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Others | Home » » » Sigma EF-530 DG Super Electronic Flash for Canon DSLR | | | | | | | Description: | | The EF-530 DG SUPER is designed to work with both AF 35mm SLR and digital Nikon cameras. The EF-530 DG SUPER is a multifunctional shoe mount type flash that provides a large amount of light, featuring a guide number of 53/m (174/ft) w/ISO 100. Among the diverse features of this flash, are the Autozoom function, which automatically sets the illumination angle in accordance with the focal length of the lens iTTL exposure control, which automatically regulates the amount of light bounce and swivel head functions, which comes in very handy for bounce photography FP flash, which is capable of synchronizing the flash illumination with high shutter speeds and the rear curtain synchro flash mechanism, which makes delayed synchro photography possible. | | | Features: | |
• Type: Shoe Mount Guide No.: 92' (28 m) at 24mm 132' (40 m) at 50mm 174' (53 m) at 105mm Angle of Cov
| | | Product Details: | | | Product Length:
| 4.61 inches | | Product Width:
| 3.03 inches | | Product Height:
| 5.47 inches | | Product Weight:
| 0.74 pounds | | Package Length:
| 8.58 inches | | Package Width:
| 4.25 inches | | Package Height:
| 4.09 inches | | Package Weight:
| 1.54 pounds | | Average Customer Rating:
|  based on 17 reviews |
| | | | Customer Reviews: | |
Average Customer Review:
 ( 17 customer reviews )
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
22 of 22 found the following review helpful:
 A great flash with a huge bang for the buckAug 27, 2009
By M. Heltsley
Though the menu interface is not as nice as others, and the buttons look like they were taken from an 80's era toy, and the fact that the plastic feels cheaper than other brands this flash can hold its own against the best Canon can through at it. I had a 580ex I and while it was nice it weighed about twice as much as this 530 and did not put out a noticeable amount of power beyond this. I tested the flash on both at various f stops and power levels using full manual shutter/fstop/iso and flash power levels and found that for each fstop/power level combo I used for the 580 that the 530 provided just as much light output and my pictures were just as bright, with a slight difference at full power with f18 or higher where the 580 did push a tiny bit more light into my shots, but it is not enough matter in ANY of the other shots.
The recycle time is great on all but the 1/1 full power manual mode, where it is still better than a 580 or my 430 and heads and shoulders above a 550. It keeps up with me as well as the 580 does a stop down. It also outlasts a 580, which I always felt eats batteries more than uses them. The EF-530 seems to last about the same as a 430 somehow even though it puts out light like a 580. I am no electrical engineer but I am not sure how this is possible, but in my experience that is how it is.
It costs less than a 430, half of what a 580 runs you and does more than either one.
It does FP i.e. High Speed Sync with great results. It does second (rear) curtain sync, it can strobe based on a custom frequency you set up, so it can for instance pulse out a flash every second for 4 seconds or 5 per second for 1 second. This is cool for getting water drops, or bouncing balls, or any other moving object exposed multiple times in a single frame.
It can be a master flash, a slave flash, a non firing master, it has an optical trigger so it can be an optical slave. It works with all manor of remote triggers, albeit not as easily as a Canon does, you have to set the Sigma to the right mode first. It controls multiple slave groups via wireless, it works with ettl for automatic flash exposure, supports EV adjustments.
It does not have a sync port or pc port of any kind, it requires a hot shoe to fire or to be a remote wireless or optical slave. It pans and tilts though with 2 buttons like older flashes, not 1 button like the newer flashes do. That is more annoying than you might think.
The only real downside to this is how cheap it feels compared to the Canons, but with 2 Signas for the price of 1 580 and the fact that I have yet to actually break it in any way no matter how hard I have treated it I can honestly say that while it feels like it is of lesser quality it really isn't. Plus it is lighter than a 580, at least as light as a 430 give or take, so that may affect the feel of quality too.
I can honestly say that I would recommend this to anyone. In fact I do, to everyone who asks, because there is no good reason to pass this up. It does more, costs less, puts out roughly the same power, lasts longer, weighs less, looks good and works great. You won't regret it unless you are Brewster and need to spend your millions wastefully, at which point you would not care about reviews anyhow
18 of 20 found the following review helpful:
Mission AccomplishedMar 29, 2009
By D. T. Blume
I've had this flash for about 45 days, and finally put it through its paces yesterday when I took approximately 600 flash photos at a father/daughter dance. In a little over 90 minutes, the flash happily illuminated some 300 portrait shots using the flash and a MilaGrid BounceGrid II (BG-2) as a diffuser.
My sense is that the flash consistently took less than 2 seconds to recycle during this entire part of the shoot, and was often ready in a second or so (apparently it was not operating at close to its maximum power level). I could not bounce the flash due to the nature of ceiling, but the flash BounceGrid II combination produced very pleasing results.
I changed the four Ni-MH batteries at this point (and the camera battery), though the flash batteries were still going strong, and finished the next two hours of the shoot on the next set. In other words, I took another 300 plus images of activities on the dance floor and elsewhere around the event at distances from 3 to 50 or 60 feet.
I used a Sigma 17 to 70 lens, and frequently zoomed from one end of the range to the other. During these operations, the flash kept up nicely and adjusted its output as needed. The only weak shots were my fault, as I failed to realize on occasion that the camera had picked a different focal point than the one I intended.
The fit and finish of the flash is also excellent, and the BounceGrid Velcro attachment system seems quite adequate to the task, though in four or five years I may need to replace the Velcro!
Overall: highly recommended for those like me who can't afford to spend the extra to pick up one of the pricier Canon options.
5 of 5 found the following review helpful:
Great price for an average to decent flash.Dec 27, 2010
By Andrew Ma
"Rabid consumer"
The singular rating system on Amazon will be misleading...I'll caveat my 5 star rating with the statement that the 5 stars is based not only on the price/function, but also for the 'mainstream' user. This flash is for those looking to get strong power output at a decent price. That said, this flash is not nearly as good, and not even in the same league as the Canon 580EX series. I've shot Nikon and Canon for over 2 decades. I've had and used a lot of different brands of flashes, Nikon (which I think are the best flashes out there-and before everyone accuses me of being a Nikon lemming...I'm a Canon shooter), Canon, Sunpak, Sigma, and Quantum Qflash. Let me break this review into sections:
For the Pro shooter-This lacks a lot of features a pro would need. No external power option (quantum turbo battery), too few power level controls, no built in white card (Canon has one), and the wireless functions don't seem to work perfectly when pairing with Canon branded slave flashes. I would suggest this as a backup IF you cannot afford the Canon flashes and need a high GN ETTL flash. The IR lines given for help with dim light focusing is subpar to the Canon's by a long shot. Shoot in a dim room and the lenses 'hunt' more with the Sigmas than with the Canon flashes. There are other issues but I won't go into them because as you can above, those problems alone are deal killers for pro's.
For the Prosumer: The Sigma is a decent flash and will be good as backup flash but not as a primary IMO. There are some serious considerations that are quite negative if you are using this for gigs that you may get paid at or event gigs that require some flexbility in flash placement, light fall, etc... If you are an event shooter, this sigma does not like the lower voltage rechargeables as much as my Canon 580EX's did (Nikon's seem to get a lot more shots out of the batteries than my Canon, and Canon more than Sigma, so pack batteries accordingly). It would constantly refuse to recycle as quickly as the Canon with the same NiMH batteries (and I've tried Duracell, Eneloop, Tenergy, and Energizer NiMH batteries). Alkalines seem the only way to go here for this particular Sigma. I remember this being a slight issue with my older Sigma DG-500 series from a few years ago also. Functions are decent but one big hangup is that the bounce features of this camera on ETTL does NOT work that well. It constantly underexposes the picture. With the canon's, I never had that problem as the flash seemed to know it was on 'bounce' and would output accordingly. Another problem is the diffuser on the Sigma is decent but I did notice that with a true 'wide' lens like a 12mm the fall off is quite noticeable on the Sigma and not so much on the Canon. This is easily half the price of output comparable Canon 580 series flash so if you're on a budget and have to get two flashes, get two of these. My advice, is to shoot straight on and risk the harsh shadows (especially the portrait hold with battery grip), or get a flash rig that can keep the flash on top with either a flip or revolving set up (which adds to the weight considerably). You can control power output to some degree but not nearly as much control/ease as a Canon's rotating ring.
For the regular mom/pop user. This is the target group for this flash. This is an amazing flash for the $. Feed it alkalines which typically has lower self discharge than the rechargeables (except eneloop/some duracells) and the flash will always be ready to rock even after sitting in the bag for a season. The Guide Number (output) is very strong and you can buy two of these for the price of one Canon, and chances are most regular users will never need the other features that I've touched upon above. It has ETTL features that make it 'automatic' for all consumer/prosumerCanon digital SLR's.
[...] I could buy 3-4 of these for the price of one Canon. Bang for buck winner here...
12 of 15 found the following review helpful:
 2nd shutter curtain does not work with Canon, Master/Slave difficultiesOct 11, 2009
By Roman Albrecht
"Roman Albrecht"
I wanted to save money, so instead of Canon 580 I ordered 2x Sigma. First was not working, so I returned and Amazon flawlessly delivered replacement units. Replacement unit drain batteries when switched off, but again - discovered that after return window.
So ONE OF THREE WORKS and not as expected.Sigma EF-530 DG Super Electronic Flash for Canon DSLR
I did not have occasion to test it properly in time. When I did it now, I am so sorry I didn't do sooner..
1) tilting is locked by 2 buttons, which you are all the time confused which one you have to push to tilt, specially when you want to bounce in vertical position
2) you cannot setup 45 degree angle easily - stops are straight, 60, 75, 90 degrees
3) ETTL Master-Slave does not "copy" settings of the primary unit to slave, so when you zoom on master, slave remains in preset zoom
4) even though I according to manual switched master unit off to use it as controlling unit only, it still flashes
5) MOST IMPORTANT - when you use it with CANON Rebel T1i (500D), flash is not recognized in the camera menu, which means you CANNOT set 2nd curtain - something most of us use in night photography
2 of 2 found the following review helpful:
 Good, but not good enoughJul 01, 2009
By David Ian Smith
I had expected big things from this unit (I like Sigma's equipment), but although it was effective in direct flash mode, as soon as I used with a diffuser or in bounce flash mode it just wasn't up to the job. I returned it to Amazon and bought the Canon 580EX-II instead and what a difference! The Sigma doesn't feel all that solid, especially when compared to the Canon unit, but it is after-all almost half the price of the Canon flash. I must compliment Amazon on their speedy return policy, my account was credited within the week. Bottom-line, a good-enough budget flash for its price, but if you need performance get the Canon unit.
See all 17 customer reviews on Amazon.com
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