Just bought a 550 ex

[wlahc1]

I have a d30 and finaly purchased a 550ex speedlite. Does anyone else have one and what do you think of its performance? I could have gone with one of the off brands but I tend to be brand loyal when it comes to my equipment. This way i know every thing will work the way the manufactours in intended it to.. Also any one have any experience with a sto-fence omni bounce??? And how did your add or take away from the 500's performance?? Any and all comments are welcome
bob

[mrbobco]

hi bob...

i'm a 550 ex snob so i suppose i could chime in here :)

i own two of them and an st-e2 transmitter...i power them with rechargable ni-mh aa batteries...i haven't a single complaint or a problem with them...i use the lumiquest promax sytem for a diffuser...although the sto-fen is excellent (and MUCH more compact and inobtrusivce)

i tried the sigma but it didn't quite work out for me (i know i'm being repetitive but hey) once i got the 550's, i was amazed at how natural the shots could look...they never have that peculiar blu-ish tint i've seem from some other flashes...and i rarely overexpose with them (unless i unfortunately lock exposure on something overly dark or black)

i know you'll get years of enjoyment from them, bob...you made the right choice...

bob

[Roger_Cavanagh]

What a lot of bobs! :D

This is a follow-up q to mrbobco...

WRT to your use of rechargeable AA's for the 550, do you find you get satisfactory life out of a charge? I recently bought the 550 and was quite surprised how quickly the batteries (Duracell Ultra M3!!! :) ) went compared to the 420.

And what do you do travelling? Take extra rechargeables or another charger?

I am not especially fussed about the cost of disposables, but wondering about the hassle factor of one option vs the other.

Cheers,

[mrbobco]

hi roger...

nice to hear from you...always enjoyed tooling around your site checking out your work (you should have seen that moon here in south florida...i can't believe i was so close to it and didn't have my D-30 in tow! :eyes

i started with the ni-mh rechargables back with my olympus D-600 4 years ago (those damned CCD digicams EAT batteries!) since i was always needing rechargables (for both the flash and camera), i purchased several sets...that tiny, flat, plug right into the wall olympus charger is STILL with me...works perfectly and fits very nicely into my camera bag...

i keep three sets...two are in the 550's, and one is always in the charger...i don't often use both 550's so i've got a spare set ready all the time...i'd say that they're good for about a 200 or so good strong continuous flashes (i.e. don't need to wait to recharge or miss a shot) if i'm not using the flash continuously (in bursts) i've managed to go without having to charge it for 400 or so shots...again, as the batteries get weak, the recharge time makes it pretty obvious...

the 60 bucks i spent on 12 ni mh batteries COMPLETELY offsets the cost and pain in the you know what of carrying around enough AA cells...of course..you DO have the peculiar problem that can haunt ni mh cells (if you don't use them for a few weeks the charge leaks...although you CAN charge them anytime you want with no memory effect)

so YES...i find the charge life very satisfactory...i mean...nothing beats a regular strobe indoors...but having that 550 for outdoors and candids has been a godsend...

take care...

(another) bob :)

[Roger_Cavanagh]

mrbobco wrote:
hi roger...

nice to hear from you...always enjoyed tooling around your site checking out your work (you should have seen that moon here in south florida...i can't believe i was so close to it and didn't have my D-30 in tow! :eyes

Bob,

I can well believe what the moon was like. I've lost count of the number of times I've visited Florida - I always enjoy it. :) I was lucky to get that picture, this was the scene earlier in the evening:

http://www.rogercavanagh.com/images/bw_moon.jpg

I wish I was in Florida.

Thanks for the feedback on the rechargables. I think I will see what I get get here in the UK.

Cheers,

[Darryl]

I have a 550EX and a D30. Unfortunately I have not used them together that much just yet. However, the previous flash I used prior to my 550EX was the 540EZ which I used with my Canon A2. If the 550EX works half as well with my D30 as the 540EZ did with my A2 I am going to be very happy!

As far as the battery thing goes I use a Quantum Battery 1+ for power and have never had to worry about running out of power on a shoot. You do have to cut part of the battery door on the flash to make the attachment cord fit, but it was not that much of a problem. I recommend it.

[chachads]

Roger,
The best batteries (cells) to use with any flash system are the Rayovac 1600 mAH NiMH rechargeable. The just blow away the competition. Amazing performance, long lasting, quick charges, fabulous performance while strobing. There is no comparison.

[Cecil Walker]

Bob/Roger,

I too concur with everyone's comments thus far. I have two 550's and the ST-E2 transmitter and they are simply amazing.

I had a Stofen for a minolta flash but it won't fit on the 550's. I'm planning on buying two more! They work pretty well and as already mentioned, they are very compact.

I also agree that the Rayovac Ni-Mh are the way to go. I've got four sets (was using them in the Maxxum 7 and the 5600 flash before I switched to Canon) and they work flawlessly in the 550's...

Cecil

[gmontem]

I bought a 420EX back in my G1 days. I know the 550EX has a stronger flash but why else should I upgrade from a 420EX? I heard it has manual settings, or something like that. I also have seen a picture of the back that makes me wonder if I can use it to meter the scene and then adjust the D30's manual settings based on what it reported back. Can someone help? Much appreciated.