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philduncan

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I am totally new to flash guns and only use my on camera flash few times.
I have a Canon 7D and would like to know how much to spend what would be the best flashgun for a beginner. Thank you in advance.
 
Not Safe For Work, in case the link's a bit dodgy
 
Lots and lots of off camera flash info and advice at strobist.com (not to take you away from here but it is the resource for OCF).
 
philduncan said:
I am totally new to flash guns and only use my on camera flash few times.
I have a Canon 7D and would like to know how much to spend what would be the best flashgun for a beginner. Thank you in advance.
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it depends on how much you want to spend and what you want to do

the top end canon flash is the 580exmk2 which is an outstanding bit of kit but the best part of 300 notes

next down the scale is the 430ex which is about 180 quid

(you can also pick up a 550Ex which used to be top end for about 180 second hand , or a 420ex which used to be second for under the ton)

away from canons own there are also quality flashes from MetZ, Meccablitz and so on , and budget offerings from nissin, jessops, younougo etc - personally i'm a believer in buy cheap buy twice and wouldnt spend a grand on a body then put a cheap chinese flash on it (imo rather like putting cheap retread tyres on a porsche ) but opinions on that vary
 
big soft moose said:
it depends on how much you want to spend and what you want to do

the top end canon flash is the 580exmk2 which is an outstanding bit of kit but the best part of 300 notes

next down the scale is the 430ex which is about 180 quid

(you can also pick up a 550Ex which used to be top end for about 180 second hand , or a 420ex which used to be second for under the ton)

away from canons own there are also quality flashes from MetZ, Meccablitz and so on , and budget offerings from nissin, jessops, younougo etc - Personally i'm a believer in buy cheap buy twice and wouldnt spend a grand on a body then put a cheap chinese flash on it (imo rather like putting cheap retread tyres on a porsche ) but opinions on that vary
Click to expand...

I think you'll find the Nissins & Yongnuos are very robust and powerful -

especially for their price and are ideal for a beginner.

Bit of snobbery going on here I'd say.

I use them a lot and have had no problems.

You could buy 4 or 5 flashes for the price of 1 Canon 580ex mk2.
 
on the other hand i've had both and they were both unmittigated shiite - the yonguo died halfway through a wedding (fortunately i had a spare with me) when it was about 6 months old , and the nissins flash element blew fairly spectacuarly after 11 months of use

The basic problem with chinese flash guns (and indeed a lot of other chinese electronics) is that the quality control sucks like a ten dollar whore so you can get lucky and get a decent one (probably the first one off the production line on monday morning , or you can get unlucky and get one that was made by someone who didnt really have their mind on the job last thing on friday

you could indeed buy 4 or 5 for the price of one decent flash - but on the other hand a decent make is less likely to let you down and will still be going strong long after the cheap chinese rubbish has been consigned to landfil.

Also while its true that cheap flashes are a good buy for a beginner that doesnt have much cash - someone who's just bought a 7D doesnt really fall into that category , and a quaslity body deserves quality accessories - especially as if a flash does go kapput it can also take out the circuitry of the camera its on at the time.

Clearly we have different experiences of the cheap kit and I don't ask that you agree with me, just that you don't dismiss my view - also born of first hand experience- as gear snobbery
 
Fair enough. I have 3 Yongnuos and 1 Nissin that are all working very nicely for over a

year now.
 
Beware cheap flashguns

they can throw mega voltages back to the camera circuit and fry your camera if mounted on the hotshoe
best to use remote triggers and keep off the camera.
 
Whatever way to you choose to go, keep in mind you have the ETTL trigger built into your 7D so it may be worth buying a gun that can benefit from it. That saves you then having to buy seperate flash triggers, receivers, batteries - (although there are benefits from having radio triggers but thats for another day ;) )
 
bought a YN565EX recently
pretty good, excellent for the price
but working with my ST-E2 alongside a 580exII...big difference in reliability
could be the angles, or the trigger, or recycling time.
not sure, but pretty good for >1/3 the price
 
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