tell me about gels and the 580

what are a couple of good gels to start with? where can i get them? i've looked around but am havning trouble figuring out which ones will work best with the 580. thanks

Most people buy the Roscolux swatchbooks from B&H and other online retailers. The swatchbooks contain the CTO gels to balance with tungsten or sunset, as well as the green gels to balance with fluorescent. They are priced at $0.01 and they will ship them to you for $5.00.

Here is a page from the Strobist blog that explains their use.

Curtis pretty much nailed it. Some pro stores give out the samples (I use the Lee version) and others charge for them. My local store wants $2.50, but in the end thats cheep. Just make sure they don't melt on there.

Curtis N wrote in post #2825694
Most people buy the Roscolux swatchbooks from B&H and other online retailers. The swatchbooks contain the CTO gels to balance with tungsten or sunset, as well as the green gels to balance with fluorescent. They are priced at $0.01 and they will ship them to you for $5.00.

Here is a page from the Strobist blog that explains their use.

you, sir, are a good man.

yeah, thanks very much for adding the link.

anyone have experience using these gels with off-brand flash?

JeratBP wrote in post #2831185
anyone have experience using these gels with off-brand flash?

I use them with my Sigma Super, which is a bit wider than the 580EX. I attach them with velcro, similar to the way it's illustrated on the Strobist page linked above.

I have velcro (the fuzzy side) wrapped around my flash head. I use it for a plethora of attachments, including various Lumiquest products, cards, gels.