I don't use much
flash. In fact I try to avoid using flash whenever possible. But for those
situations, where I have to use flash, I don't want to use the in-camera flash,
which is infamous of producing deer-in-the-headlights-with-red-eys
effect. With an external flash there are many ways to make the image
more pleasing.
So why this Sigma? As said, I use quite little flash, so spending almost 400 euros for a Canon Speedlite 550EX seemed like a waste of money. It's among the best flashes one can buy for a Canon SLR, but out of my budget. I could not see using the wireless flash functions in the foreseeable future. So, I had two options, Canon Speedlite 420EX and the Sigma EF-500 DG ST, which seems to be the only 3rd party flash, which the manufacturer claims to work with Canon EOS digital cameras as well. The Sigma was for 160 euros and the 420EX for 215 euros. The Sigma is also more powerful, and the functions did not seem very different on these two flashes, so I chose the Sigma.
The flash turns 180 degrees and the head tilt 90 degrees. There's a zoom motor, so that the flash will match the focal range used (between 28 and 105 mm) and a huge red light that will be used as a focus-assisting light when there's not enought light otherwise. So far I have been pleased with the flash.
 No flash used |
 EOS 10D in-camera flash |
 Sigma EF-500 DG ST |
 Sigma EF-500 DG ST bounced from the ceiling |
Direct flash from the external flash is just about as bad the in-camera flash. When bounced from the ceiling, however, the ugly shadows are gone and the light is spread more evenly (Sorry for the inconsistent whitebalance).
I've received some emails about the backside of the flash, so here goes:
