580 EXII Not working on ETTL

Hi friends! I have a 580 EXII that severely overexposes every image shot in ETTL mode. I though for a minute that I had something set up wrong but after checking all the cfn settings everything is set to default. I have a 430 EXII that works perfectly when put on the same camera with the same settings. I figure it has to be a problem with the flash metering system. When I set it to manual and adjust the power I can get a decent exposure but not anywhere near perfect. Anybody else had this problem and if so, what was the cure?? Thanks in advance!

How do you have your metering system set up? It may be metering different light sources that changes what the ETTL thinks should be the correct exposure. Normally if I'm shooting people i'll do spot metering and set my shutter speed for the ambient.

Have you checked the flash to see if FEC + is set within the flash itself?

Also, imperfect connection between the camera and flash can result in full power (overexposure of shots), even though the flash may appear to be connected properly.

Are you using Pocket Wizards? There are quite a few posts about problems with the 580 EX II and HSS. In your gear list I noticed radio triggers. The 580 EX II does not play well with pocket wizards.

110yd

Thanks for the replies guys...here are the particulars as I see them. The FEC is set to 0 as are all the cfn's within the flash itself. The flash is mounted directly on the camera hot shoe. I am using spot metering with a shutter speed of 1/60. I am leaning toward an imperfect connection between the camera and flash idea as it used to just do it rarely and now it is always overexposing. I tried it on different bodies with the same results too....but like I said the 430 EXII works perfectly......always! The slider attachment lock seems to not be as tight as it once was...perhaps something has loosened up? Thanks again!

Do you have triggers that support ETTL? Maybe you could try it on the trigger to see how it does?

I don't have any ETTL triggers Seoul...I wish I did.....I do however have an off camera cord that I may try. I didn't mention that when I say "severely overexposed" I mean almost totally white!

Well I tried the sync cord with a slight improvement in exposure...funny thing is my 430 EXII Didn't fare any better with the sync cord..actually did the same. I think the sync cord is the culprit here....when I attach the flash to the cord the locking mechanism gets really tight before it locks...way tighter than it does on the camera hot shoe. I think the sync cord is thicker at the attachment points and has stretched the locking cam on the flash itself making it too loose to gain a full connection..I also believe the sync cord is malfunctioning itself, hence the improper exposure with both flash units. Thanks for the quick and informative replies guys!

Point-n-shoot-n wrote in post #13552085
I don't have any ETTL triggers Seoul...I wish I did.....I do however have an off camera cord that I may try. I didn't mention that when I say "severely overexposed" I mean almost totally white!

That is a common behaviour when there is a problem connection. There are several known causes. You seem to have established that it is the flash unit itself which needs attention.

You may find useful information and links in my Pixel King review - see the link in my signature below.

Hu crazy, i'll keep all of this in mind in case I run into this now lol.

Took off the rubber boot from the flash base as mentioned in your troubleshooting guide and got a 50% improvement...still way overexposed but can at least make out the image. I am almost certain that the connection at the hot shoe is the culprit here. Taking it to the local camera shop tomorrow to confirm, then off to canon for repairs/refitting if necessary. Thanks guys for helping me solve this problem so quickly!

I've had similar problems with my 580 EXIIs and had to bring them into Canon for service. My units would occaisonally do a full power dump resulting in a white image and I noticed during these times that the display on the back of the flash would change from ETTL to TL. Sounds like you should just send it to Canon.

Point-n-shoot-n wrote in post #13552007
I am using spot metering

Irrelevant.

Point-n-shoot-n wrote in post #13552007
with a shutter speed of 1/60.

What ISO, aperture and what amount of ambient? Shutterspeed is the only variable that no influence whatsoever on normal flash exposure…

Point-n-shoot-n wrote in post #13552007
I am leaning toward an imperfect connection between the camera and flash idea as it used to just do it rarely and now it is always overexposing.

If the connection is the problem, the flash is likely firing at full power all the time. That would be difficult to miss…

Point-n-shoot-n wrote in post #13552007
I tried it on different bodies with the same results too....but like I said the 430 EXII works perfectly......always! The slider attachment lock seems to not be as tight as it once was...perhaps something has loosened up? Thanks again!

Check the flash foot and the seating in the shoe.

Flash foot is quite easy to DIY.

René Damkot wrote in post #13554802
Irrelevant.

What ISO, aperture and what amount of ambient? Shutterspeed is the only variable that no influence whatsoever on normal flash exposure…

If the connection is the problem, the flash is likely firing at full power all the time. That would be difficult to miss…

Check the flash foot and the seating in the shoe.

Flash foot is quite easy to DIY.

Wouldn't the aperture and ambient be irrelevant as well when shooting ETTL? I thought the flash would meter for the ambient as well as aperture? I checked the flash foot and can't find anything out of the ordinary with any of the contacts or their spring loadings. It appears that the foot is seating completely in the hot shoe and tightening fairly well. It used to be tighter but I believe the sync cord has stretched the cam action a bit. There is no doubt that the flash is doing a full dump all the time!

Does the flash LCD say TTL instead of ETTL?