So I took your advice and got the 580EXII and used it for the first time at the Derby Dolls chanpionship game. I was amazed at how much it evenly lit huge areas or even select parts of an area. Check out this page where they susd a few of the pics and look how well the flash lit things up.
http://www.losanjealous.com/2007/12/...factory-12807/
Thanks for the advice, I'm glad I got the right flash! In fact I used it for the Naked Raygun pics later in the night and it was perfect. The technology on these things has sure improved sinced back in the day.