How to get 430ez flash to work with 500D..?

[magello]

Hey guys,

I recently grabbed a 430ez flash for a bargain so i couldn't say no to it. And for me being a student and learning photography, its within my budget.

So my question is, how do i get 430ez to work with 500d? I know that i have to set it in manual but no matter what settings i put it in, it seems not to work? The LED is lighting up red.

Could you please point me to the right track? Thanks so much in advance folks :)

[apersson850]

It's supposed to fire att full power if you use it in automatic mode. Apart from that, I don't know. Perhaps it's faulty? Tried on another camera? Does it fire if you just short-circuit the trigger with a paper clip?

[magello]

I've done some research on them, and it says that you can't fire it on auto mode because the flash is not ETTL compatible?

[Tiberius47]

Is the flash actually firing? If it isn't, it sounds like the flash is just broken. It's an old flash, so you probably won't be able to get it repaired, but you could still look around.

If the flash is firing, but it isn't making a difference to the image, then there could be several reasons.

Firstly, you might not have anything close enough to the camera to be affected by the flash burst.

Secondly, you might have the flash output too low. The 430EZ does have manual controls, so try increasing the flash power.

Thirdly, have a look at your camera settings. Aperture will affect the flash's influence. So if it is too narrow (higher f numbers), the flash's effect will be reduced. Try opening the aperture up to about f4 or so.

However, the EZ series flashes were not designed to work with digital cameras. I think you'd be best off saving up for a 430EX, or another EX flash.

[magello]

Sorry, im a bit of a newbie, so how can i check if the flash is firing? is there anyway to make it burst?

[dpds68]

Have a look at "Similar Threads" in the bottom left of this page .



David

[magello]

Hi there, ive looked into the similar threads below, but they have not helped or have showed me on what im looking for :*(

[dpds68]

With fully charged Batteries in the unit and it off Camera will it fire when you press the Test button ?

[PacAce]

Sorry, im a bit of a newbie, so how can i check if the flash is firing? is there anyway to make it burst?

Try pressing the Ready/Test lamp button.

Did you set both the camera and the flash to manual mode? For starters, set the camera, in manual mode, to 1/60 @ f/5.6 and set the flash, also in manual mode, to, say, 1/8 power and see if you can get it to flash and get some kind of exposure. If not, the flash is probably shot.

[Wilt]

Your 500D can trigger a 430EZflash, but the camera is unable to control it under eTTL because the EZ version of flash is not eTTL compatible. As stated, if the flash is in Manual mode it can be triggered at full power. Or if the flash has a Manual mode with fractional power settings (1/4, 1/2) it could be set for fractional output and triggered to output lower levels of light. The challenge for you, the user, is determining what the proper f/stop to use on the lens to achieve correct exposure, which is related to the distance of flash to subject.

[magello]

Hi there, to test the flash with the camera, do i have to be in a dark room/place? And to check if the camera is working with the flash, do i press where the LED light is?

thanks for all the inputs by the way

[PacAce]

Hi there, to test the flash with the camera, do i have to be in a dark room/place? And to check if the camera is working with the flash, do i press where the LED light is?

thanks for all the inputs by the way

The room doesn't have to be dark. As long as you're indoors, you should be able to tell if the flash is lighting or not. Pressing the Pilot/Test button only checks to see if the flash flashes OK. It doesn't test if it's working with the camera. To test that, you have to mount the flash on the hotshoe with the camera and the flash both set to their appropriate settings. If the flash fires when the shutter button is pressed fully and you can see the flash lighting up the image even if the exposure isn't exactly right yet, then you can safely assume that the flash is working with the camera.

[professorman]

My brother uses this flash with his Rebel XS. It takes some time to figure out how to work. I think you have to press the 2 center buttons simultaneously to enter manual mode, where you see some arrows on the flash display. When you take a picture, the flash will fire. You can use the ISO to control the exposure in AV mode, or you can go to full manual. It will be grossly over exposed in AV mode with auto ISO, so choose a ISO until you get a good histogram. It works, it just takes a bit of figuring out.

[magello]

So when i press the pilot/test button (which i assume is the led light), it should flash when its off the camera correct? If not, i have a faulty flash?

[PacAce]

So when i press the pilot/test button (which i assume is the led light), it should flash when its off the camera correct? If not, i have a faulty flash?
Pretty much, yes, although it may be possible to work the flash on camera even if pressing the Ready button doesn't fire the flash. If the flash doesn't work mounted in the hotshoe also, then it's a safe assumption that the flash is really faulty.

[Tiberius47]

Sorry, im a bit of a newbie, so how can i check if the flash is firing? is there anyway to make it burst?

Put the flash on the camera. Turn it around so you are looking into the lens and the flash is pointed at your face. Press the shutter button. If the flash fires, you'll be seeing spots.

[JerseyDevil]

Your 500D can trigger a 430EZflash, but the camera is unable to control it under eTTL because the EZ version of flash is not eTTL compatible. As stated, if the flash is in Manual mode it can be triggered at full power. Or if the flash has a Manual mode with fractional power settings (1/4, 1/2) it could be set for fractional output and triggered to output lower levels of light. The challenge for you, the user, is determining what the proper f/stop to use on the lens to achieve correct exposure, which is related to the distance of flash to subject.

He is correct. I use this flash on my XSI.
It fires fine. It works only in manual mode. The flash power can be set from full to 1/8. The trick of course is calculating the correct exposure. You can calculate it using the GN/distance formula or chimp. chimp. chimp.

[Sramdon]

LOL, Ok guys heres the deal about the flash, Im profroopchans brothers, and the same thing was happening to me, the light and everything come on but the flash just wouldnt flash and i think that is the same thing that is happeing to you. Ok so all you do is attach the flash and everything good but what everyone else fail to say is you have to go into the camera settings and go to flah control and set flash firing to ENABLE, now once you do that i dont think you should have any more problems, all you do next is jsut try figuring out the settings on the flash to make sure that you get the right intensity and everythign like that. If you have more questions feel free to ask.