p.1 #1 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Just as observation / note of dismay really. As a wedding photographer, I really rely on my Canon flashes (2x 580 and 1x 430) - both the older versions. The newer versions boast 'silent recycling' - and that's just why I'll be sticking with the old ones, even if mine should need replacing.
Why? Well during a long day yesterday I fired off couple of frames of the first dance - and as I did, heard the flash doing a full recharge. Check the LCD - yep, full white across the frame. Reseated the gun, camera on and off and all was good and I'd only missed a few seconds of the dance.
Since I don't chimp much once I have my flash settings dialled in, and have an external pack for speedy recycling, there's a good chance I might have shot a whole more without that familiar whine of the 580 doing a full recycle.
So 'yay' for noisy flash guns - long may they continue......
p.1 #2 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Shouldn't you be more concerned with why your flash unit became disengaged and blew a shot by shooting full power? The new lever lock on the II version might have solved that problem.
Like most things in life, there are always pros and cons.
Edited by Ben Horne on Jul 06, 2008 at 09:15 AM GMT
p.1 #3 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
I have to 580's and a 550, I thought about that the other day, and soon realized, during those receptions and halls, with music playing, or people chatting, I don't even hear the noisy whine, so it doesn't make a bit of difference =) at least for me.
p.1 #4 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Ben Horne wrote:
Shouldn't you be more concerned with why your flash unit became disengaged and blew a shot by shooting full power?
You may have a point, but you're assuming it was that which caused the fault - it could have easily been the 1DsII having a brain fart. It had been working for 12 hours by then, so maybe it was even more knackered than I was.....
p.1 #5 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Unfortunately the newer flashes, and not just Canon's, are finally moving to the (1980s) technology of HF PWM inverters. The ancient self-oscillating bipolar designs are fading away. Given the lack of a full power indication on the flash or in the viewfinder, one must wait a bit after the ready light to be sure. Therefore some of the advantage of the faster recycling is lost when maximum power is needed. A small piezo beeper in the flash might be useful to indicate full charge.
p.1 #6 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
EB-1 wrote:
Unfortunately the newer flashes, and not just Canon's, are finally moving to the (1980s) technology of HF PWM inverters. The ancient self-oscillating bipolar designs are fading away. Given the lack of a full power indication on the flash or in the viewfinder, one must wait a bit after the ready light to be sure. Therefore some of the advantage of the faster recycling is lost when maximum power is needed.
>>>A small piezo beeper in the flash might be useful to indicate full charge.<<<
EB
Agreed. Also, a full charge indicator in the viewfinder would be nice, something that Minolta always had and Canon never bothered to add.
Jul 06, 2008 at 02:09 PM
andrew81 Offline • • • • [X]
p.1 #7 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
p.1 #10 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
I've experienced the same blow-outs with my 580 EX IIs. I was able to audibly hear that the flash was recycling from a full power dump. It's not exactly silent.
After reading this article, I tried it myself, and the fix worked. Hopefully it'll work for you. Be very careful not to tear any wires No more unintentional full-power dumps.
p.1 #11 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Or the opposite problem; I got caught with weak batteries during the introductions and knowing when the 580m2 was ready would have been nice. I try to shoot at least 2 of something like that incase somebody's eyes are shut, but some of my second shots were complete crap since the flash wasn't ready yet.
p.1 #12 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
EB-1 wrote:
Given the lack of a full power indication on the flash or in the viewfinder, one must wait a bit after the ready light to be sure.
Am I misunderstanding the function of the pilot light on the 580EX flashes then? I thought it went green to indicate partially recycled and quick flash ready, and red to indicate fully recycled and full flash ready?
p.1 #13 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
AFAIK, Nikon has the patent for the "Flash correct-exposure Confirmation" in the viewfinder. Or something like that. That is why you've never seen it in a Canon.
I, too, wish the flash ready light would only come on when fully recycled, and NOT just when in Manual mode.
p.1 #14 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Wow, another fine piece of Canon engineering. I'm also glad that I own a pair of the original 580s.
BTW, the 580 EX plastic foot works fine to me. A couple of years ago an overly celebrating defensive lineman knocked my 1D2N, 70-200 2.8 IS and 580EX out of my hand. The equipment slid accross the stadium's running track.
Other than some scratches on the lens hood the only damage was that the flash's foot broke. The camera's flash shoe was undamaged because the weaker plastic broke first. The replacement foot is about $7.00 from Canon and takes about 30 minutes to install. I bought a few of them.
p.1 #15 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Feuz wrote:
"Am I misunderstanding the function of the pilot light on the 580EX flashes then? I thought it went green to indicate partially recycled and quick flash ready, and red to indicate fully recycled and full flash ready?"
No, that's exactly how it works.
So... still confused. Why the complaints about lack of an indicator then? Not you, Feuz, but everybody else. Couldn't you just wait for the pilot light to go red? Seems easy enough to me.
p.1 #16 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Yohan Pamudji wrote:
So... still confused. Why the complaints about lack of an indicator then? Not you, Feuz, but everybody else. Couldn't you just wait for the pilot light to go red? Seems easy enough to me.
That requires taking your eye away from the camera and looking at the back of the flash every time. That is not only a PITA but also very unprofessional looking - especially when you have 80 wedding guests all looking at you.
Why oh why oh why can't Canon do simple things like have an optional beep when the flash is recharged and ready to go? The Nikon SB-800 has it, along with the PC sync that we had to wait forever to get on the Canon. Perhaps we will get a beep on the next one? Please Canon? Please?
p.1 #17 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
DaveEP wrote:
That requires taking your eye away from the camera and looking at the back of the flash every time. That is not only a PITA but also very unprofessional looking - especially when you have 80 wedding guests all looking at you.
Why oh why oh why can't Canon do simple things like have an optional beep when the flash is recharged and ready to go? The Nikon SB-800 has it, along with the PC sync that we had to wait forever to get on the Canon. Perhaps we will get a beep on the next one? Please Canon? Please?
Ah, I see what you're saying. Yes, a PITA, but not unprofessional looking IMO. It's not like you're standing there staring at your camera looking confused for a long time. Recycle times are short after all. But I can see how it would be a nice feature to have a "fully recycled" indicator in the viewfinder. There's a lot more data going back and forth between camera and flash in the current generation of bodies and the 580EXII, so it should be possible to provide such an indicator in the viewfinder. Also as has been mentioned, a simple beep (controlled by custom function) wouldn't be hard to implement since the speedlite already detects full recycle and indicates it via the red pilot light.
p.1 #19 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
I have an older 580EX, and a newer 580EXII and I rarely use the 580EX anymore. I love the operation of my version II and the quiet recycle. In fact I'm nearly ready to sell the version I and replace it with another version II as I love the new foot and the new features it offers.
p.1 #20 · Why I won't be buying a mark II flash any time soon
Canon cameras do show when a flash is ready in the viewfinder. It's the lightning bolt icon next to the focus indicator. It only lights up (when the shutter is half-pressed) when the red pilot light is on, which simultaneously indicates flash readiness. It's present in 10Ds and newer on flashes as old as the 420EX (or earlier).
