Canon Speedlite 430EX II is a little wonder flash. The end!

Really, that does sum up months of research and trying different flashes for my Canon EOS 60D. Once I ruled out the aftermarket flashes for one reason or another, it came down to a two horse race: The Canon Speedlite 430EX II or its bigger brother the Canon Speedlite 580EX II. In the end, choosing between these two wonder flashes, was more about common sense and pragmatic situations than about cost or the technical capabilities. Should I have had a real studio or pro-photographic events where I needed multiple flashes to fire simultaneously, the Canon 580EX II with its extra power and master capabilities would have made good sense. The 430EX II pairs up nicely with the camera’s built-in flash with multiple permutations, mind you. I however, needed a balance between a powerful flash that can work wirelessly, not be too bulky and heavy as to put me off taking it out and about, and has sufficient mechanical agility to redirect the light in addition to good electronic settings to let me experiment with various settings.

Canon Speedlite 430EX II – Gizmolic.com

Canon Speedlite 480EX II is a real joy in full auto where it senses the subject’s distance and adjusts in concert with the camera and lens’s settings. It is also a versatile flash in full manual mode to experiment with until your eyes are content. This flash is fast with good battery life too. In the box, there is the shoe to mount the flash for wireless mode. The shoe can be tripod mounted, as in the picture. There is also a manual and a good quality carry case. You’ll need four AA batteries, rechargeable or alkaline will do. I prefer that over propriety rechargeables –  having been stuck in the middle of a road on holiday or wherever. You can always get yourself AA’s pretty much anywhere in the semi civilized world. The secondary wide panel light filter is on the flash itself and it simply pulls out and clips over.

I really can’t say enough good things about the Canon Speedlite 430EX II. At the time of writing this review, the cost can vary from <$250 to >$300. I’ve seen it in some shops for $325 which is bizarre, since Canon website sells it for $299. Full technical spec can be found from the link below:

http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/cameras/speedlite_flash_lineup/speedlite_430ex_ii#Specifications

Let me know what you think about it …

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