Rebel Flashes

[Mike Woods]

I am currently searching for a flash for my Dreb. I just tried the new Quantaray digital flash (QDC 900 W A) and the Canon Speedlight 420 Ex. The Canon was the winner hands down. If I stay with the Canon flash what are the major differences in the 420 Ex and the 550 Ex. Is there any other brands, Sigma comes to mind, that I should consider? There is nowhere locally for me to try the Sigma or the 550 without special ordering them. Before anyone asks, I am new to Dslr photography and I don't know what exactly I will use the flash for. Right now I am thinking for portrait use, maybe some macro shots, weddings, etc. Price is important to me, but at the same time I don't want to buy something and then wish I had spent a little more down the road. At the same time, I don't want to by something I will never use or be able to figure out the features on!

[glennp]

The main differences between the 550EX and the 420EX are that:

- The 550 is more powerful
- The 550 can be used as a master in a multi-flash setup
- The 550 has a manual mode for flash settings (not just E-TTL)
- Strobe ability

I was in the same boat regarding getting a flash and I opted to get the 420EX. I'm not a big flash user and didn't know if I needed/would use the manual controls of the 550. Plus I figured that if I really needed the extra features of the 550 down the road, that I would have the 420 to use a slave in a mult-flash setup.

Alternatives to Canon flashes that people have recommended on other forums: Sigma 500 DG and the Metz 54 MZ-3. Both of these tend more to the 550 feature set with a price closer to the 420.