Yongnuo or 600EX

Hey again,

I don't shoot much with my 580EXII as i am doing sports with long tele and landscapes, but i am planning to shoot more of people indoors or some events where people are around, and i may go with 2 bodies instead of one, so i want to buy another speedlite to match my 580EXII, if you have the options between the two, which one you will go with?

I am talking about the latest model of Yongnuo.

On balance, I think I'd go for duplicating what you already have. Nothing whatsoever against the Yongnuo, more a matter of the ease of switching from one to the other without having to mentally adjust to the different switching positions & sequence. Just a matter of making life easy for yourself, no more than that.

Whortleberry wrote in post #15559419
On balance, I think I'd go for duplicating what you already have. Nothing whatsoever against the Yongnuo, more a matter of the ease of switching from one to the other without having to mentally adjust to the different switching positions & sequence. Just a matter of making life easy for yourself, no more than that.

So you mean to get another 580EXII?

This is really about money. If you have some extra kicking around then the 600EX-RT. If you are on a budget the a Yongnuo.

digital paradise wrote in post #15559445
This is really about money. If you have some extra kicking around then the 600EX-RT. If you are on a budget the a Yongnuo.

Well, i can't say i am on budget, but i really want to know if that 600EX has something much more than the Yongnuo and what is that with 600EX to go with over Yongnuo, it is not that so much expensive for me nowadays for those small flashes, i can get its expense if i shoot a lot and get paid sometimes.

The only real thing the 600 has over the Yongnuo is RT. If you have a camera that was manufactured in 2012 or later then you have additional options using groups (which is excellent) and no restrictions and I attached a page from the manual. Only thing it can't do is off camera second curtain sync.

Personally I love the new menu system. One button master/slave selection for both RT and optical. If you press any button then the LCD lights up. You can even set it so the LCD stays on.

Only reason I would suggest the 600 is future proofing. If you do not want to fire the second flash with the free optical option you are going to need some type of trigger system to make your 580 and 600 work together. Same goes with a Yongnuo.

I sold my mixed bag of flashes/triggers and picked two 600's and the STE3. Going to get a 3rd one in the next few months. Hurt a little financially but I do not miss the old gear (which did me well for man years).

There is no doubt that Yongnuo and others will be rolling out less expensive RT units but who knows how long that will be.

Who knows. Maybe Yongnuo will come out with triggers that will be compatible with Canons RT frequency. That would be a game changer. Eventually there will be a market for Nikon RT and others.

Well, i am not in hurry, i can wait, i have old and new models of cameras, 1D3/s3/1DX, who knows what more body i may add in the future this year or next year, so i will see what Yongnuo will bring in few weeks/months by now before i decide on anything, if the assignments i can get to shoot is very important and i can get paid good then i can buy that 600EX in no time, but i don't want to invest on speedlites after getting 600EX.

I'd sell the 580EXII, then get two 600EX-RTs and one or 2 STE3-RTs.
With the STE3s you can have the two 600s off camera for lighting the event and fire them from the STE3.
Sell one of your older 1D(x) bodies and get ether another Dx or 5dIII. Shooting events its always nice to have the same equipment to minimize fumbles making changes.

dmward wrote in post #15559742
I'd sell the 580EXII, then get two 600EX-RTs and one or 2 STE3-RTs.
With the STE3s you can have the two 600s off camera for lighting the event and fire them from the STE3.
Sell one of your older 1D(x) bodies and get ether another Dx or 5dIII. Shooting events its always nice to have the same equipment to minimize fumbles making changes.

I am not sure if i will go this route yet, i couldn't sell any of my old gear except 2 or 3 lenses, and i don't think i can sell my 580EX, i only sell locally and not globally for some reasons, but i may try to upgrade slowly as much as i can get a budget.

I hope to get some events where i can shoot with speedlites and then see myself if i need to get more SLs or not.

Tareq wrote in post #15559422
So you mean to get another 580EXII?

Not necessarily, though that would be the simplest solution. What I mean is run 2 identical units, then you don't have to break the creative flow by thinking of several different sets of operating instructions.

dmward wrote in post #15559742
I'd sell the 580EXII, then get two 600EX-RTs and one or 2 STE3-RTs.
With the STE3s you can have the two 600s off camera for lighting the event and fire them from the STE3.
Sell one of your older 1D(x) bodies and get ether another Dx or 5dIII. Shooting events its always nice to have the same equipment to minimize fumbles making changes.

David, the second-hand market outside the USA isn't always as buoyant as in your neck of the woods. Different countries, different markets, different regulations, different buying propensities.
I wouldn't disagree with your assessment or suggestion, I was simply allowing for possible disparities in custom and Customs between UAE and elsewhere which are unknown to us in other countries.

Whortleberry wrote in post #15559861
Not necessarily, though that would be the simplest solution. What I mean is run 2 identical units, then you don't have to break the creative flow by thinking of several different sets of operating instructions.

This is what I like. I owned 3 types of different flash manufacturers and my 580 and 580 II were different. Non of them were a problem to use but it is sure nice to have similar ones.

And i was thinking to use the speedlight on different cameras, i means one on my 1DX and the another on the backup body [could be 1D3 or 1Ds3 or any new camera i may buy later in the future].

I still have 580EX mk1, but i really never touch it after getting 580EXII, and i feel if i get 600EX then i may forget 580 II too, maybe i should give that Yongnuo a go as long they are cheap and i have enough budget to buy or or two, but something inside me telling me why spending on Yongnuo when i will get 600EX and then Yongnuo will be in bag for years collecting dust.

This happened to me and it may happen to you. I got bit by the RT bug and there is no way of pulling any punches. It was not an inexpensive bite but I'm glad did it. I did not particularly need to, my previous gear did just as good a job.

Not being pro I don't shoot with multiple lights every other day or on a weekly basis. I do use single flash regularly but when I do need to use more than one getting my brain back into gear is much easier now.

digital paradise wrote in post #15560246
This happened to me and it may happen to you. I got bit by the RT bug and there is no way of pulling any punches. It was not an inexpensive bite but I'm glad did it. I did not particularly need to, my previous gear did just as good a job.

Not being pro I don't shoot with multiple lights every other day or on a weekly basis. I do use single flash regularly but when I do need to use more than one getting my brain back into gear is much easier now.

Good to hear that, so i think i should stay away from that bug then later i will think if i should get another flash or if it must be 600EX.