Messages

31

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 06, 2013, 11:40:39 PM »

The unit performed flawlessly in all the above-mentioned areas.  For example, the photo below shows my YN-568EX firing in optical slave mode, using ETTL metering, HSS and 8:1 ratio set via the camera menu.  Fantastic!   To obtain the photo below I mounted my 580EX ii master inside an Apollo Orb softbox at camera right.

I have the 580EX II and YN-568EX also.  How did you connect your camera to the 580EX II which is off-camera in Apollo?

ahh -- good catch.  I used Syl Arena's ETTL extension cord from OCF gear.   Both camera and flash think the flash is mounted atop the camera.   ETTL works beautifully

my order for two additional 568EXs just arrived; that took about 9 days.  two 568's and the 580 go in the softox, one 568EX outside for rim or other fun.

32

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 04, 2013, 07:34:25 AM »

Compatibility is going to be an ever increasing problem for third party flash manufacturers, sure they can update new production, after they have reverse engineered the tweaks Canon do to stymy them, but that does nothing for the dealer stock and flashes already sold, especially if they don't have a way to update the firmware in them, ie no micro usb port.

Expect huge depreciation on third party flashes. 550EX's sell for between $120 and $150 on eBay almost every day, there will never be an issue using them on EOS cameras, that piece of mind alone is worth the money to me over a Yongnuo.

Don't think for one second I am a third party hater, I highly recommend Yongnuo triggers, the 602's I use have been 100% reliable for two years, the 603's are a great upgrade to them too.

no argument here. in fact, this is the very point and value proposition of the yonguo 568EX, in my opinion.  When you buy Canon you are making a substantial long term investment "up front" to obtain guarenteed compatibility and good resale value.  For $167 delivered via registered mail, you are making a relatively meger investment up front for the Yongnuo, in return  for a product that meets your immediate needs now.  For that price you can buy it again and again over the next several years, and every time you do that you get a new flash tube.  The key to this kind of investement, in my opinion, is to bring in one flash unit and test. if it doesn't work, send it back and you're only out the cost of return shipping for the experiment. If it works, buy more if you need them..   frankly if it were not for my discovery of thephotogadget, I would have put my $510 towards one 600EX-rt instead of three Yonguos.  But the Yongnuos give me extraordinary flexibility -- with a total of four flashguns I can load them up in softboxes, gang them up to fight the sun like Syl Arena does, or spread them around and light up a room from different locations, gell them for effect, etc. 

The more expensive third party flashguns like the new Odins are a connundrum to me.  way too expensive to qualify as a cost-effective alternative to the genuine article, in my opinion.  the value proposition is just not there for me.    yes, you get USB updates for bug fixes and compatibility updates in the field, and every time you update your flash you decide to keep wearing out the  cheep flashtube therin.   yes, you get an external power connection, so the new Ondin is starting to look more like a real 580EX ii.    But by the time you spend $400 on a third party 580 EX ii clone with the hope of future compatibiltgy you'd be better off buying a real 580EX ii with guarenteed compatibility.    or better yet, spend $150  more and buy a 600-rt. 

33

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 09:02:36 PM »

Do I see a mechanical On-off switch there? I hate the electronic on-off button on the YN-560 II. They warn you to remove the batteries after use to prevent drain, and I have the feeling that the battery door is about to break every time I close it.

from flashhavoc:

"New Body Design

Instead of just adding HSS to the previous YN-565EX TTL flash model (which was a close copy of the Canon 580EX II body and LCD screen), YongNuo have designed a completely new original body for the 568EX, and its mostly all the better for it. It has a large clear LCD and nice solid plastic control buttons, no more spongy rubber ones. The body had a nice square shape with matt textured finish, and its actually all just a little bit smaller than the previous 565/580EXII."

The on-off button is electronic; hold it down to turn on or off, so if you are alergic to that, then you would be dissapointed.  I have no such alergies and I don't store batteries in my flashguns anyway -- batts belong in those little yellow thingies where you can instantly tell which ones are charged by the way you put them in :-O

http://www.amazon.com/Storacell-Powerpax-Battery-Caddy-Yellow/dp/B004YG7JXW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1365037328&sr=8-3&keywords=AA+battery+holder



the battery door on the 568 is quite good.

34

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 08:36:11 PM »

thanks. I can only find 550 used and for >$180. and I don't want used flash.
I very seldom use hot shoe flashes, so need a cheap main gun to use once or twice a year and ideally another tiny one for hiking to pitch in in place of the build-in. having trouble picking either...

for a new flash under $200 you have but  few options.  in fact, the 568 is the only one that comes to mind as a candidate.  If you read widely you will find that all experiences with thephotogadget are positive - including the situations where folks were hit with the dreaded "over exposure at 1/250th" problem.   

the Phottix is probably a very good bet, but its twice the price of the Yongnuo.  Others are emerging as folks figure out how to reverse engineer Canons system.  no complaints here;  in fact I just ordered two more!

35

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 08:31:51 PM »

There are many reports of issues with newer cameras. If you have a 5D MkIII then don't get one until they are advertised as working with your camera.

Personally, as a budget option I would recommend the Canon 550EX, full functionality with every EOS camera past, present and future, for around $125.

pause and check the website:  they are advertized working with the 5D3 and many others

"Compatibility

     Wireless TTL Slave mode: Canon 5DIII, 7D, 60D, 600D, 650D, Yongnuo ST-E2, Canon 580EX II, Nikon SB-900, SB-800, SB-700, Commander SU-800, Camera with CLS i-TTL system:D4, D3x, D3s, D3, D2x, D700, D300s, D300, D200, D7000, D90, D80
    Hot shoe TTL mode: Canon 1Dx, 1Ds series, 1D series, 5DIII, 5DII, 5D, 7D, 650D/T4i, 600D/T3i, 550D/T2i, 500D/T1i, 450D/Xsi, 400D/Xti, 1100D, 1000D, 60D, 50D, 40D
    Not compatible with 20D, 30D" 


Part of my experience was landing on a reputable supplier.  I wouldn't trust any of  the ebay stores (except for thephotogadget.  read the reviews), nor would I trust the stores selling on amazon.  Order direct from thetphotogadget.  Avoid all the others becasue you won't know what inventory they've been storing up, and  you might get one with the old "1/250th shutter" problem and no way to return it.  ThePhotogadget will accept returns, although its true you have to pay shipping. 

36

Software & Accessories / Re: RECHARGEABLE - POWER-EX - ENLOOP - IMEDION

« on: April 03, 2013, 05:48:17 PM »

I'm using the Maha 801D.  Great charger/  individual circuits for each battery, soft and normal charge modes plus soft an normal recondition modes.  8 cells AA or AAA any combo. 

using 16 Eneloops now, but with four flashguns I'm gonna need more!  Panasonic may change things I don't know but I found that when I read the data sheets CLOSELY I found that the eneloops optimize the things important to me (charge cycles and flash recycle time).   there is no free lunch, so of the four parameters:

charge cycles  (life)
capacity (number of flashes per charge)
internal resistance  (recycle time)
self discharge rate

you can't optimize all four at the same time.    increase capacity and you will give up internal resistance and/or number of cycles and discharge rate.  Batteries with the highest charge cycles rating will tend to have a lower capacity

37

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 03:50:02 PM »

PART 3 of 3

Focus on HSS

The importance of a well-implemented high-speed sync feature is critical to me, so I spent considerable time playing with this.  With my subject placed deliberately in front of a brightly-lit window on a sunny day, I set up a three-light configuration:  The sunlight coming in through the window formed the rim light, my 580EX ii Master served as fill, and my YN-568EX slave  served as the key light.  I used 1:4 ratio selected via the camera menu, and set the camera manually to 1/2000th sec shutter and f/2.8.   ETTL properly exposed the subject but the background sky was still too bright:    Raising the shutter speed to 1/8000th sec allowed me to under expose the background enough to make the subject stand out. HSS worked perfectly in concert with the 580EX ii -- very gratifying.   

While on the subject of HSS I wish to highlight the findings of flashhavoc.com, which found the HSS output of the YN-568EX to be on par with the 580EX ii.  This pleased me greatly, as HSS is one of the most important reasons I use speedlites.

Beyond the basics

The various features and specs of the YN-568EX are detailed in various other reviews, but here the things I particularly like:

•   The buttons!  They just feel great to me, and the instant-on custom feature is especially good. The orange back-it LCD is easy to read as well. 
•   The build quality is great. In fact, the click adjustment of the head is quite strong, which I like:  My 580EX ii struggles under the load of my large Rogue flashbender, but the YN-568EX does just fine.   
•   The YN-568EX has an audible beep when ready to fire, and a different beep to warn you about underexposure due to insufficient re-cycle time.  This is particularly important when the flash is buried inside of a softbox. 
•   One interesting feature worth mentioning is that you can select up to 5 stops of exposure compensation via the flash controls themselves.  This level of control is not available via the Canon menu system
•   Did I mention that I like the 1/8000th second HSS?


Conclusions

At just over 1/4th of the cost, the YN-568EX is a very attractive and capable alternative to the Canon flagship flash.  While it does not possess master capabilities, the Yongnuo makes a great optical slave flash inside of a softbox or umbrella, for example when combined with my 580EX ii as the master (triggered via my off-camera TTL extension cord).   This configuration is currently my primary use case and particularly appealing to me because it does not require the use of radio triggers.   Ratios and manual operation are controlled via the on-camera menu, without the need to look at or touch either of the flash units. 

Yongnuo has opted not to provide a USB update feature, and I presume this is to keep the cost down.  Consider that to offer end-user installable updates requires more expensive hardware, a software release process, a website for downloads, end-user documentation, and a support process wrapped around all of that.  Instead of offering a higher purchase price up front for such a capability, Yongnuo offers a lower purchase price which allows the customer to bank more money up front for future hardware purchases:  Note that the nearest competition for the YN-568EX is twice the price.

Do I miss the lack of an external power capability?  Not at all -- I prefer the extraordinary portability afforded by AA-powered Speedlites, and I carry enough Sanyo Eneloops to do the job.  The Eneloops also yield a very good recycle time, especially when using multiple strobes. 

I wish now that I had ordered two YN-568EX’s, as I could then install the pair onto a triple flash bracket along with my 580EXii (on an ETTL cord)  to form a three-strobe softbox/umbrella configuration with very short recycle times – all while maintaining full ETTL and HSS capability.

Purchasing from China

I note that there is one influential blogger who specifically recommended against purchasing anything direct from China, citing quality issues and lack of a value-adding U.S based retail channel for customer support.  I found his advice to be inaccurate.

One thing that convinced me to purchase my Yongnuo from ThePhotoGadget was the way the two companies reacted to the discovery that early YN-568EX production units failed to achieve proper TTL exposure at 1/250th shutter speed:  Yongnuo immediately fixed the problem, and customers of ThePhotoGadget received replacement units under warranty.   I thought that was impressive, demonstrating a commitment to customer satisfaction and product quality.   

Incidentally, I received my flash in eleven days after ordering -- and when they say “price includes shipping” they mean all shipping costs are taken care of, AND the package is sent via US registered mail (signature required).   


END

38

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 03:44:53 PM »

PART 2 of 3:  On the shoe

Putting the flash on the camera hot shoe allowed me to further test its performance as a back-up to my 580 EX ii while comparing the wide angle coverage as well (important for umbrellas and softboxes).    I used the camera menu to dial up 1/64th power and 24mm zoom, and fired a series of test shots against a white wall from  approximately 5 feet away, using a 16mm FF-equivalent lens on the camera.   The following photos show the comparison.

Interestingly enough,  my YN-568EX showed just slightly wider coverage and required a lower power setting (-.3EV) to achieve approximately the same exposure (Note: the 580EX ii photo looks underexposed, comparatively, but bumping the exposure up to +.7 EV was too much).  Of course, these data do not imply anything about total power output; rather, the results show that the zoom settings and power output calibrations between my 580EXii and my YN-568EX do not exactly correlate. 

39

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / mini review: Yongnuo 568EX

« on: April 03, 2013, 03:38:58 PM »

Hi all -- here is a description of my experience with the Yongnuo YN-568EX flash

PART 1 of 3. 

I’ve been investigating ways to improve my off-camera flash capability with additional shoe-mounted strobes to compliment my Canon 580EX ii.  Value is most important to me:  Canon’s new radio wireless system is outstanding, but that doesn’t mean the cost is justified, especially when less expensive alternatives are available to do the job that I need to do. 
To find the system with the right value proposition, I carefully outlined the most important needs including vendor choices, reliability etc, to see if these map to an available solution:  My primary requirements were:

•   ETTL
•   HSS
•   Master-slave ratios  and manual flash settings controlled via the on-camera menu
•   Optical slave, using my 580EX ii as the master
•   On-camera (single) backup for my 580 EX ii

My research led me to the Yongnuo YN-568EX, because the features and technical specs matched my needs well.  I purchased mine from ThePhotoGadget website  http://thephotogadget.com/en/content/yongnuo-yn568ex-high-speed-sync-flash-canon (more about that choice later). 

Test results
The YN-568EX has been well reviewed (see flashavoc.com and lightingrumors.com) so I’ll try not to repeat those results here:  My main area of interest was to evaluate the flash as a slave, for use inside an umbrella or softbox, so this was the starting point of my tests. 
The unit performed flawlessly in all the above-mentioned areas.  For example, the photo below shows my YN-568EX firing in optical slave mode, using ETTL metering, HSS and 8:1 ratio set via the camera menu.  Fantastic!   To obtain the photo below I mounted my 580EX ii master inside an Apollo Orb softbox at camera right.

Part 2 to come

40

EOS Bodies / Re: Will the 70d have a new sensor?

« on: April 03, 2013, 08:47:16 AM »

...I think that right now it is the wrong time to buy a Canon APS-C camera, because Canon needs to make a bigger step then in the recent years. On the other hand, it is a good time to buy a little dated camera for a low price (especially the 60D); the problem is, that it will be very old pretty soon.

The only additional suggestion I would make here is that if you are on the fence re:  C vs FF, then right now is not the time to buy either one.  I would wait until 7D2 and 70D both show their cards, and then decide what that means in terms of the current FF versus the next generation of sensors for both C and FF camera bodies.  After 7D2 comes out, with its supposedly wahoo sensor, one may still opt for a 5D3

41

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: iDC Triplethreat

« on: March 19, 2013, 01:51:26 AM »

thanks!  I just ordered 2.  highly regarded by Syl Arena.  this one has two set screws to clamp onto the modifier shaft.   I see your point about lever mount shoes, as well. 

the last of the single billet designs perhaps...

42

Software & Accessories / Re: RECHARGEABLE - POWER-EX - ENLOOP - IMEDION

« on: March 12, 2013, 04:32:19 AM »

I started with regular Eneloop and now use the Eneloop XX. 

FYI the XX enelopps are awesome, expensive, and good for only 500 cycles.

43

Software & Accessories / Re: RECHARGEABLE - POWER-EX - ENLOOP - IMEDION

« on: March 11, 2013, 09:56:05 PM »

Interesting thread.

I was always interested if the new PowerGenxi NiZn batteries would kill my 550EXs.  Evidently they recycle so fast they'll take a Nikon SB900 to thermal shutdown after 15 shots or so...

At the moment for environments where I want a flash with me (especially now that I have a flashless 6D) but don't plan on using it much I use non-rechargable Energizer lithiums as they last forever & are about as light as AAs get.  They really help keep the weight down in the 270EXII so I never take it out of the bag to save weight.

as long as they meet your needs for the price you want to pay, thats the main thing.  To me, weight is way down the list of priorities, below that of capacity, recycle time, and number of charge cycles.  The extraordinary shelf life of the 1.5v lithiums is evidence of a high internal resistance, which makes them good for emergency and occasional use, but probably not as regular workhorses.  It also explains the heat they generate during discharge.   Syl Arena, for example reports that Lithuims mis-fire more often during high-rate torture tests (full power pops) than other battery types. 

44

Software & Accessories / Re: RECHARGEABLE - POWER-EX - ENLOOP - IMEDION

« on: March 11, 2013, 04:00:59 PM »

Whenever I encounter topics like this or reviews, the Eneloop would came out as the answer, really.

And an hour ago I just bought a pack of 4 AA's + quick charger. Mainly for my flash, but sidelines on my wireless xbox 360 controller. 

this is the right answer.     consider that there are tradeoffs in an AA package.

* you can make materials thinner to get more capacity, but the cost will be internal resistance (cycle time)
* in addition to the above you can optimize for capacity but the cost will be self discharge
* in addition to the above you can optimize capacity and internal resistance,  but the cost will be # of cycles. 

in short, the very best sweet spot for AA strobe use is the Eneloops.   combine that with the known reliability reputation and you have a no brainer.   be sure to look at all three variables (read the data sheets):

1.  internal resistance
2.  self discharge
3.  number of cycles

get a good smart charger like the Maha 801D (8 cells at a time). here you want individual circuits for each battery . a soft charge and and re-condition cycle are must-haves.

45

Speedlites, Printers, Accessories / Re: Chinese aftermarket guns

« on: March 07, 2013, 12:12:05 PM »

Sadly I expect Canon's next move will be some sort of digital key authorization mechanism  to lock down the hot-shoe ETTL and HSS communications, preventing the chinese from reverse-engineering their stuff and selling  at 1/4 the cost.   

I thought Yonguo already has HSS

Some do, yes.   I don't follow your point yet can you explain what you're driving at?