Third Party Accessories - What to Buy, What to Avoid

[Rienzphotoz]

Over they years I've used countless third party accessories such as Speedlites (from Metz, Sigma, Yongnuo), few Radio Triggers (from Yongnuo), Battery Grips (for 7D & 450D), Batteries (from Pearstone and 1 more company I forgot the name), lens hoods, Vello Tripod Collar (for Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 L IS) etc. Every single one of them (with the exception of Vello Tripod Collar) failed me during a photo shoot ... the Metz plastic shoe broke with a simple 1 foot drop, Sigmas just gave up the ghost one day, Yongunos did not fire wireless during a very critical photo shoot of some VIP's, both Battery grips failed after 1 year, batteries had very poor life span, lens hoods split ... but the Vello Tripod Collar is going great guns. I now try to stick to only Canon products as I've come to trust their finish and the R&D that goes into some very minor details that make a difference to the end result.

[Marsu42]

Battery grips failed after 1 year

What exactly was the problem with the grips?

I am going to get a Meike grip for the 6d because the price difference to the Canon original is immense - the only problems I read about is that some 3rd party grips loose contact when bend a lot, though the 6d version is reported to be rather sturdy.

[RMC33]

Battery grips failed after 1 year

What exactly was the problem with the grips?

I am going to get a Meike grip for the 6d because the price difference to the Canon original is immense - the only problems I read about is that some 3rd party grips loose contact when bend a lot, though the 6d version is reported to be rather sturdy.

Every 3rd party grip I have used has either stopped working (bad contacts/crummy wiring) or caused errors. I would rather pay a premium knowing the item was built to canon spec's then built sub par.

[Rienzphotoz]

Battery grips failed after 1 year

What exactly was the problem with the grips?

I am going to get a Meike grip for the 6d because the price difference to the Canon original is immense - the only problems I read about is that some 3rd party grips loose contact when bend a lot, though the 6d version is reported to be rather sturdy.

The 3rd party battery grip I bought for 7D just stopped working one fine day, without any reason ... everything seemed fine, no scratches or falls, just died ... tried everything I could t make it work, including cleaning the contacts ... but no use.
The 3rd party grip on 450D did not work after its plastic latch (to close the door) broke during routine change of batteries.
I forgot about a macro ring light (Bower I think) which also gave up the ghost after just 4 months of very light macro work.
I also forgot about B+W UV & CP filers ... this is one brand I prefer over Canon ... B+W produce top notch UV & CP filters ... all my lenses have B+W filters.

[Rienzphotoz]

One more thing I forgot to mention is that with almost all the third party accessories is that I got at least one error message on the camera after I updated the camera firmware to a new version.

[Marsu42]

Every 3rd party grip I have used has either stopped working (bad contacts/crummy wiring) or caused errors. I would rather pay a premium knowing the item was built to canon spec's then built sub par.

Oh well, in this case you probably get what you paid for - though there seem to be differences between the absolutely cheapest grips and the a little more expensive Meike models. For pro shooting I guess it's no question what to get, but the Canon "premium" in these cases is stiff: You can get five (5) Meike grips for one (1) Canon...

[TexasBadger]

B + W filters.  They are superior to Canon.