Batteries --- AAs

[mike simons]

Howdy --

 

Looking for battery advice:

 

Can't move into the realm of Quantuum SC or anything in the next year or so,

and I'm looking for input/feedback anyone has on NiMH AA's or AA sets (4-8

batteries, or more, with charger) that they've had a great deal of success

with. I know the higher the mAh, the better off we are, but didn't know if

folks had any horror stories or good experiences to share within the realm of

AA's.

 

Mine will be for my two 580EX's; ETTL, event photography... day-long affairs,

etc.

 

Hope that's enough for some feedback. Thanks!

 

-Mike

[annealmasy]

We use the Energizer 2500 MaH batteries, and they're fantastic. We both will Wizard off the

same flashes during the reception for up to 4 hours without noticing any lag in recyle time,

and very few naturals. A much better investement than the standard AAs! :)

[wedding-photography-denver]

I don't know what others like but my faves are the Sanyo 2700mah.

 

One note: (I just read about this) NiMH batteries will likely go through the roof price wise since the pound prices of Nikel have recently gone from $7 per pound to $20. This is just speculation on my part.

 

Best, D.

[conraderb]

Mike - I am a huge fan of the PowerEx Maha NiMH batteries:

 

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha_2700_rechargeable_batteries.php

 

I am using four sets of them in my four 580EX's as we speak. They are powerful and hold their charge well, IMHO. vastly superior to alkalines, which is what I was using before I woke up and smelled the coffee.

 

I shot a wedding for 12.5 hours this saturday and I didn't change any of them.

 

highly recommended. just don't use a cheap charger - I use this one:

 

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/mhc401fs.htm

 

and it gives them lots of juice. it's really not as fast as they say, but that's okay. it also makes the batts really hot on 'fast' mode, but it does a good job...

 

I was considering a quantum battery, but $100 worth of batteries and a charger made me hold off on the $400 quantum purchase. plus they can be used in many flashes at once...and are compact and quick to use. I shoot with two cameras all the time, so AA's are a better solution than having a separate battery with a cord.

[conraderb]

david - where did you hear that from? you armchair economist, you :-)

[jorge_garcia4]

I second and third Conrad! Great product.

[kaiyen]

I got a bit scared at this "helping a friend who is helping a friend" wedding. Had only 1 spare set of Maha's after using 10 in my SB800's, 8 in my Sunpak 120's, and 4 more in the SB-28 I lent my friend.

 

Never ran of juice on any of them. And the 120J's still recycled quite well.

 

allan

[phoneguy]

I use the Duracell 2650 mAh rechargables, and they work well.

[armando_rodrigues]

I use the maha powerex 2700 as well (6 sets of 4). I shoot with two bodies (5D w/ battery grip), and although I have extra camera batteries, I like the versatility of being able to use the AAs in the 580ex, and being able to use them in the grips as well if some camera battery calamity was to occur.

 

If you get some rechargeables, make sure you begin the process by refreshing them right off the bat. This will ensure they reach their potential immediately. Therefore, I'd recommend you get a charger that can refresh new or used batteries. I use a couple of Lacrosse Bc-900. Maha has some equivalent ones.

[iskandar_azaman___kuala_lu]

I use the Ansmann Energy 16 charger and Ansmann 2600mAh batteries. The great thing about this charger is that it's an intelligent charger and can charge almost any size battery. For AA's, it can charge up to 12 at a time. So for me that's a time saver when getting ready for a wedding. I have a charger for AA that charges 12 at once and I also have 4 camera battery chargers. So i just leave 'em all overnight and i'm ready for a wedding the next day.

 

I highly recommend Ansmann batteries and chargers.

[picturesque]

I also have the Ansmann Energy 16 and batteries. Great product.

[Gary Naka]

There is a trade-off, the higher the mah rating the less recharge cycles you get, or so I read. But, if you need the capacity for a commercial shoot, then there really isn't a choice, you need to go with the high cap batteries.

 

I use Lenmar 2000mah, but only because I got a deal on a 10 pack when I started (and back then 2000mah was the highest available) and recently another deal on a 20 pack. They work fine for me.

 

I recently got a Maha 8 cell charger, and I'm happy with it. LOTs better than my old 4 cell charger. The new chargers have better monitoring of the battery when charging and will identify a bad battery (found 2 of my old batteries were bad). And the 8 cell capacity makes charging multiple sets a LOT faster than 4 at a time.

 

I use both AA and Quantum Turbo or Lumedyne HV packs, depending on what I'm shooting and if I need the fast recycle speed or not. Warning, once you use a HV pack you might be hooked, I am. Speed is adictive :-) I sometimes use the HV pack even when I have no need for the fast recycle. But be realistic, go HV only if you NEED the FAST recycle, speed costs $$$. And on an all day event you may need 2 or even 3 HV packs, depending on how much you shoot.

 

Example where a HV pack is valuable, at a wedding there are 3 places where you may need the fast recycle. #1 the processional, if they stack up and come down the aisle too fast, your flash may not recycle when the next couple is at the shoot spot. #2 the recessional, sometimes they are almost running out, again they are moving too fast for a slow recycle flash. #3 the garter/bouquette toss, between the toss and the catch/scramble is no more than 2 seconds. Beyond these 3 are events where an unexpected sequence makes a FAST followup important...a bad example is the cake feeding exchange and one person shoves the cake into the face of the other, its over in seconds.

 

BTW, you can rent Quantum Turbo batteries. So if you NEED the FAST recycle time, go rent one.