I am thinking of buying flash for EOS50 and am wondering about the Sigma 500 super, since it is about half the price of the Canon 550EX. I have read the specs on 440EX, 550EX, and Sigma, and it appears that Sigma has e-TTL and everything else the same. Can anyone give me their opinion? Thank you.(Thanks for previous help before too!)

-- Latham Portous (latport@hotmail.com), January 31, 2002

Answers

I have a Sigma EF-500 Super and a Canon 550EX. The Canon is nicer. It's a bit easier to operate and feels like it's built better. It also has a high voltage power port for near instant recycles. If you are a pro and in need of the most reliable & powerfull hotshoe flash it's probably worth the money.

The Sigma is nearly as powerful as the 550EX, recycles faster on AA batteries, does everything the 550EX does except for the custom function options and it works well with other Canon Speedlites in E- TTL wireless mode. It will also operate as a generic manual slave flash, somthing the Canon will not do. The only real problem with the Sigma is that it doesn't work well with some of Canon's Point & Shoot digitals like the G1.\

For the price, it's a great flash.

-- Jim Strutz (j.strutz@gci.net), January 31, 2002.

Latham,

I recall that the EOS mailing list has had a discussion on Sigma flashes for EOS use within the last 2-3 weeks.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/eos

-- Kenneth Darling Soerensen (kenneth@darling.dk), January 31, 2002.

I was just using my EF-500 Super last night and noticed that it doesn't have a flash exposure okay light. On the back of the 550EX you get a little green light for a few seconds when the camera thinks the flash exposure's been sufficient. Not so with the Sigma.

-- Jim Strutz (j.strutz@gci.net), February 02, 2002.