Battleangel | Personal

I got a Sigma ring flash for macro (and other) applications.

It’s a funky, somewhat bulky, not entirely intuitive, but necessary flash for making any sort of acceptable macro shots. Especially beyond 1:1. Now I’m also looking at Sigma’s 530 Super flash gun and some good LSD NiMH. The good thing about this flash is that like more expensive units it is in actuality two flash units forming a ring flash. This in turn means that you can regulate the power ratio between the two, or turn one off completely (though all of this means a fair bit of tinkering in the menus). This way, one can model the shadows a bit and avoid the shadowless, flat look that is often plaguing macro ring flashes. The major disadvantage of a ring flash is perhaps that there are no accessory diffusers and as such they have a real tendency to create unwanted reflections in certain subjects. Even if the head has some fairly opaque plastic in front of the lights. A diffuser is perhaps a suitable DIY project.

I figure there is no point in buying any Canon flashes plus I have so far been unable to find any 430EXII second hand. And besides, Canon isn’t exactly famous for its flash and lighting system.

As for the batteries, the NiMH I had (from "Vanson") proved to be quite poor. It figures since I had the batteries replaced shortly after buying them in a bundle with the charger. Almost five years ago. And NiMH do after all expire with time, so I suspect that the flash needs some fresher batteries. According to the specs, recycling time is about 6 seconds with Alkaline and 4 seconds with NiMH … so it’s a no-brainer really. The only issue here is the daunting cost of these second generation hydbrid (or LSD) NiMH. In my book they’re about 50% more than NiMH cells were when I started using them back in the day.