430EX VS 420EX

[jft158]

Is the 430 a significant upgrade to the 420? Also is there a new 430EXII coming out soon and if so is that worth waiting for over the current model? Thanks all.

[madddman]

The main difference between the 2 is that the 430 has a manual mode. This is only significant if you want to fire the flash off camera, with an ST-E2 or a 580 on camera. With the 420 off camera, you can only use ETTL. With the 430, you can use ETTL, or you have the option of setting the desired flash power in manual, which will fire the same amount of light every time. Other than that, I think they have the same amount of power. Don't know about a 430EXII.

Hope this helps,

Ed

[tim]

430 is faster to recharge and nicer to use.

[msowsun]

You can compare all 3 here: http://photonotes.org/cgi-bin/flash-lookup.pl?flash1=canon420ex&flash2=canon430ex&flash3=canon430exii