Can I use a Canon Speedlite 430EX II on a 5D Mark III as my main flash?
Asked 7/7/2015
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I’ve heard that the Canon Speedlite 430EX II can only be used as a slave with the Canon 5D Mark III, and that I need a newer flash. It seems to work when mounted on the camera, but I’m new to the 5D Mark III and want to make sure I’m not missing any features. Can the 430EX II be used normally on-camera, and what does its lack of “master” capability actually mean?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
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THe 430EXII works fine with the 5D3 on-camera. All the features are supported, including controlling the flash settings through the camera menu (as opposed to on the flash directly, which is also supported).
The "slave" element you are referring to is as follows: when you want to use several flashes, one on the camera and one or more off-camera, the flash on the camera sends out a series of commands via infra-red[1] to the remote off-camera flashes. This is the "master" flash, and the remote flashes are the "slave" flashes. The 430EXII can't work as a "master" flash. What this means is that, if you have some other flashes off-camera, you can't put the 430EXII on your camera and control the remote flashes. You need one of the 500EX-series flashes to gain master functionality (550EX, 580EX, 580EXII), or else the ST2 transmitter.
Bottom line: if you want a single flash on-camera, the 430EXII is 100% compatible with the EOS 5D3.
[1] note that the 600EX flash uses radio signals instead, but that isn't compatible with 4xx and 5xx series flahes, so I've ignored it here.
Originally by user25957. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user25957
11y ago
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Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes — the Canon Speedlite 430EX II works normally on a Canon 5D Mark III as an on-camera flash. You do not need to replace it just to use it as your primary flash.
What it cannot do is act as a wireless optical “master” to control other Canon Speedlites. In Canon’s flash system, a master flash sits on the camera and sends control signals to off-camera slave flashes. The 430EX II can be used as a slave in that setup, but not as the master.
So if you only have one flash and want to use it on the camera, your 430EX II is fine. It also supports the usual Canon flash functions on the 5D Mark III, including flash settings through the camera menu.
You’d only need a different flash or trigger system if you later want to control multiple off-camera flashes wirelessly from the camera.
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