# vivitar vs canon (flashes)



## swmocity (Jul 27, 2008)

how much better is the canon over the vivitar...if its any better at all....i really need a flash but not really sure...is canon worth the extra money?
help!

vivitar





http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/542936-REG/Vivitar_DF400MZC_DF400MZ_Digital_TTL_Shoe.html


canon 430 ex






http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/397664-GREY/Canon_0298B002_430EX_Speedlite_TTL_Shoe_Mount.html


----------



## Zansho (Jul 27, 2008)

The viditar is slightly less powerful than the canon version. GN of 131 at 85mm (max zoom on the flash), versus Canon's GN of 141 at 105mm.  Canon wins in the power department.

The vivitar has only 5 power adjustments.  The canon can go down to as much as 1/64th power (which can be a big advantage in certain situations) - I suspect this will be very useful if it's going to be used off camera - heck it's still usefull even if it's on camera.  The Canon wins here.

The vivitar is 99 bucks, as opposed to the $244 that canon wants for their flash.  I suppose you could purchase a few of the vivitar units and use them for off camera stuff, but I like the fact that the canon can work with other Canon flashes (580 EX II) as a slave for off camera stuff.  

Really, several pros and cons.  Remember, you get what you pay for.


----------



## swmocity (Jul 27, 2008)

Zansho said:


> The viditar is slightly less powerful than the canon version. GN of 131 at 85mm (max zoom on the flash), versus Canon's GN of 141 at 105mm. Canon wins in the power department.
> 
> The vivitar has only 5 power adjustments. The canon can go down to as much as 1/64th power (which can be a big advantage in certain situations) - I suspect this will be very useful if it's going to be used off camera - heck it's still usefull even if it's on camera. The Canon wins here.
> 
> ...


thanks that helped alot...id rather pay more to get a better product...im really not into off camera flahes and things like that so i probably wont be purchasing any vivitar more flash units..canon it is..also "slave" i see that word alot...what is it though?...one more thing, do u know if this site is legit

http://www.pricingdepot.com/compare.asp?item=0298B002&show=reviews


----------



## Mike30D (Jul 27, 2008)

swmocity said:


> thanks that helped alot...id rather pay more to get a better product...im really not into off camera flahes and things like that so i probably wont be purchasing any vivitar more flash units..canon it is..also "slave" i see that word alot...what is it though?...one more thing, do u know if this site is legit
> 
> http://www.pricingdepot.com/compare.asp?item=0298B002&show=reviews



It depends if you're talking about slaves that trigger your flashes wirelessly or as in the way you can slave your extra canon flashes to the one attached to your camera.

I don't know about that site. I would buy from B&H if I were going to buy online. They are one of the biggest online dealers known for they're great selection and customer service.


----------



## swmocity (Jul 27, 2008)

Mike30D said:


> *It depends if you're talking about slaves that trigger your flashes wirelessly or as in the way you can slave your extra canon flashes to the one attached to your camera.*
> 
> I don't know about that site. I would buy from B&H if I were going to buy online. They are one of the biggest online dealers known for they're great selection and customer service.


ok u lost me lol..i have no idea what all that is


----------



## Mike30D (Jul 27, 2008)

They attach to your off-camera flash and sense the light from your other flash when it fires and in turn fires your off-camera flash. A lot of studio flashes have these built in.

Canon flashes have this ability. When you have two or more, you can fire other canon flashes wirelessly with the one that's attached to your hotshoe on your camera.


----------



## Zansho (Jul 27, 2008)

The 430 EX can act as a slave to a 580 EX for purposes of off camera lighting.  This is a useful feature to have if you have a desire to get into off camera lighting at a later point in time (believe me, once you've tried it.. it'll be hard to keep using straight on flash).  

That being said, I'd still buy the Canon.  If you just want a flash that just fires, and works in fully manual mode, I'd explore some Sunpak and Vivtar options.


----------



## RyanLilly (Jul 27, 2008)

The canon can be a slave to the 580ex or the canon commander module. It can still utilize e-TTL metering wirelessly, but needs line of sight because its IR. 

The Vivitar can be used as an optical slave, It just trigger when it sees another flash(any other flash), but you have to adjust the power manually.


----------

