I own an EOS 10 and wish to buy a speedlite for it. I was thinking of buying the 380EX; but will my slr be able to use all the latest functions of the newer 380EX? Or will i be better off buying an EZ speedlite for it?

-- Tom Vong (tomhv@hotmail.com), December 24, 2000

Answers

I'd like to point out the mistake in the title of this forum message. It should read: 'Which Speedlite is best for EOS 10?'

-- Tom Vong (tomhv@hotmail.com), December 24, 2000.

I don't think the 380EX is BEST for any camera, and since it's being replaced by the 420EX I guess Canon agrees. Anyway, to take advantage of the 380EX (or any EX series flash) you would need a Rebel G, Elan II, Elan 7, EOS 3, EOS 1V, one of the APX Canons, or a D30.

The 10 (10s in the USA) is better matched to an EZ series Speedlite. As I recall the 10 doesn't offer flash exposure compensation (FEC) on the camera body, and the 420EZ didn't have FEC built in, so either a used 430EZ or a new 540EZ would be the best choices. The EZ series will allow the use of A-TTL metering which the newer EX series won't do.

If you can do without FEC, tilt, swivel and a bit less power, a 300EZ will work as well.

-- Jim Strutz (jimstrutz@juno.com), December 24, 2000.

Thanx for your response/advice. The 420EZ seems like the obvious one to get for the EOS 10. But i'm also thinking of setting up a mini studio for macro still life photography. What will i need to be able to 'remotely' connect the EZ speedlite to the camera so i can have fill-in flash from the side? There doesn't seem to be any obvious sockets on the camera body for external 'studio-use' flashguns.

-- Tom Vong (tomhv@hotmail.com), December 25, 2000.

I have an EOS 10 (I think, I'm in the US so it's an ELAN original). I purchased the 420 with several things in mind. One I believe, but am not sure, that it is a more powerful flash than the 380. Two, I can't justify the money for a 550 when most of the features won't work;. Three, I want to get a new camera body, and adding a 550 won't make my 420 redundant. And, finally, the price difference isn't that great. In terms of Macro photography, you have a few options. You can get an off-shoe flash cord. I haven't played with these so I can't offer much info on them. Or, if you're like me and want to put your old body into semi-retirement, the 420 will work with the ST-E2 off shoe transmitter, the 550 flash and the MR-14EX macro flash.

-- Andrew Ryan (aryan@wcoil.com), December 25, 2000.

The off-camera shoe cord 2 will allow full automation and permit you to get your flash about 2' off camera. I think it'll work with any AF body/lens combo (plus the T90). From there you could also use a reflector to get additional fill.

You can get TTL auto by using the other off-camera accessories and that would allow you to use two flashes.

Paul

-- Paul Ferrara (paul@columbusoft.com), December 25, 2000.

Don't confuse the older 420EZ with the new 420EX. The older EZ series is the best for the 10. The EX series have many more bells & wistles but don't fully use the capabilities of the 10 (or the Elan, since that crept into the discussion). This would hold true for any camera introduced up to, and including the EOS 5/A2.

I still believe the 430EZ would be the better choice over the 420EZ (or 420EX) since the 430EZ has FEC built into the flash body and the 420EZ and 420EX do not. If you can't find a used 430EZ, the 540EZ has all the same capabilities, and more, and is still available new.

Andrew - The internationally designated EOS 10, is the "10s" in the USA. The USA's Elan is the same as the international EOS 100.

As far as off camera use is concerned the Off Camera Shoe Cord 2 works fine as long as you don't need to move it more than 2-3 feet from the camera. You can usually get away with connecting up to two of them together even though Canon says otherwise. If you want more, go for Canon's modular TTL cord system. You can get up to 30 feet with that, but it's not cheap.

-- Jim Strutz (jimstrutz@juno.com), December 26, 2000.