Need help with buying flash

[AdrenoJunkie]

I'm finally ready to upgrade from pop up flash and index card to a real flash. Problem is I know nothing about them. Do I need a Speedlite or a slave? What's the difference? I want to be able to use it off camera as well as on. From what I've read they can both be used on and off camera. I have a Canon Rebel XSi if it matters.

[inkista]

A speedlite is just a battery-powered hotshoe flash unit. So, that's what you're looking for.

A "slave" is a flash that can be told to fire (off camera) by another flash. A speedlite can be a slave. But with your camera, to have a slave speedlite, you'd probably also need a master speedlite (or other kind of triggering unit) on-camera.

If you want the most functionality and future compatibility, you should consider the two current Canon speedlites: the 430EXII (~$300) and the 580EXII (~$450). They are, however, expensive, and most of the added functionality will be only for on-camera usage.

You could go with a 3rd-party flash that's eTTL capable, like a Nissin, Yongnuo or whatever and save money, but if Canon modifies their flash protocol at some point, it could be rendered less useful, and other products (like, say, TTL PocketWizards) aren't guaranteed to be compatible with those units, despite their being "Canon compatible" right now. So the basic tradeoff is cost vs. features & future compatibility, much like 3rd party lenses.

Of the two Canon speedlites, the 580EXII is the better choice. Most people are afraid of the price tag and think they should start with the lower-priced/lower-featured one "just to see", but in this case, most folks who get the 580EXII are happy they did, and those who get seriously into Strobist work who got the 430EXII first typically wish they'd hung on and gotten the 580EXII instead. The added power of the 580EXII is like a wider max. aperture on a lens. , and the 580EXII's ability to do a 360° swivel makes it better for bouncing from on-camera. And the 580EXII can be used as a master unit or a slave with Canon's proprietary signalling system. The 430EXII is only a slave.

The 430EXII is a fine workhorse flash and quite capable, but you may hit the limits of it sooner than you think if you're planning on really getting into this.

I'd recommend reading through Neil van Niekerk's website on on-camera flash to get a feel for why the 580EXII is going to be a better choice. Or even a used 580EX or 550EX, if your budget isn't high enough.

[AdrenoJunkie]

Thank you. That answered my question perfectly. Speedlite here i come.

[inkista]

You're welcome. For a first flash unit that you're planning on using both on and off camera, a Canon speedlite is a good first choice. However, when you get into off-camera flash, and you start multiplying units, you can save a ton of money by going for manual-only flashes, or these cheap 3rd-party flashes, because depending on the triggering system you choose, you may not have to worry about communication with the camera body (or the fancy features you get with that communication).

Obviously, if you're severely budget crunched and simply can't afford a new Canon speedlite, then looking at the cheapies out of Hong Kong may be worthwhile, as you can get a fully-featured e-TTL capable flash for on-camera use for about $100-$150, and a manual-only flash that can be remotely popped by radio for <$100 apiece.

The Strobist group on Flickr is a great place to learn what's out there, both in terms of flashes and off-camera triggering systems, and what the different features and limitations are.

But I'd say start slow and easy: master on-camera flash and bouncing first, before going all Strobist.

[AdrenoJunkie]

Seeing as how I'm still in my photography infancy I will definitely be starting slow. I'm not interested in the multi-flash fancy stuff...yet. Just wanna be able to take a decent portrait in low light and be able to light macro stuff better....with less cussing. Sounds like the Speedlite will have me covered. Is this pretty much a necessary (or at least highly recommended) piece of equipment? Seems like everybody has one. And what is a manual-only flash?

[inkista]

Some people get by without one. Some people use flash all the time. It really depends on what and how you shoot, and whether a flash is going to help you out. For the majority of people, though, it's a basic: with photography you can never have too much light.

The big thing right now, though, is that there's been a revolution in lighting, thanks to the Strobist. Most hobbyist photographers never advanced much past bouncing on-camera flash. But David Hobby has been teaching people how to do studio-style light with speedlights off-camera. And that's changed a lot of things when it comes to flashes and lighting.

For low-light portraiture, there are basically two basic types of equipment you can use: a fast lens and/or a flash. The fast lens is (imo) even more basic equipment than a flash.

To really really master flash photography, you need to have all the basics of ambient photography down first. Shooting in Manual, swapping stops among iso, aperture, and shutter speed should all be second nature before you start popping lights at things. Because flash is like combining two exposures at once in every image: the ambient/available light, and the flash illumination. And how you balance the two against each other comes down to not just iso, aperture, and shutter speed, but also flash distance and flash power. And shutter speed isn't necessarily going to work the way you think it will with flash.

E-TTL is a term you'll hear about Canon flashes, and it's often use to mean three different things. (The other two things E-TTL is used to describe are the Canon proprietary signalling system for remote master/slave communication, and the extra features, like high-speed sync, that you can get with on-camera flash). But the main feature described by the term E-TTL is that the camera tells the flash to send out a "preflash" pulse of a known brightness, and meters the scene with that flash pulse, and then, given the exposure settings, set the flash power to what it thinks is the correct level. In short, it automatically set the flash power level for you, based on metering. It's an automatic flash mode.

A manual-only flash is one that doesn't do E-TTL. You have to manually set the power level for the flash.

The Canon speedlights have both E-TTL and Manual modes, just like your camera has Av and M modes.

[kamikaze_productions]

If you have two 580ex,can one be master and the other be a slave?

[inkista]

Originally Posted by kamikaze_productions

If you have two 580ex,can one be master and the other be a slave?

Yup. You just have to make sure they're both on the same channel, and that one is set to master and the other to slave (obviously).

If you have four 580EXs , you make sure that they're all on the same channel, that one is set to master, and one is set to slave and group A, one is set to slave and group B, and one is set to slave and group C. And then the master that's on camera can control the power levels of the remote slaves. If it's a MkII, it can do either ratios or manual power levels and can be done via the camera menu as well as the flash menu, if it's a Mark I, you can only do ratios and it has to be done via the flash's menu. If the on-camera master is an ST-E2 or 550EX, it's master-menu only and you can only have A and B groups and ratios.

Why my brain just remembers this stuff, I have no idea.

[kamikaze_productions]

awesome thanks for the assist...i'm thinking about getting a second body - 5d...but i'm trying to decide whether i want a flash first...its all so expensive i need to budget in...

can't wait for my next bonus! lol

[inkista]

Given that neither of the 5Ds has a pop-up flash, I'd say getting at least one external speedlight first would be a good idea.