Choosing The Best Rechargeable Battery

My Nikon D300 digital camera with an MB10 accessory grip and three Nikon Speedlight flashes use twenty AA batteries just to get started. After I throw a few radio triggers in the camera bag it adds six AAA batteries and at least one CR2 battery for the transmitter. That is a whole lot of batteries before considering the fact that you are likely to need that many more as backup units. I counted all the batteries I took on one recent photo shoot and came up with a total of 68.


It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to arrive at the conclusion that you will soon be bankrupted by using disposable batteries in such large quantities. In addition to camera equipment, you probably have many other devices around the house adding to your total battery consumption. Some people tell me they can’t be bothered with charging batteries before using them and they will not buy rechargeable batteries for that reason but for people like me who use batteries constantly and in power gulping devices like electronic flashes, the rechargeable option makes much more sense.


The good news is that you can now buy rechargeable batteries that come pre-charged from the manufacturer and can be used straight from the package. These batteries are often referred to as hybrids because of the way they combine the benefits of pre-charged disposable batteries and those of multiple use rechargeable batteries.


A big problem with traditional rechargeable batteries is their characteristic high self-discharge rate, sometimes referred to as “shelf discharge,” meaning that rechargeable batteries loose power even when they are not being used. The newer rechargeable hybrid or low self-discharge (LSD) batteries can retain up to eighty percent or more of their charge for six to eight months depending on the brand and the power rating of the battery.


Even though rechargeable batteries generally start out at a slightly lower voltage than non-rechargeable batteries, they make up the difference because they tend to use the power at a more consistent rate as the battery is discharged. The way a battery consumes power has a lot to do with how you use it, another reason why it is often difficult to do meaningful comparisons between battery types or brands. Testing may give you an idea of how the batteries perform within the parameters of the test and not how they will perform in actual use.


For example; one battery may do well in a device that draws power continuously as in a flashlight that is left on until completely draining the batteries, while other batteries are better at delivering large bursts of energy at random intervals in devices like cameras and electronic flash units. The problem is that you may use batteries in a way that is completely different from the way they were tested, making the test results slightly or totally misleading.


After doing a some investigation I came to the realization that I would need to test a lot of batteries in order to gather enough information to be meaningful. Testing four brand A batteries against four brand B batteries does not provide conclusive information because of the small sample size and because one bad battery can completely skew the test results. There is no simple battery test that will tell you if one brand is a significantly better performer for every intended use, especially when testing in very small quantities.


There are many online sources for battery tests including the battery manufacturer’s websites, which can teach you a lot about batteries (and marketing). You can also check out user reviews on retail sites like www.amazon.com It’s not a perfect decision making tool but it may provide some insight using other peoples experience.


There is a very good battery comparison at http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=79302 where you can compare the discharge rates of many different batteries.


There is also a pretty good discussion of low self discharge batteries at http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1023&thread=26078814


An interesting result of all this testing is that the performance of rechargeable batteries seems pretty consistent between many of the top brands. What this means in practical terms is that you can choose the lowest cost battery that is readily available where you live and by purchasing locally you can pick up spares as needed. I was able to offset some of the cost of my initial rechargeable battery purchase by surfing local sales and using discount coupons. It may be more difficult to find a specific brand of low self discharge batteries locally.


So you’ve made it this far and may be asking what type of batteries a person who has spent way too much time researching batteries uses. I was pretty stoked about the Powerex Imedion 2100 (LSD) batteries when they came out but those have now been eclipsed by the recently released Powerex Imedion 2400 batteries. That’s a 14% increase in power! The best part is that they come pre-charged and ready to go right out of the package.


Don’t get me wrong, you can’t go wrong with Sanyo Eneloops or many of the other major players either. Right now I have the Powerex Imedions in my NIkon SB900, SB800 and SB600 flash units and the Sanyo Eneloop batteries in all my wireless flash triggers. I’m also currently testing some of the Rayovac Hybrid batteries in my Nikon MB10 battery grip. I’m using low self discharge batteries as my primary power source and regular rechargeable batteries as backups or for bigger jobs where I need to use more flash units. The biggest difference is that I have to remember to charge the regular rechargeable batteries a day or two before I use them.


I have run across a lot of other good resources and information about batteries that are worth sharing so here are a few in no particular order.


http://www.mahaenergy.com Buy direct or use the store locator on the website. The local retailer in St. Louis did not have Imedion batteries in stock when I checked (August 2010).


Maha Energy Corporation 1128 Coiner Court, City of Industry, CA 91748


Toll Free: 1-800-376-9992 Office: 626-363-9017 Fax: 626-363-9010


http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/ReduceWaste/power/rechbattinfo.htm This is a very good eco-friendly site put out by the state of California with loads of great information on batteries. Watch out, they may convince you that you don’t even need batteries.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Low_self-discharge_NiMH_battery A short article on the basics of how a low self-discharge battery works.


http://climber.org/gear/batteries.html Battery wisdom from on high! Several mountaineers tell you everything they have learned the hard way about using batteries in cold and demanding environments.


http://www.rechargeable-battery-review.com/ All about rechargeable batteries and battery reviews. Do You Use or Are You Planning To Buy Rechargeable Batteries?


http://michaelbluejay.com/batteries/ A good battery guide and comparison. If you have no idea what to choose this guy will tell you. It’s a good plain talking guide about the good, the bad and the ugly battery.


One of the most consistently recommended sources for purchasing batteries and chargers online is Thomas Distributing.http://www.thomasdistributing.com/


For some of the world’s most powerful low self-discharge batteries you will ever see… as in, “Do you feel lucky punk?” go towww.horizonbattery.com where you can buy the Ansmann Max E 2500 mah AA batteries directly from the manufacturer.


I like also to use http://www.amazon.com for the service, convenience and customer reviews.

External Validation

I finally heard back from the folks at http://www.istockphoto.com/ and it appears that my submissions were in fact up to stock snuff. So now I will be combing thru the archives over here looking for the one half of one percent of shots that may be suitable for stock images and submitting those a few at a time while hopefully adding a few more to the collection as I go along. I don’t know if it will amount to much but at least now I can further confuse people I meet on the streets by telling them that I shoot stock photography. “Huh?”

No new photography adventures this week (so far) but I am planning on going to a meetup of the St. Louis version of the strobist group from http://www.flickr.com/ and meeting some of those colorful charactors in person. We are going to be shooting some high end sports cars which is something I had never really thought about doing before so I should be able learn something in the process. I’m hoping to try out some new lighting gear while I am there.

The gang over at http://www.adventurecanoe.com/ is also getting together this weekend for a quick float trip, so that made for a tough choice between paddling canoes or photographing cars. I’m hoping I will still get to go camping (and canoeing) sometime in October for a little fall color action out in the wild woods of the Missouri Ozarks. I’m hoping for an Indian Summer this year.

The Strobist Bootcamp II, Assignment IV, winner is supposed to be announced over at http://www.strobist.blogspot.com/ on Monday 09/28/09. I’m curious to see the results on that one which was on the subject of transportation. I’ve had a good time taking photographs in the process of doing those assignments.

Right now I’m looking for some sort of bag or case to throw my light stands, adaptors and flash units in. I seem to have a lot of little boxes and nothing really fits or is easy to access all those small parts and connectors. Of course there is no budget for new cases, bags or backpacks (as usual) so I’m a little stumped for what to use. The lightstands and umbrellas fit in an old baseball bat case I found for $2 but it’s all the other junk like cords, chargers, batteries, filters, clamps and flashes that I can’t figure out what to do with. I think I need something like a tackle box with lots of little compartments. A waterproof Pelican case would work well since I like to venture outdoors with all this junk every now and then.

No Salt

It’s Saturday night and all is quiet… Too quiet and that’s what is irritating me for some reason. Nothing much is happening and that means not much progress is being made. The world has taken something out of me this week but rather than complain, I’ll try recapping my activities instead.

I ordered another flash on Friday and took some more demolition photos under bad midday light. This whole week has been slow as far as photographs go but I do have some ideas sloshing around in my brain for next week even though the new flash will probably not make it until Thursday or Friday.

I could use another flash (radio) trigger but I’m thinking of upgrading, so it will probably end up being a bit longer before I buy anything new since I don’t want to add stuff I’m not going to use going into the future. I’m hoping to test a few of the new flash triggers by Radio Popper and Pocket Wizard soon to see if I can settle on a clear favorite. Of course the reality is that you can only use what exists at the time you want to use it even though a lot of tempting things are in the works. New gear is always exciting but often more of a want or a wish than an actual needed item to get the job done.

On a more mundane level, I also need a few more reflectors. I have been using the plastic sheets that yard signs and store displays often made of. That material (Coroplast) seems to hold up better for me than foam core board which is also popular to use as a reflector. Coroplast can be wiped off when it gets dirty and is easy to cut like Foamcore material. You can also use it to make gridded snoots for your shoe mount flashes. I think I’m going to need a few more pieces of it for my outdoor photos next week. It’s pretty handy stuff and it is inexpensive when compared to the other options like collapsible reflectors.

David Hobby has a new Strobist Boot Camp assignment (sbc2assign4) going on right now over at www.strobist.blogspot.com so I am going to try throwing some effort in that direction because it is a lot of fun and a chance to interact with some other photographers as well as actually learning a new trick or two. The subject this time is “Transportation.” There are also some cool prizes for the winning shot to motivate you so go check it out.

DIY Ring Flash For Strobes

I've posted some photos on my flickr page showing the DIY Ring Flash under construction. You can go directly there by clicking on the title of this post. I'll be putting the finishing touches on this project just in time for my vacation where I hope to put it to good use. The hardest thing about any project seems to be getting all the parts and tools together. I've kept this one pretty simple and learned a few things in the process of building my own ring flash adaptor. If you have been longing for an affordable ring flash as much as I have, then I hope you will find the information useful.

To And Fro

What's the matter with me,
I don't have much to say,
Daylight sneakin' through the window
And I'm still in this all-night cafe.
Walkin' to and fro beneath the moon
Out to where the trucks are rollin' slow,
To sit down on this bank of sand
And watch the river flow.

- Bob Dylan, "Watching The River Flow."

It's been a weird week with people and dogs in the hospital. Not much happening photographically this week except for a couple of trips to buy supplies for lighting projects. The new flash should arrive this afternoon so I will be playing with that this weekend and reading the manual online at lunch time. I didn't win (didn't expect to) the Orbis ring flash in the Strobist Boot Camp II assignment, so I guess I'll have to get busy and build my own instead...

'Tis A Thing Of Beauty

I might as well blog a little about my homemade beauty dish because it's pretty cool and good looking. I sometimes wish it were a tad bigger so I'll keep my eye out for another suitable bowl but I'm thinking about a ring flash at the moment.

I would also like to make a sock to put on the front of the BD for more diffusion when I'm taking photos of the ladies (hey it could happen). Another plus is that the beauty dish is a lot more compact than an umbrella so it works well in confined spaces (sort of). I guess the next project (or purchase) should be some sort of a boom so I don't have to shoot around the light stand all the time since this thing seems to work best when used on-axis or directly in front of the subject and that means the light stand is standing right in your way most of the time.

Lighting projects can be addictive and end up costing more in the long run if you get carried away. It's probably a good idea to sucker invite a friend to make things with you so you can shift split the cost of some supplies like spray paint and hardware.

Clicking on the image at the top of this post will take you to my flickr stream where you will find a parts list and notes on the photo.

Back To Basic (Training)

David Hobby is running Bootcamp II over at www.strobist.com right now so I've been trying my best to follow along and not make too big of an ass out of myself (hey I really am trying).

The idea is basically a simple cover shot using a couple of flashes. I already miss the nikon flash I borrowed from James but I hate borrowing things so I guess I will have to buy another flash as soon as I am able to afford it. The nikons can be turned way down to 1/64th power which makes working close (as in food shots) pretty nice. I picked up a little piece of plexiglass for this project. I wanted a bigger chunk to give me more working room but those were four times more than the price of the one I did get.

The girls made pesto last night and I was going to take photos of that too but I got started on another project instead. I did take a setup shot of this but it was so busy with junk as to be pretty useless. I'll work on that in the future (right). The background is made with a strobe firing through a diffusion panel I (we) made out of ripstop nylon. The super secret frame is made out of a garment hanging rack I bought at a large Texas based retail store. It works pretty well and even has wheels on it which often get in the way when you are trying to cram a lot of things into a small space like I was here. The front light is a snooted flash with a grid made out of plastic sign material.

The title "Salt & Pepper To Taste" sounds like something David Hobby might be fond of saying, though it did not occur to me at the time I posted this on flickr.