I recently got a 580EXII flash gun for my 400D

Whenever I try to put on the ETTL by pressing through the modes, it never flashes up. I get 'E' 'M' 'Multi' but never ETTL.

Any ideas? The camera is connected on securely, so not sure?

Hmmm. Does it come up when you cycle through the modes when its not connected to the camera?

nope, still the same 3

I just ran through it with mine. I dont get the E setting, so I'm wondering if perhaps its just a lcd screen problem more than a mode malfunction.

Have you tried taking the batteries out for a while? I think if you have the batteries out for more than a couple minutes the internal memory resets itself.

symphony-x wrote in post #8520649
I recently got a 580EXII flash gun for my 400D

Whenever I try to put on the ETTL by pressing through the modes, it never flashes up. I get 'E' 'M' 'Multi' but never ETTL.

Any ideas? The camera is connected on securely, so not sure?

You have been playing with your Custom Functions I bet...

The 580EX II Custom Function 5 has 4 options:

"0" E-TTL II
"1" TTL
"2" External metering: Auto
"3" External metering: Manual

"2" or "3" will display "E" on the flash LCD.

and how would i go about resetting it to 0?

got it!

thanks

The user's manual is an underrated asset.

the user's manual for the flashes s#$k.

Could be, but I learned about this particular thing through the manual.

So it can be done.

aram535 wrote in post #8523272
the user's manual for the flashes s#$k.

Agreed.

It is probably more useful for those who already understand basics of lighting and just want to know how to access/change a particular feature.

For a "newb" like me ... OUCH! When I first bought it, took me two months to find out that I had unintentionally changed it to manual - to "fix" I only had to dial it a couple times counter-clockwise and it was all good.

That I can agree upon. It's not a flash photography tutorial. But Canon provides that kind of information too, if you want it from them. If you prefer something else, there is tons of information on various internet sites, this included.

It's like the manual for a car. It doesn't teach you how to drive, but it does tell you the pecularities of a certain car.