transmitter?? Thanks for the help!
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Christopher A. Vedros |
Susan, are you looking for a trigger or a slave? The 420EX will not act as a trigger for other wireless slaves. Since you can't disable the E-TTL preflash, you can't use it to trigger optical slaves either. But it will work as a wireless slave, triggered by the 550EX, the 580EX, or one of the other Canon wireless triggers. As far as I know, none of the off-brand flashes (including Sigma) will trigger the 420EX.
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Susan Bohanon |
Thanks for the response Chris!! I was going to use it as an off camera flash as a slave and get a wireless transmitter, but the guy told me that it would not work with the Rebel XT. I have been doing some more research and I think I understand it to be that the 580EX will act as a flash AND a transmitter. Well that seems to be the way to go... Could I then put the 580EX connected to my Rebel XT and then wirelessly fire my 420EX with that? I think that's what I understand you saying. Thanks!
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Jon Close |
Ditto Chris V.'s answer. Wireless E-TTL flash control is not built into the EOS bodies. You need at least 2 accessories: 1 controller/speedlight and 1 or more slaves. The 420EX works as a slave only. The controllers are: The Sigma EF-500 DG Super is supposed to emulate Canon's wireless E-TTL. I could be wrong, but I've read elsewhere that it will only communicate wirelessly with other Sigmas. It's not clear from Sigma's compatibility table whether it'll work with Canon's flashes or only with additional Sigmas. Metz has their own wireless TTL system that works with other Metz units only.
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Christopher A. Vedros |
John gives the full picture. Susan - to answer your last question, YES. If you get the 580EX or 550EX and mount it on your camera or on a bracket, it can serve as the main light, and trigger the 420EX positioned remotely.
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Susan Bohanon |
Excellent!! Thank you! Now here's a question... what is the difference between the 550 and 580?
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Christopher A. Vedros |
According to Canon, the 580 has some improvements over the 550. It's a bit more powerful, recycles faster, has a wider maximum coverage angle, and has some specific improvements related to digital cameras. When the 420 or 550 is mounted on a camera, the flash will sense the focal length of the lens and zoom the flash head accordingly. Apparently, if the 580 is mounted on a digital SLR, it will also adjust for the 1.6x sensor ratio when zooming the flash head.
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Andrew Laverghetta |
I'm not sure, but will the 550 work as E-TTL II or just the 580? I know I don't think the 420 includes distance information though, does it? Like I said, I'm not totally sure though. I thought that was just a thing for E-TTL II.
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Jon Close |
All EX speedlights and all Canon lenses are compatible with both E-TTL and E-TTL II. It is a function of the camera body. The additional refinement of incorporating focus distance in the exposure calculation (direct flash only) is restricted to lenses that communicate that info, but there are other features of E-TTL II that are still enabled. See http://photonotes.org/articles/eos-flash/#ettlii and http://www.bobatkins.com/photography/eosfaq/ettl2.html
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Susan Bohanon |
Thanks for all the feedback everyone! I appreciate it. My 580 Speedlite arrived yesterday afternoon. I'm anxious to sit down and read all about it.
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- Bob Cournoyer Contact Bob Cournoyer Bob Cournoyer's Gallery  |
Susan, my 580 just arrived today. I'm an impulse buyer, read a few reviews and ordered it...:-( What do you think of it ??? Bob
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