Digital SLR Reviews Blog

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Canon Speedlite 270EX Flash for Canon Digital SLR Cameras

Canon’s new Speedlite 270EX adds power and flexibility for enhanced flash photography anywhere. Light, compact and small enough to fit in your pocket, Speedlite 270EX features 2-step coverage for 28mm and 50mm focal lengths, plus a highly useful bounce-flash function for amazingly easy, polished results. Powered by 2 AA batteries (not included), Speedlite 270EX is easily set-up and controlled through your camera’s menu system (with select models), communicates color temperature information with your camera for optimal white balance and recharges silently in less than 4 seconds. An indispensable complement to your Canon camera, Speedlite 270EX is a perfect extension of your photographic genius. Optimized recycling time (approx. 0.1 to 3.9 seconds) Quieter charging Easy storage soft case Powered using just 2 AA batteries Type Mode – E-TTL II, E-TTL Compatible Cameras – All Canon EOS cameras; PowerShot G-series cameras and select SX-series cameras Guide Number – 72 ft./22m (at ISO 100); flash head at 28mm zoom setting / 89 ft./27m (at ISO 100); flash head at 50mm zoom setting Recycling Time Normal flash – Approx. 0.1 to 3.9 seconds; Quick flash – 0.1 to 2.6 seconds (AA-size Alkaline Batteries) Flash Range (At ISO 100, with EF 50mm f/1.4) – For normal (28mm) – 2.3-51.5 ft./0.7-15.7m; For tele end (50mm) – 2.3-63.3 ft./0.7-19.3m; For high sync speed (at 1/250 second) – Approx. 2.3-24.9 ft./0.7-7.6m AF Assist Beam – Intermittent flash firing system Power Source – Two AA-size/LR6 Alkaline Batteries Unit Dimensions – 2.5 x 2.6 x 3.0 in./64 x 65 x 76.5mm; Weight – 5.1 oz./145g (without batteries)

User Ratings and Reviews

4 Stars simple to use
I’m a real novice, but I was easily able to figure out how to use this flash – and they do, of course, include instructions that I skimmed over. This is the only one I’ve ever used, so I’m not able to compare it to any others. I do like that I can change it’s position to bounce off the ceiling, instead of a straight on flash.

4 Stars Perfect for the Powershot G series cameras
I bought the 270EX for my Powershot G10, simply because the thought and usability of putting my 580EX II on a “point and shoot” camera is quite comical. The flash on the Powershot G10 isn’t that bad, but I’ve got a Lensmate with a UV filter and the G10’s onboard flash is effectively cut down and makes shadows because of the barrel of the Lensmate.

The decision came down to the 220EX and the 270EX. The 270EX’s ability to bounce the flash towards the ceiling so I am not blinding my subjects is pretty nice. It also puts distance between the Lensmate, so I can have a “mini-SLR” rig instead of the full 5D Mark II and accessories. And the price difference was negligible.

Like anything, there’s a tradeoff. Smaller flash units means less power, and thus less distance. Instead of the LCD I’m used to on my 580EX II, I’ve got to control everything from the camera’s LCD, which is no real big deal. But since it’s smaller, I’m more likely to carry it than not in a jacket pocket.

If you’ve got a Powershot G series camera, you might want to consider this flash. It’s worked fine for me, and would probably even work if you had one of the Digital Rebel series instead of the 430EX II. But like anything photography related, you get what you pay for BUT the more you spend, the more time it takes to adequately learn it.

5 Stars Nifty little flash
It is what it is… a simple, no-brainer flash. No serious settings to adjust, no serious factors to consider, a straight forward way to add more light into your pictures. If you want, you can make a few manual flash adjustments on the camera itself. Great bang for the buck.

I really like using it on my G10.

4 Stars Good Value For An Add On Flash
I needed to get more flash than was produced by the stock flash on my Canon EOS Rebel. I did not want a large, heavy (4 or more batteries), mounted on the camera.

This unit solved the problem! It only uses 2-AA batteries and makes a big flash for a smaller unit. I’m a realtor and it fills the room for color rich pictures.

I love the bounce feature and find I’m using it whenever I have a white ceiling in a room. I’m not a photo artist but this Speedlite in combination with my 10 to 20 wide angle lense has helped me to produce wonderful listing photos. I love the compliments from the other agents in my office!

1 Star Two Major Glitches
This is a nice little convenient flash to carry when you cannot or do not want to carry a larger flash. It weighs almost exactly half of the 420EX or 430EX and balances very nicely on a 40D camera. I bought the 270ex with the intention to use it for fill flash on my 30D and 40D cameras.

HOWEVER, it is not good for my purposes because…

The flash is touted to cover the view of a 28mm lens on a 1.6x camera. This should allow it to be used with the 17-55mm f/2.8 IS lens at 17 or 18mm (which is equivalent to a 28mm lens on a full-frame camera)… You get a shadow at the bottom of the frame when using that lens at less than about 24mm with an attached lens hood. Sure, bouncing would correct that but, it the unit cannot be adjusted right to left so you cannot bounce it at 24mm or below with the camera in the vertical position. Also, you could remove the hood to alleviate the shadow problem but, I don’t want to be removing and replacing the hood frequently.

The flash cannot be controlled on a camera earlier than the 40D, despite the instruction book saying that the 270ex is compatible with “E-TTL II/E-TTL autoflash EOS cameras” In other words, you cannot reduce the power of the flash or select 1st curtain, 2nd curtain or Hi Speed Sync on a camera like a 30D.

Neither of the above problems was noted in any review of this unit, nor in the instruction manual.

My final grade for this flash would be 3-stars (because it can only tilt and cannot swivel) for 40D cameras and later and 1-star for cameras earlier than the 40D.

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Pentax AF 360 FGZ Flash for Pentax and Samsung Digital SLR Cameras w case

The PENTAX AF360FGZ auto flash unit features a large guide number of 30 (at ISO100/m), which allows for effective flash photography over a lengthy distance. This clip-on, bounce auto-zoom flash includes a variety of advanced flash features, such as P-TTL auto flash, high-speed synchronization and wireless P-TTL auto flash, when mounted on a PENTAX digital SLR camera. Zoom Head – 24-85mm (flash automatically senses focal length) Flash sync mode – Leading-shutter-curtain sync, Trailing-curtain-sync, Contrast-control-sync, High-speed-sync, modeling flash, Wireless flash Power Source – Four AA size batteries (alkaline, lithium, Ni-Cd, NiMh) Dimensions W x H x D – 2.8 x 4.3 x 4.5 inches (70 x 110 x 115.5mm) Weight – 9.6 oz. (270g)

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars Excellent Product
Perfect addition to my K100D

It uses less battery life than the camera when in a pinch, I’ve been able to switch out the batteries to increase my camera’s life while still being able to use the flash.

2 Stars Mechanical Quality Stops At the Surface
If I could, I RATE THIS PRODUCT 2.5 Stars.

I agree with an earlier review in that this Pentax flash unit is mechanically very disappointing and certainly not worthy of the Pentax name. In no way does this product represent the Japanese Quality and Solid Designs of the 80’s that we have all become sentimental about. With this flash unit, Pentax has taken the low road to profit in place of working towards brand loyalty by producing a quality product, and making sure their dealers stand behind the product without sniveling.

The Pentax flash I received was assembled in the Philippines and judging from the rough mold quality of the battery door and surround plastics used to secure the battery door are reminiscent of parts that come from a place with little QA. With the flash unit I have, when all four AA batteries are out, the battery door is difficult to open. With all four batteries in place, the battery door is easily knocked ajar, leaving a 1.5-2 mm gap at the top of the battery door. From this slight open position, the battery door can and does with little force, pop open letting the batteries to spill out. I had the flash in my hands for just 3-4 minutes before that event happened and when I need my flash the last thing I want happening is for the batteries to fall out into my camera bag or on to the floor.

If you are right handed like myself, because of the natural area where a person tends to grab the flash, to release the flash head position lock button, by default causes the battery cover on my flash unit to pop partially open. Only once in 3 attempts was I able to till the flash head without disturbing the placement of the battery compartment cover and knocking the cover partially open. I have been using flashes of this similar design and nature since the old Vivatar 283 days of the late 70’s and never have I seen a case where the act of tilling a flash head could cause a battery compartment to open.

The second area of concern is the flash shoe. Like another review stated the shoe uses a small metal pin to help keep the locking mechanism align while the user moves the compression collar. The compression collar on my shoe is not well registered mechanically. I can see this device failing and perhaps cracking in the field.

Also the flash unit, with hot shoe locking collar released, fits much too tightly in the camera hot shoe. For this reason, the flash unit is difficult to remove from the K20D hot shoe and always requires close attention during the process as I need to use both hands, one placed near the flash hot shoe, and one placed near the camera hot shoe. Then I have to wiggle the flash unit back and forth till I unseat the flash.

If not, I get the impression that over torquing during this process could lead to serious mechanical damage to both the flash unit and camera body. I’m use to using just one hand to perform this task, of seating and unseating a flash unit atop a prism housing, and this is the most difficult flash unit I have ever mounted.

In fairness, I thought I should make sure that the mounting issue was with this Pentax flash, so I tried to see how a backup Vivatar 2000 flash unit would sit on the K20D camera hot shoe, and I was able to seat and unseat the Vivatar flash on the camera hot shoe with a single hand. Hence the fitting (mechanical tolerance) issue rest with the Pentax flash itself. From feel, I estimate the Pentax flash hot shoe pad to be about 0.005″ of an inch too think.

Today, all of my photo shooting is done for fun, but that does not preclude my desire to still use and operate equipment that is reliable and robust enough that I can operate in the field and not be overly concerned about the state of my equipment or if the equipment will even survive little more than casual use. From what I have seen of the Pentax 360 Flash, makes me wonder if an investment in other Pentax gear is such a wise move. If Pentax is incapable of doing the very basic mechanical functions well like keeping a simple battery cover closed tight, then how can they be trusted to be any better with the more complex tasks?

From this product if not already, Pentax needs to initiate a Technical Lessons Learned (TTL) database, so this sort of fiasco in elementary mechanical design does not surface in a future product.

This sight unseen purchase, should I return the item will costing me $35 dollars for a 180 dollar sale. Beach Camera wants to charge a 10% restocking fee to take what I see as an inherent design and manufacturing flaw plus cost to return ship. Maybe, Beach Camera should not sell what they are not willing to stand behind, or they would take a defective product return without conditions. Also, why would you need to restock a defective item? Because of their return policy towards Amazon customers and the fact that they are not open on Saturday, I give a neutral recommendation for Beach Camera.

Minus one star for battery door design, function & quality of parts used.

Minus half star for hot shoe design & material selection.

Minus half star for casual use & field reliability.

4 Stars Nice flash.
Easy to use. Fast enough recharge. Affordable. Able to go wireless.

2 things. While I haven’t used the 540, I’d probably buy it over this one due to the lack of swivel alone. If you don’t find yourself taking portrait oriented photos in low light, its not an issue at all though.

also, i find turning the autozoom off in most low light situations. set to around 50mm, and keep the pttl on, makes a huge difference.

5 Stars Great product
Perfect product to carry with you! Low weigh and very compact, ideal for parties and other uses that you don’t want to carry a big accessory bag!

Plus: Very economic for the batteries!

5 Stars It’s a Fair product for the price
It have done all was it have promise, is well built and perform very good also it have a reachable price. I recommended a lot for any Pentax camera it also give great results with my Lumix LX3 of camera flash, tough it took a wile to make it work.

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Zeikos ZE CBG50 Battery Power Grip for Canon 40D and 50D

Runs on either Lithium batteries or six AA size batteries Works with AA-size alkaline, nickel metal hydride (NiMH), Lithium and nickel-manganese batteries.. Provides added stability with extended shooting potential.. Multi-power battery pack holds 2 BP-511 Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries, effectively doubling your total shooting time.. Can also hold AA battery holder (included), so users can use AA batteries as power backup.. Multiple power battery pack cannot provides an AF-on button, front and rear command dials, have shutter button only.. Dimensions: 142.7 x 110.5 x 75.7mm.. Net weight: 320g

User Ratings and Reviews

5 Stars AWESOME
Very nice deal, all buttons and roller knobs are there, perfect fit!, the rubber on it is slightly more grippy than the canon 20Ds own grip areas and the tone is 98% exact..all in all its 100% worth the bargain price.

would definitely buy again

5 Stars Great alternative to factory Canon grip
I purchased this battery grip for my wife’s Canon 50D. I examined it thoroughly and played with it for some time now and so far, I can’t see anything wrong with it. It’s just like the Canon version. I can’t see spending another $100 for something that’s so close to this aftermarket one. I’m sure there are differences, but it’s nothing that I’m concerned about. In the end, my wife likes her new grip and that’s what really counts!

5 Stars Expectional Value!!!
Normally I just buy the Canon brand and pay the extra money but this time I went “off brand” and purchased the Zeikos Battery Grip Power Grip. Cost was the primary reason for not buying Canon (the Zeikos is about $85 less) and since I plan to use the battery grip occasionally I thought this might be a good way to save a little money.

Out of the box I am very impressed with this product. It has a good sturdy feel, seems well designed and is very easy to attach to the Camera. It comes with instructions that are clear and easy to follow.

A couple of things to know: The instructions say the grip can be used with Canon 20D/30D/40D/50D cameras. Why they only advertise the 40D and 50D is a mystery to me. The grip can function with one or two BP511A batteries installed. The grip will also accept 6 double AA batteries but the instructions say this is for emergency use and some camera functions will be slower when using double AA batteries. The grip also makes shooting from a portrait orientation much easier and the shutter button on the grip functions and feels the same as the shutter button on the camera.

I guess the one remaining question is will it hold up? Time will tell BUT I paid for it with my Amazon VISA card so the original warranty of 1 full year is automatically increased to 2 full years at no additional cost. All you have to do is keep your receipt so you can prove you paid with VISA and call the 800 on the back of the card if you have a problem.

The combination of price and quality make this an exceptional value!!

Thanks to everyone who wrote a review. Your comments made me decide to buy this product and I’m very happy I did.

5 Stars Good Bargain.
I ordered from Amazon and order came from Adorama, Flashpoint brand I think. I thought the build quality of this battery grip was great. Has a slight tacky feel, which I liked. Plastic felt solid and not cheap. All buttons functioned perfectly. I would definitely buy one of these again over OEM

2 Stars Nice price but any guarantee?
I am not sure enough it would running well just like the Canon original battery power grip. Apparently it needs 6 more AA batteries to operate. I probably buy the Canon product just for safety measure I won’t take a chance ruined someone’s wedding when it suddenly not working well..or loosing moment cause I have to chance 6 more batteries besides 2 more BP-511A

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