great power quick recycle and well over 100 shots with NiMH batteries so tall I don't think you could ever get redeye superb low-light focus assist - subtle and fast high speed and second surtain sync well timed auto power-down after idleness

no manual controls no LCD readout for anything, you just have to trust it "adequate exposure" light a hassle to look up to after the photo is taken í

I had volunteered to shoot a family event a little while back and decided I needed something more than the built-in flash my Elan II offered. So I bought this. Great excuse for new gear, I know [/rolleyes]. Anyway, the reasons I was drawn to this particular flash were numerous: the 380EX wouldn't swivel, the 550EX is twice the price, it takes advantage of E-TTL (as opposed to some 3rd party offerings), and it's pretty d*** powerful. My only reservation (and a reason I almost went with a comparably priced Sigma) was that the 420EX is always fully automatic. Seeing as I had only the most rudimentary knowledge of aperture/flash sync/working distance/etc., I didn't object too much, even though I like using the more manual modes of my camera. Besides, I little bit of experience playing with exposure and FE compensation +/- and one can achieve essentially the same levels of tweaking. I must say I was NOT expecting to get the results I did when the first few rolls I took came back. What I was expecting, shooting 160 portrait indoors, was brightly lit subjects with dark backgrounds, i.e. looking like it was basically a P&S flash pic, only with more oomph in the flash. Wrong. All I got were clean, evenly exposed pictures. Even with subjects only a few feet away. One testament example was shooting a friend with glossy skin from maybe 4 feet and forgetting to bounce the flash off the ceiling. I thought it would come out very washed out and harsh, or at least have reflections off her face at that range but no such (bad) luck. The light is so nice - I can't believe some people complain that Canon makes flashes that are too cold. About the power - I adequately overcame the severe backlighting of a person sitting against a huge window from about 75 feet away while using a 300mm telephoto. I think that'll be ample for whatever I need in the future. Lastly, I don't see how it's loud. Call me weird, but I also like the noise it makes when you first turn it on :o) Buying this flash has made me much more interested in portaiture and general people photography. And you can't beat new interests.›

Similar Products Used:

none - total flash newbie!!!

very powerful, very sturdily built, solid, doesn't have anything you have to worry about, just turn it on and go. mild learning curve. VERY nice to have a zoom head from 24-105mm. makes me want to go out and get a 24-whatever zoom just for the flash!

yes, it's loud. but not nearly as loud as the noise an SLR creates. power zoom head automatically zooms to 50mm when you tilt or swivel -- what gives? what about wideangle shots?

Okay. I've always liked 3rd-party equipment because it's supposed to be able to do the same stuff, only cheaper, then the manufacturer's stuff. Not true with flashes! I have an Elan 7 and I needed a dedicated flash for it. So, I bought the Vivitar 850AF for $125 and when I got it, I realized it could do nothing. It just sat there, on my camera, and the best it did was go off when I fired the shutter. It wouldn't auto-zoom with any lenses, it wouldn't sync to 2nd curtain, it wouldn't fire at high speeds, it wouldn't even display your current f-stop on it's big ol' LCD screen. So, I mailed the thing back to B&H, spent an additional $60, and got the 420EX. I am very happy I spent the additional money. The 420EX was apparently designed with/for the Elan 7 (as I have read in these reviews) and I am more than pleased with its performance. It does 2nd-curtain sync, modeling light strobe, excellent grid-type AF assist, power zoom and so much more. And it's compatible in Canon's ingenius wireless flash system! Don't hesitate to buy this flash if you need something that's almost as powerful as the 550ex and half as expensive.

Customer Service

so far, none needed for flash. for other products, always fast and courteous.

Similar Products Used:

Vivitar 850af, Achiever 260af, vivitar 283, 2800, 2800D.

construction, output, swivel and bounce functions, match to my Canon camera

cost

Lots of bang for the buck. My photos improved tremendously over the pop-up fill flash unit on my Elan II.

Customer Service

not needed

Similar Products Used:

nil

Power, easy to use with excellent results.

None

I purchased the 420EX to use with my Canon PowerShot G2. It is easy to use in the auto mode as the camera takes care of all of the settings. It is as easy as using the built in flash and the pictures are excellent.

Swivel/Tilt Zoom Head Great exposure from 28mm to 105mm Fully automatic

Tilt head only starts locking at 60o, you can tilt it to 45o but it won''''''''t lock so you need to take care of having the head properly tilted, especially in crowds. Fully automatic (Depends on ones preferences)

I bought the 420EX to use with my Elan7E/EOS 33. So far it''''''''s worked very well. I''''''''ve used it outside as much as inside for portraits to candids and as fill in outside. I have not noticed dark corners at 28mm and shots are well exposed through out the 28-105 range. Add a Stoffen OmniBounce to it and it really adds another dimension to your people photography.

Similar Products Used:

Some older model Canon flashes and Vivitar products

Price is its greatest strength. You could almost buy two of these for the price of a 550EX. Great range and perfect size and weight. Able to be swiveled and tilted. Especially good indoors and close range.

Swivel only goes 90 degrees CW while it goes a full 180 CCW. These should be switched for vertical format shots. Tilting has click stops only as low as 60 when most of my tilting looks best at 45-30 degrees. No manual adjustments can be made other than esposure compensation in the camera. My shots at 28mm have slightly dark corners and a manual zoom to 24 would easily fix the problem.

This little trooper is the answer to a lot of my questions concerning flash photography. I moved into the AF arena with an EOS 3 after using a late 70s Minolta without TTL flash metering and boy has this been nice. For the price, it''s better than anything out on the market. Wonderful exposures every time and the distance is suitable 80% of the time. Great color and temperature and even better with Stofen Omnibounce. Not quite enough power to use in FP synch but still a very good flash. It''s nice to see what the flash hits using the modeling flash feature and the FEL is a great innovation and can be used as sort of a flash spot meter. Best results and full potential achieved with fast recycle times and long life via 1700mah NIMH rechargeable batteries.

Customer Service

None used. The AF assist red plastic cover came off after only 6 monthes of use but nothing super glue couldn''t fix.

Similar Products Used:

None really in comparison.

Flash output is excellent Easy operation Gn 42 is enough in 90% of cases Slave function

Noisy No master function

I was looking for a flash so I went for the 550EX. The 550EX provided me to many options that I was not going to use so I decided to go for the cheaper 420EX. The 420EX is an excellent flash providing the right amount of light everytime. The unit is also smaller than the 550EX. I would have liked the 420EX to cover till 20 mm instead of till 24 mm. I was told (although I am not completely sure) after I bought the flash that the technique comes from Metz. Metz flashes are cheaper.

Customer Service

Not needed

Head swivel 360 degree (horizontal + vertical) 2nd curtain made possible on the camera AF assist beam is great Hi-speed sync enabled Without LCD, less chance for electronic breakdown

Noisy when recharging A bit heavy, still.

This flash is excellent only when used with EOS30/33/7E.

Excellent ability to reach subjects farther away. Produces great flash pictures.

Have not found any.

I was looking for a flash to get the extra light not provided with the standard built in flash on my Canon Elan 7 camera. The Canon 420EX certainly does that. When I got my pictures back that were taken in a pretty dark bar with some friends from work I could not believe the difference from the standard flash. The colours were great, very clear and the entire bar was lite up. Well worth the money spent. Note the dollar figure for cost is in Canadian dollars. This would equal about $200 US.

Customer Service

Not needed.

Similar Products Used:

Just the built in flash on the Elan 7.

smaller, lighter than 550ex

exposure compensation done via camera body, no connecting port for canon battery pack

I needed a second flash for my two eos-3s and once I saw this come on the market realized it would be as good as another 550ex since I wanted a second flash for off camera work in the field and didn't need the power or gizmos from a second 550. The 420 is a lot smaller and lighter without sacrificing too much power and has most of the major features that make using its bigger brother a pleasure. The lack of exposure compensation on the unit itself is a pain, but only a minor one; you just have to program it via the camera body. So, too, is the lack of a battery pack port. I use Quantums so it's not bad for me, but anyone who uses a Canon pack will be disapppointed. All in all, this is a good buy as a back up to the 550ex; it's great to have the wireless flash system without having to drop so much cash on another 550.

Customer Service

i haven't broken this - yet - but canon pro services up here is terrific

Similar Products Used:

550ex, 540ez, 430ez