Cheapest way of getting an E-TTL flash setup

chris321

chris321

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Right, a while ago I bought a 430EX to introduce myself to flashes, and now I want to expand and get another. I'm thinking of the 580EX (or a 550EX if I can find one), which is a good flash in it's own right, and will trigger the 430EX. I'm going to be indoors doing this, so I'm not too fussed about the limitations of the IR system Canon use, so don't worry about that.

The problem is, I want to spend as little as possibly really, so I've got a few options.

Get the new flash, and keep my old one, which is expensive, but then I have 2 good, fairly new, modern flashes.
OR
Get the new flash, sell my 430EX, and find some older/cheaper models that can act as wireless slaves.

What would you recommend? At some point I'll be looking into wireless triggers and so on, but for the time being I'd like to have the advantage of E-TTL to fall back on while I'm learning how to control multiple flashes. And are there any cheaper models from Canon of anyone else for that matter that can be used as slaves in this IR setup?

Thanks for any help,

Chris
 
I don't think anything older than a 430exII will work as a wireless slave

maybe a 420ex but I have a suspicion not

i think 1 is the best (and poss only) option
 
There are plenty of oldy flash guns with the slave facility on
 
classcams said:
Also a slave mount for a few quid.
Click to expand...

The op is asking about flashes that will work with the E-TTL metering system.

My advice would be to keep the 430 and hunt around for a 550 EX
 
"Find some older cheaper models that can act as slave flashes" Thats what the man said. Any older cheaper models can act as a slave flash.
 
Thanks for the replies, at the moment I'm only really looking for Canon's IR compatible flashes, so I can use them with radio triggers down the line when I'm a bit more experienced, but for the time being they'll do the majority of the work themselves :D

I think the 420EX can work as a slave in this way, but the choice seems to be pretty limited, so I might just have to spend a bit more. Oh well, such is life I guess! Thanks again guys,

Chris
 
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