[mambo5]

OK, so i have the canon 40d. I see everyone in my church and at weddings using a speedlite or flash with their camera. There is a built in flash on the camera already. Whats the point of getting this flash accessory. I'm either gonna buy a 50mm f/1.8 lens or a 220ex speedlite for my canon 40d.


what is the point of this speed lite?

 

[olblueyez]

You can bounce the flash and get more natural lighting, the flash element is further away from the lens and the greater angle as compared to the lens reduces or in some cases eliminates red eye. Add on flash can be much more powerful and light up a room better. Might be worth it if you do a lot of indoor stuff.

 

[Head Room]

1. They are usually more powerful.
2. They can be fired off camera with a lead or built in sensor for more flexible positioning and effects.
3. Can be bounced or reflected to diffuse the light and soften the shadows.
4. The further off the lens access the less chance of red eye, so a high mounted or off axis flash on a shoe is better.

Cheers,

Stephen

 

[Uncle Erik]

Aside from being more powerful, I use mine all the time indoors. The camera-based flash only fires forward, leaving shadows behind the subject. If I angle the flash at the ceiling, light bounces down from above, filling in the area behind the subject. Light from above looks more natural and it helps eliminate redeye, too.

 

[roastpuff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mambo5 /img/forum/go_quote.gif OK, so i have the canon 40d. I see everyone in my church and at weddings using a speedlite or flash with their camera. There is a built in flash on the camera already. Whats the point of getting this flash accessory. I'm either gonna buy a 50mm f/1.8 lens or a 220ex speedlite for my canon 40d. what is the point of this speed lite?

Built-in flash = weak. Can't tilt. Can't zoom the flash head for better coverage. Recycle time really sucks. Gives red-eye. Gets blocked by bigger lenses/lens hoods.

External flashes are so much better, and they even help your camera focus too. So much more infinitely adjustable for better results.

Skip the 220EX - it's useless. Get the 430EX, at the very least.

 

[dj_mocok]

Why you wanna mount a flash on your shoe?

 

[Kees]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dj_mocok /img/forum/go_quote.gif Why you wanna mount a flash on your shoe?

Because it hurts when he mounts it on his nose.

 

[Kees]

Plus he wants to make kick ass pictures.

 

[Zodduska]

upskirts

 

[olblueyez]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zodduska /img/forum/go_quote.gif upskirts

Upskirts? Surely there is a better place to mount that sucker!

 

[Eagle_Driver]

Quote:

Originally Posted by roastpuff /img/forum/go_quote.gif Skip the 220EX - it's useless. Get the 430EX, at the very least.

I also recommend that the OP skip the 220EX - not because it's useless, but because it doesn't offer enough advantages over the 40D's own built-in flash to justify its $100-ish price tag. The 220EX flash unit's head is permanently fixed, and doesn't swivel in any direction. And any hot-shoe-mount flash unit places the flash head farther away from the lens axis than the camera's built-in flash. The 220EX does deliver more power than the built-in flash - but that singular advantage is not worth the price that Canon officially charges for it. (By contrast, the $100-ish Nikon-branded flash unit for Nikon DSLRs, the SB-400, does swivel upwards; it just lacks the sideways swivel found on that company's higher-priced units.) If you need a hot-shoe-mounted flash unit for Canon, and you must get the Canon brand, then I would advise saving up for at least a 430EX-II unit.

 

[D-EJ915]

built-in flashes are also a lot bluer