Flash advice... 420EX or 550EX

[vfilby]

I thought that I would post this here because I bet the majority of you guys and gals have one of these two flashes. Scottes, CoolToolGuy and I were discussing this so I thought I would ask the rest too.

I have been requested to take pictures for a magazine with a circulation of about 2000 researchers. My Rebel should be here by the end of the week and now I am thinking that I should get a flash to help deal with any lighting conditions that I might get stuck with. Do you guys think that the features of the 550EX would be necessary or would I be able to make do with the 420.

The only reason I am shying away from the 550EX is cost. If there are other good non-canon flashes let me know.

Thanks everyone,

Vince

[Pekka]

550EX is the one to buy if you invest for the future and do not really know in what kind of situations you are shooting in. It's also the only Canon flash you can use in fully manually configured setup. But in normal flash shooting 420 is equally good, as is almost every flash from e.g. Metz or Canon. I have two 550's and ST-E2, but also a small old cheap Metz 28C-2 which in some cases beats 550 in consistency as 28C does not know anything about ETTL, TTL for that matter :)

I you seek for inexpensive alternatives, just make sure the flash you get has head which you can tilt up/down for bounce flash.

http://www.cambridgeworld.com/Metz_Flashes_Accessories/metz_flashes.htm

[Chako]

I have the 420EX, due to cost issues with the 550EX. Mind you, I do not make my living with photography. With that out of the way, I found the 420EX a good compliment to the DRebel. I had an opportunity to shoot a Graduation for the school I work at, using the DRebel and 420, and will say this, the flash never let me down once.

With that, there are advantages and disadvantages to both.

420EX
- Simple flash. Has very few settings to fiddle with (pro&con depending upon your viewpoint). Does not have manual settings, nor Flash exposure compensation. It supports FEC, but there is no way to enable it on the DRebel unless you install the hacked firmware.

- One of the only flashes that has enough coverage for the 7 auto focus points of the DRebel and family. This is very important, because of the odd way E-TTL works. What I understand of it (guys please correct me if I am wrong), the camera determines proper flash exposure upon which auto focus sensor is used. Hence, with the 550, if the camera uses the two outer sensor points (the 550EX only has coverage for 5 sensors), you will get bad flash exposures. There are work arounds to this though.

-smaller and easier to carry.

The 550EX is more versatile, and pricier. It can act as a master for using remote studio flash setups, etc.

Depends upon your needs and budget. I am very happy with my 440EX. Your choice.

[Chako]

Yikes, must of hit submit twice. :(

[vfilby]

I was reading on the fred miranda forums that some people got better exposures with the 420EX than with the 550EX. Any thoughts on this?

Also I know that the heads tilt up and down, but can they swivel too? If there is swivel is it on both the 420 and the 550?

Thanks again,

Vince

[Chako]

Yes, both head swivel, move up and down, and have motorized flash lenses that change depending upon the focal length used. They also both have focus aids that project a pattern on objects for low light photography.

[Liang]

Yes. Both 420EX and 550EX can tilt and swivel.

[elfyrulz]

550EX has FEB(Flash Exposure Bracketing)

[timmyquest]

550EX has FEB(Flash Exposure Bracketing)

invaluable

[Aylwin]

I've had a 420EX for about half a year now. I like the swivel as I almost always use bounce. I haven't quite gotten very good with flash photography though. Last night, I tried using FEC for the first time. What a revelation! Why hadn't I tried this before? :oops:

Anyway, I was always planning to buy the 550EX instead. I figured that if I was going buy, I might as well buy the best I can afford so I never have to upgrade, etc. which saves me money in the long run. I backed out at the last minute after the sales person said that I couldn't use Ni-MH rechargeable batteries with it. I've been doing some looking on the internet today and it seems that you can! Could someone confirm this please? If I can really use rechargeable batteries then I just might upgrade to the 550EX. Or should I just hangon to the 420EX?

A major reason I'd like the 550EX is the manual control. Will I be able to a adjust the focal length manually. Due to the 1.6 mag factor, I figure the auto settings on the 420EX are wrong. For example, at 28mm the flash will be trying to cover more area than what I'm actually shooting. I think it makes more sense to manually set it closer to what the effective focal length is. Does that make sense to anyone else?

Sorry for the long rant. Maybe I'm just thinking too much. It seems the more I learn the more I realise how much more I need to learn. :roll:

[robertwgross]

Anyway, I was always planning to buy the 550EX instead. I figured that if I was going buy, I might as well buy the best I can afford so I never have to upgrade, etc. which saves me money in the long run. I backed out at the last minute after the sales person said that I couldn't use Ni-MH rechargeable batteries with it. I've been doing some looking on the internet today and it seems that you can! Could someone confirm this please? If I can really use rechargeable batteries then I just might upgrade to the 550EX. Or should I just hangon to the 420EX?


The 550EX manual clearly states that NiMH AA batteries can be used. (page 10)

Go find the sales person and ask again.

---Bob Gross---

[Aylwin]

Thanks, Bob. I usually try not rely on sales people (especially here) but this time I just wasn't fully prepared.

Any comments on this:

A major reason I'd like the 550EX is the manual control. Will I be able to adjust the focal length on the flash manually? Due to the 10D's 1.6 mag factor, I figure the auto settings on the 420EX are wrong. For example, at 28mm the flash will be trying to cover more area than what I'm actually shooting. I think it makes more sense to manually set it closer to what the effective focal length is. Does that make sense to anyone else?

[MarkH]

I backed out at the last minute after the sales person said that I couldn't use Ni-MH rechargeable batteries with it. I've been doing some looking on the internet today and it seems that you can! Could someone confirm this please? If I can really use rechargeable batteries then I just might upgrade to the 550EX. Or should I just hangon to the 420EX?

The sales person was wrong! I use Ni-MH rechargeables in my 550EX and they work fine!

About your other question:
You don't often need to manually zoom the 550EX because it is usually powerful enough to do the job regardless. However it would work as you suggest, for the reason you mention. If you are shooting with a 50mm lens then yes, you could zoom the 550EX to 80mm and get some more range out of the flash while still covering the necessary angle of view.

[Aylwin]

Thanks! :)

[robertwgross]

Any comments on this:

A major reason I'd like the 550EX is the manual control. Will I be able to adjust the focal length on the flash manually? Due to the 10D's 1.6 mag factor, I figure the auto settings on the 420EX are wrong. For example, at 28mm the flash will be trying to cover more area than what I'm actually shooting. I think it makes more sense to manually set it closer to what the effective focal length is. Does that make sense to anyone else?

We've discussed this before. Auto settings on the 420EX tend to be fine. At 28mm, the flash will be trying to cover more area than what the lens and sensor are covering. So what?

The flash unit emits a pre-flash, and its reflected light is metered in the camera, and aperture or shutter are adjusted in time for the main flash to fire. It doesn't matter whether the flash unit was set to ultra-wide or semi-wide, as long as it covers the frame. About the only thing accomplished by the flash unit zooming is a saving of power in some cases.

---Bob Gross---

[Conk]

What about the 540ez? Can anyone tell me about this flash and it's use on the D-Rebel?

[robertwgross]

What about the 540ez? Can anyone tell me about this flash and it's use on the D-Rebel?

It is not a very good choice for a digital camera. All you would be able to use it for is manual mode. For a Canon EOS digital in normal flash modes, you need to use a flash unit with -EX, and not -EZ.

There are many owners of 540EZ units that moved to digital cameras, and then they discovered that they had to get to some -EX unit, so many 540EZ units have been sold lately on the used equipment market. That is why they are much cheaper now than they were a few years back.

---Bob Gross---

[Conk]

Thanks Bob. Just as I expected. I've spoke to someone who has the 540EZ on e-bay who is local to me. He is almost giving it away.

[robertwgross]

Just as I expected. I've spoke to someone who has the 540EZ on e-bay who is local to me. He is almost giving it away.

Yes, several years ago, the 540EZ was the big dog, and now it is on the dog pile.

At that time, I had to shoot a wedding on film, so I borrowed a 540EZ from the groom, and it did an excellent job. Then when I switched to digital, real quickly I discovered that 550EX and 420EX were the ways to go.

---Bob Gross---