# Canon 6D II problem with 430 EX II



## dvet (Oct 4, 2018)

Hey folks,
I’ve purchased a 6D Mark II to replace my original 6D and have a problem with my 430 EX II.
I’m shooting in manual mode for the 6D and E-TTL for the 430 with the speedlite in the hotshoe, and am getting completely different flash exposures from time to time while takig a series of the same shots.
I have 3x430 EX II speedlites and all have the same issue. I never had this issue with the original 6D and the same speedlites.
Since I work with a flash most of the time during events you can imagine how this is a ball breaker.
Before I go through the troubles of shipping the camera to canon, I was hoping someone here would have some advice on the isssue.
Thanks!!
Mitya


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## Valvebounce (Oct 4, 2018)

Hi Mitya. 
My only thought is are you in Auto ISO or have you set that too? I know the cameras usually seem to set ISO 400 for flash but perhaps this is behaving differently from the original 6D and fluctuating trying to equalise the ambient or something? 
I’m sure someone who knows more about flash and the 6DII will chime in! 

Cheers, Graham.


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## dvet (Oct 4, 2018)

Valvebounce said:


> Hi Mitya.
> My only thought is are you in Auto ISO or have you set that too? I know the cameras usually seem to set ISO 400 for flash but perhaps this is behaving differently from the original 6D and fluctuating trying to equalise the ambient or something?
> I’m sure someone who knows more about flash and the 6DII will chime in!
> 
> Cheers, Graham.



Hi Graham,

my ISO is never in Auto when I use a flash...


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## Valvebounce (Oct 4, 2018)

Oh well that blows that theory out of the water, no idea then! 

Cheers, Graham. 



dvet said:


> Hi Graham,
> 
> my ISO is never in Auto when I use a flash...


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## stevelee (Oct 4, 2018)

I use flash so rarely that I have to take batteries out of the unit to keep from having to clean corrosion off the terminals. I realize that I've had my 6D2 for a year now, and I've never had the flash hooked to it. So I can be of no help to you.


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## YuengLinger (Oct 4, 2018)

A few thoughts come to mind. First, the Speedlites don't have enough time to recycle and fully charge. Do you think you might be firing more quickly with the new camera? Could the batteries be part of the issue? (Have they hit the wall in recharge life?)

Light flickering from fluorescents or LED's can cause odd exposure issues. Does the 6D II have the anti-flicker function?

I've also noticed, when I put my lights on stands and use ETTL instead of manual mode, if the subject is not in the proper spot, the ETTL apparently makes an exposure adjustment. This really became an issue when photographing a Navy commissioning ceremony and the officers wearing white had to be exactly in position. If they were even a little away from the taped "X's" on the ground, I'd get exposure swings. (The reason I went with ETTL in this situation: I had to set up my lights just before sundown, but the officers would not be in place for the "first salute" until nearly complete dark. Yes, I used a stand-in as darkness fell, but she wasn't wearing bright white, and, more importantly, she was exactly placed on the X marks, whereas the officers were off by a few feet because they were quite emotional--and I obviously couldn't interrupt the great moment with whispered directions.)

Sorry, I only have the 5Dx bodies, not 6D, but I have found that when using ETTL, little things can make changes to the exposure. ETTL is great in most cases, but can still surprise me occasionally.


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## dvet (Oct 5, 2018)

YuengLinger said:


> A few thoughts come to mind. First, the Speedlites don't have enough time to recycle and fully charge. Do you think you might be firing more quickly with the new camera? Could the batteries be part of the issue? (Have they hit the wall in recharge life?)
> 
> Light flickering from fluorescents or LED's can cause odd exposure issues. Does the 6D II have the anti-flicker function?
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reply! The anti flicker option could be causing the issue, I ‘ll turn it of and try again...


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## dvet (Oct 5, 2018)

dvet said:


> Thanks for the reply! The anti flicker option could be causing the issue, I ‘ll turn it of and try again...


the anti flicker option was turned of, so it wasn't it. the batteries are fine too...


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## ajfotofilmagem (Oct 5, 2018)

I had a problem similar to 430EX ii (two units of it) when used on T2i. Eventually the TTL information failed and the flash fired at full power, or it did not fire at all. There was no corrosion in the electrical contacts, but even so, the problem was solved by removing the flash from the shoe and putting it back on. After I switched to T5i, the problem never showed up again.


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## dvet (Oct 5, 2018)

ajfotofilmagem said:


> I had a problem similar to 430EX ii (two units of it) when used on T2i. Eventually the TTL information failed and the flash fired at full power, or it did not fire at all. There was no corrosion in the electrical contacts, but even so, the problem was solved by removing the flash from the shoe and putting it back on. After I switched to T5i, the problem never showed up again.


thanks for your reply... as of now I see no other options


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## Act444 (Oct 5, 2018)

ajfotofilmagem said:


> I had a problem similar to 430EX ii (two units of it) when used on T2i. Eventually the TTL information failed and the flash fired at full power, or it did not fire at all. There was no corrosion in the electrical contacts, but even so, the problem was solved by removing the flash from the shoe and putting it back on. After I switched to T5i, the problem never showed up again.



Wow. Way back when I had my T2i and 430EX II, I had that problem crop up once as well. Flash fired at full power for the whole event - but at the time, the camera was fairly new to me and I wasn't sure how to troubleshoot the issue. Once I switched the T2i out for a 60D and the 430EX out for a 580EX, I never had that issue again, and since.

To this day I still don't know what the issue was, but it was quite annoying and nearly ruined the shoot. I thought it was just a fluke thing - at least, until I opened this thread...


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## ajfotofilmagem (Oct 6, 2018)

I believe it was a software mismatch with that particular combination of camera + flash. In the past, I've had compatibility problems with Sigma flash, and I promised myself I would never buy a third-party flash again. When I bought the T2i, I already had 2 units of the 430EXii, and I got really pissed off with the problem. In fact, the problem only occurred after the camera "woke up" from the stand by, and never in the middle of a shootout. To minimize the appearance of this fault, I set the auto power off time to the longest possible time.


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## Durf (Oct 6, 2018)

They must of fixed it with the 430EXiii, as this flash model works great on my T6i, 80D, and 6D2.


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## LDS (Oct 8, 2018)

Is the camera firmware up to date?


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## dvet (Oct 8, 2018)

LDS said:


> Is the camera firmware up to date?


sure


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## YuengLinger (Oct 8, 2018)

dvet said:


> the anti flicker option was turned of, so it wasn't it. the batteries are fine too...


Misunderstanding:
using anti flicker should help with exposure problems under artificial lighting.


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## stevelee (Oct 8, 2018)

YuengLinger said:


> Misunderstanding:
> using anti flicker should help with exposure problems under artificial lighting.


With flash?


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## dvet (Oct 8, 2018)

YuengLinger said:


> Misunderstanding:
> using anti flicker should help with exposure problems under artificial lighting.


I am surprised why that worked with my original 6D and with a 5D IV without any problems then... none of them had antiflicker (turned on on the 5D IV) with the same flash...


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## YuengLinger (Oct 8, 2018)

stevelee said:


> With flash?





YuengLinger said:


> Misunderstanding:
> using anti flicker should help with exposure problems under artificial lighting.


Yes, because ambient light changes during flickering.
But we seem to be pretty much just brainstorming in this thread because nothing so far is working for the OP.
He or she really needs to reproduce the problem in a controlled situation before sending the camera away for repair. Then make adjustments and see what the problem is. If nothing works then send to Canon.


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