looking for a flash !

[Phillyguy]

so i am going to be getting a 40D and i want an external flash. obviously, Canon is going to make a good flash, but i have also heard good things about metz and sigma, i want to spend around $225ish. whats your recommendation?

Thanks in advance
Phillyguy

i just posted this by accident in the accessories category, MOD's, dont kill me.

[Wilt]

My recommendation is 'more money'. Metz 44AF series (Canon dedicated) is about $280 (NYC stores) and the 44MZ (uses modules to make compatible with many brands) is about $350

[jdpence]

I'd have to recommend sticking with Canon dedicated flashes if you want to use ETTL. You can get the 430EX for this price range.

[MrMorrill]

I picked up a Sigma ef-500 dg super just came in today. Ettl, and be used as a master to other flashes. Picked it up used for 165 with shipping. But you can get the new 530 from 47th street for 250 or so.

[tjaudet829]

I am also going to order a flash I was considering the 430ex. Would the xtra bucks be worth it for the 430exII or will I be happy with the 430ex? This will be my first off camera flash. I ran some comparisons and it didn't seem to be alot of difference beside the mount and being weatherproof.
Any advise is greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Jeff

[DDCSD]

The 430EX is a great flash. I wouldn't get anything else in the price range. I also have/had the Sigma 500 Super and am not as happy with it as my 430EX.

[borism]

http://photonotes.org/cgi-bin/flash-lookup.pl?flash1=canon430ex&flash2=canon430exii&flash3=canon580exii

Here you'll find a comprehensive comparison on the 430, 430II and 580II

Adorama has the 430EX for 199$ thanks to the Canon 30$ rebate

I hope you find this help full ;)

[tjaudet829]

Thanks DDCSD.
Borism,
Thanks that is a great site. I cut the following from the site ex exii 580
FEC can be adjusted in 1/3 stop increments No Yes Yes
Custom functions controllable by DIGIC III and later digital cameras No Yes Yes
Convenient slider switch or annoying menu item for slave mode Switch Menu Menu
Hotshoe material Plastic Metal Metal
Has a quick release mechanism No Yes Yes
Unit is weatherproofed No Yes Yes
Here are the differences. Are these worth the $100 hit for the II and $170 580
I am only an amature just starting out. I realize the 580 is the cream of the crop but I don't think I need that just yet. I can always upgrade and use the 430 as a slave.
Thanks,
Jeff

[KarlosDaJackal]

I have the same camera as you (40D) and i also have both a Canon 430EX (got this first) and a Sigma EF-530 DG Super (super means it can be used as a fully ETTL compatible wireless master or slave)

The Canon 430Ex is a very nice piece of gear, it does its job well is well built and fairly compact for an external flash, of course its ETTL compatible, very usable in manual mode and can work as a slave only to anything that acts as an ETTL master. It cost me about €300 in the local camera stores.

The Sigma EF-530 Super is also very nice. It cost me €285 from the same local store, thats a bit less, for more features. In terms of features it sits somwhere between canons 430 and 580.

Lets look at the cons and pros of the sigma 530 v canon 430.
1) Con, Its build is not quite as nice as the canon, its more square, but it does feel lighter even though its bigger.
2) Con, On a 40d and 50d it can zoom erratically sometimes, for instance you zoom the lens to 50mm, the flash head will zoom to 50mm, then you half press the shutter to focus, and the flash head will realise you are on a crop body and zoom to 70mm (correct), when you release the shutter it will zoom back to 50mm. So technically its zooming around with no good reason if you point it straight and level but it does get the right setting for the shot. Most of the time this is not an issue as the flash will be pointed up at 70 degress and will default zoom to 50mm, just like the canon 430 would if pointed up.
3) Huge Pro, Full ETTL master support and it works exceptionally well. My 430 is relegated to wireless slave now. You can set everything from the 530, including ratios for up to 3 groups. You can tell the 530 attached to the camera to not fire, but still act as a master. It will emit some pre-flashes to communicate with the slaves, but when the exposure is taken it will not contribute any light to the scene. It can of course do the same in full manual mode. When in M instead of setting ratios for each group you can set the power of the slaves directly from the 530. So you don't even have to walk over to your slave to change its power output, sweeeeeet!!!!!
4) Pro, can do multi-flash, I've not had much time to play with this, its on my to do list.
5) Pro, can act not only as a full ETTL slave, but also as an optical slave. So if you have any other flash that does not fire confusing preflashes (like your 40d onboard) then you can use that flash to trigger the 530. Oh how I laughed when my $60 Nikon P+S camera triggered the optical slave flash. I will be playing more with this crap camera + great light idea.
6) Con, AF-Assist only illuminates for the centre point where the 430 can offer assistance for all 9 points of your 40d's focus system. Although with flash I'm rarely under f/9 so this is less of an issue than I thought it would be.
7) Pro, more settings available, can dial it down to 1/128 the canon only goes to 1/64, useful if you want to place it very close to the subject, or have it in the frame without dominating the frame to much.

For me the choice is easy, get anything but a 580 :P

Serously if I could go back in time and restart my collection knowing what I know now, I'd get both a Canon 430EX + Sigma EF530 in that order. The Sigma is the king of the hill 90% of the time, with the canon as an optional slave. The other 10% of times when it is to dark to focus and I'm using the outer AF points and a fast aperture, the 430 goes on camera with the sigma as an optional optical slave. Also if I ever want to front flash everything (in case i want everything to look horrible) I'll put the canon on again so I don't have to listen to constant flash zooming :rolleyes:

Both are excellent, and if using just one on camera you won't notice any different in real world usage. If your going to buy just one, get whatever you see first, but really fro the price of a Canon 580 you could almost have both of them.

[borism]

Well
My experience with flash is very short, even less experience on the Sigma

I chose the 580II, I ordered one a couple of days ago
The main reason for choosing the 580II where that the 580 is a wireless master, has more swivel movement and has more power among other extra features that I might never use.

I intend to get a 430EX soon as my slave unit, that is the main reason Im getting the 580, that way I save a bit/lot on the rest of wireless gear options, as the 580 transmit ETTL info as well.
There are other features that makes it superior to the 430 series, but from the 430II that cost around 300$ to the 580II that cost 380$ I decided to spend the 80$ extra for the wireless master , plus , features.
Now , between the 430 and the 430II, there is a 100$ difference
Where Im not so sure you'll capitalize on the differences the 100$ will bring, that, I suppose is something you have to figure out yourself.
i hope this helps

Edit: I was on the same boat as you a few weeks ago and did a lot of research, and decided i wanted the best I could afford and the features I wanted for the future, I'm pretty sure any of these 3 flashes will do a great job as you'll see many users around very happy with 430 I and II, it all depends on the general application you'll use them :-)