Flash confusion

[Steve M]

Hello: I am having trouble deciding which speedlite would be best for a new 20D user. For my 35 mm Rebel I used a Sunpak and it worked just fine, but is not usable with the new digi. Is there such a great performance difference between the 580EX and the 420EX to warrant the (quite) higher price for the 580?

Or is there a Sunpak or other non-Canon speedlite that would be equivalent?

Thanks....

[HJMinard]

I have the Sigma EF-500 DG Super. It has most of the power and functionality of the Canon 550 - for a price similar to the 420. I've been very pleased with it, so far. The only negative I've heard about it is that it apparently doesn't always cooperate with Canon flashes in a master/slave relationship.

[Todd Jacobsen]

Hello: I am having trouble deciding which speedlite would be best for a new 20D user. For my 35 mm Rebel I used a Sunpak and it worked just fine, but is not usable with the new digi. Is there such a great performance difference between the 580EX and the 420EX to warrant the (quite) higher price for the 580?

Or is there a Sunpak or other non-Canon speedlite that would be equivalent?

Thanks....

Big differences between 580 and 420:

1) 580 has more power (which equals range)

2) 580 has manual settings (420 does not)

3) 580 utilizes distance data (420 does not)

4) 580 can be a Master (420 can only be slave)

6) 580 adjusts to sensor size (conserves power and does not overshoot)

I was going to pick up the 420 until I found out it can't be set manually.

I own the 580.

A better cost vs capabilities comparison would be between the 550 and the 580.

[CyberDyneSystems]

Is the 550EX no longer an option?

It would ist pricewise between the 420 and 580 models,.
And since the 580 came out used 550s can be had for usually about $250.00 or so.

[Loekito]

Hello: I am having trouble deciding which speedlite would be best for a new 20D user. For my 35 mm Rebel I used a Sunpak and it worked just fine, but is not usable with the new digi. Is there such a great performance difference between the 580EX and the 420EX to warrant the (quite) higher price for the 580?

Or is there a Sunpak or other non-Canon speedlite that would be equivalent?

Thanks....

Just want to add.. 580EX have E-TTL II
That's an improvement over E-TTL that supported only by newer camera (including 20D), and also 1D after upgrading the firmware (correct me if I'm wrong).

550EX is already discontinued.

IMHO, If you an expert on flash photography, just jump to 580EX. But if you're not, buy 420EX first, play around with it, and you can spend the money on other nice lens. After that, when the time is come, you can buy 580EX, and can use your 420EX as slave. Canon have a wireless master-slave capabilities on it's speedlight, so you can use 420EX as slave and put it somewhere to add more dimension to your picture. have fun...

regards,

Loekito

[tim]

ETTI-II is a function of the body, not the flash, though I suspect some optimisations might be done in the 580 for ETTL-II. Like Todd said, the 580 has more power (guide number 58) to the 420's guide of 42. Knowing about the crop factor/sensor size and illuminating a smaller area makes it more efficient, faster to recharge, and go for longer on a set of batteries.

There's no real downside to buying the 420 - even if you need manual controls or more power later, the 420 will act as a slave to the other flash. I got a 550EX, so as to reduce the chance of compatability problems, and i'm quite happy with it. I'd like an external battery pack for faster recharging, that could be a good reason to go for the incredibly expensive 580, or just buy the pack.

[Loekito]

ETTI-II is a function of the body, not the flash, though I suspect some optimisations might be done in the 580 for ETTL-II. Like Todd said, the 580 has more power (guide number 58) to the 420's guide of 42. Knowing about the crop factor/sensor size and illuminating a smaller area makes it more efficient, faster to recharge, and go for longer on a set of batteries.

There's no real downside to buying the 420 - even if you need manual controls or more power later, the 420 will act as a slave to the other flash. I got a 550EX, so as to reduce the chance of compatability problems, and i'm quite happy with it. I'd like an external battery pack for faster recharging, that could be a good reason to go for the incredibly expensive 580, or just buy the pack.

Tim, maybe u right about the E-TTL II. so, meaning, if we use 20D with 420EX, do 420EX will also operate on E-TTL II mode?

[tim]

ETTL tells the flash how much power to use, all the flash does it emit the light. ETTL-II is the logic inside the camera that does the metering based on the preflash. So yes, a 420EX will do ETTL-II. Will a 580EX do it better? I've no idea.