Canon has officially announced the Speedlite EL-1 Version 2, a revised iteration of its flagship professional flash unit originally released in 2021. The introduction of this updated model comes after a prolonged period in which the original EL-1 was largely unavailable due to persistent supply chain disruptions. Despite being on the market for several years, the first-generation EL-1 has remained on backorder at major retailers, including Canon’s own website.

The new model introduces minimal changes in technical specifications compared to its predecessor. Both flashes offer zoom coverage from 24mm to 200mm (in 35mm equivalent terms) and include a 14-degree angle of coverage. However, the guide numbers of the V2 model are slightly reduced: at the wide-angle position, the EL-1 V2 outputs a guide number of 14 meters at ISO 100, while the original EL-1 offered 14.1 meters. At 200mm, the guide number drops from 60 meters the original to 58 meters in the updated version.

In contrast to the slight decrease in output, the EL-1 V2 offers a marginal increase in battery efficiency. It delivers up to 340 full-power flashes per charge, five more than the 335 offered by the original. Both versions however use the same high-capacity rechargeable lithium-ion battery (LP-EL), feature a 0.9-second recycle time and support a wide power range from 1/1 to 1/8192. The two models also maintain identical dimensions, weighing 686 grams, and both are equipped with active cooling systems and weather sealing for extended durability in demanding environments.