3rd Party

[WolfHeart704]

Hi guys and gals. I just wanted your opinion on 3rd party accessories and their compatibility with the big name brands like Canon and Nikon. Personally, I use a Canon 20d. Obviously with things like camera bags, tripods, filters, and the like 3rd party is the way to go. But for flashes, wireless triggers, lenses and other accessories where Canon makes great products but other manufacturers offer what seems to be the same thing at a better price, do I go with 3rd party to save money or go Canon to make sure everything should work properly. I recently bought a Tamron 60mm lens and am extremely happy with the purchase. I was very wary at first but am happy I made the purchase. So, what I'm asking is what is your experience with 3rd party products? What companies are good and what are bad? What areas of accessories should I stick with Canon andwhich will 3rd parties will be as good/better than Canon?


Thanks for reading and sticking through this long speech.

[WolfHeart704]

Maybe I should stop asking such long and broad questions...

[graciousness]

Aye, it's not that it's long, but it is too broad of a question that requires long answer.

Basically, buy the best quality that you can afford for the purpose. If you are planning on going pro at some point, I would stick with Canon lenses. However, if you are only a hobbyist, there's nothing wrong with third party lenses to serve your purpose. There are tons of people who use Sigma, Tamron and Tokina who are happy with their purchases.

With flash units, it's a little different. Nissin and Yungnuo make quite decent lenses for great price and there are some pro's who use them. Accessories are the same, as Cactus makes good wireless triggers. If you go to strobist.com, you'll get tons of great advice there in regards to strobe gears.

At the end of the day, it's your lenses that matter the most. Buy the best that you can afford. Second is the body.

[RichardTaylor]

At the end of the day you get what you pay for.
It all depends on what you are purchasing and if you can live with gear failing during shooting.
It may not matter if it a remote release, however if a camera bag strap fails......

From personal experience I have had two of 3 third party lenses, from the same manufacturer, fail (one of them twice after the original 80-400 was replaced after 30 pictures) without a lot of use.
I havn't had any Canon lens failures, ever, in 5 years of shooting...