Canon Speedlite 430EX II

I have only just become a user of decent flash, preferring in the past to use natural light, or just not take the photo, firstly as I didn't own a decent flash unit and secondly because I preferred the light given off naturally. However as my skill as a photographer improved so did my need to use flash grew, finding more situations where although the light was good it wasn't right, or taking more formal portraits etc. Not having money to burn on something I wouldn't be able to use, I plumped to start with Canons small pro-flash the Canon Speedlite 430 EX II, this would give me most of the control of the bigger 580 EX (without the ability to use it as a master) ...  Read the complete review

This is my workhorse portably flash. I used it in conjunction with the Canon 5D body, and it's not let me down yet. It's equally at home being used directly on the camera, or being taken off and triggered with a cable or wireless trigger (you'll have to buy these though). I have used it for weddings, portraits sessions, pet photography and studio photography all with great sucess. The auto function is really excellent and in combination with the camera judges the light levels well, although it can sometimes overexpose and blow the highlights, so I tend to dial down the exposure compensation and then bump it up a little in post ...  Read the complete review