Canon 550EX Camera Accessories User Manual


 
6. Pilot Lamp and Test Firing
Set the Speedlites main switch to .
The flash will start charging. When the flash
is ready, the pilot lamp lights.
Red pilot lamp
When the flash is fully charged, the pilot
lamp lights in red. For normal use, confirm
that the pilot lamp is red before taking the
picture.
Yellow pilot lamp
When the camera is set for single shooting, a
yellow pilot lamp indicates a less-than-full
charge which enables a quick flash (see
description below). For close subjects which
do not require full-output flash, quick flash
shortens the recharging time.
To test the Speedlite, press the pilot
lamp (test firing button) to fire a test
flash.
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About Quick Flash
With the quick-flash feature, you can fire a flash even before the flash is fully charged. When the
pilot lamp is yellow, a quick flash can be fired. The Guide No. for a quick flash is 1/2 to 1/16 that of a
normal flash. For details, see page 121.
Quick flash cannot be fired in the following cases:
When the Speedlite is used with a Type-B camera.
The camera is set to continuous shooting .
FEB is used.
In the manual flash mode or stroboscopic flash mode with the output set to 1/1 and 1/2.
In the stroboscopic flash mode.
When TTL Hot Shoe Adapter 3 is used with the Speedlite.
When Custom Function CF-3 is set to 1 (TTL autoflash).
The Speedlite cannot be test fired during the 6 sec. after you press the cameras
shutter button halfway (while exposure metering is active).
If the Speedlite is in the SE mode, pressing the test firing button turns on the
Speedlite.
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