I just got my second set of Maha PowerEx Imedion batteries! I’ve been using rechargeable batteries ever since I got my first remote controlled car. Back then, the batteries were NiCd (nickel-cadmium), took 6-10 hours to fully charge, lasted about an hour (non-stop use) and probably didn’t even hit 1000mAh. These days, NiCd has mostly been replaced by NiMH (nickel-metal hydride) which can be charged as quickly as 2 hours and can hit 2700mAh.
What really annoys me though, is how quickly either type of battery would discharge. My NiMH batteries can hardly last 2-3 weeks after being charged. And then Sanyo came along with their Eneloop batteries, which were claimed to hold 85% of their charge after 1 year! Skeptical at first, I tried my first set of AAA Eneloops on my portable MP3 player and speaker remote. True enough, the batteries lasted quite a bit. I could carry a spare AAA for my MP3 player and it didn’t empty out waiting to be used.
That’s when I decided to switch over to low-discharge batteries for my SB-600 flash. I decided to go with Maha PowerEx Imedion simply because they were cheaper than Eneloops and also were slightly higher capacity. That was in July 2009. More than a year later, my Imedions are still going strong, still storing between 1900mAh and 2100mAh (according to my charger).
I’ve personally not noticed any difference between a conventional 2400mAh NiMH and a low-discharge 2100mAh NiMH. The difference in flash recycle times, as far as I’m concerned, are the same (or so small as not to make much difference). But the important bit for me is how long the batteries last after charging because I never know in advance when I’ll be using my flash. So I didn’t hesitate much to buy these second generation Imedions which are rated at 2400mAh.
Some people will probably still prefer the higher capacity of conventional NiMH batteries, but if you’re like me and just need to pick up a flash whenever you need it and don’t have the time to manage multiple sets of batteries in various states of discharge, then go for low-discharge batteries like the Imedions and Eneloops.
Oh yeah, if you’re wondering about the images, the wide shot was taken with my 50mm at F/8 and the closeup using my 90mm at F/20. Both scenes were lit using a fluorescent table lamp. The white backdrop is just a simple sheet of art paper. The camera was on a tripod.
2 comments
F20? The shot looks pretty shallow DOF for F20
The D70s shows effective aperture. Although technically the Tamron 90mm has a F/2.8 – F/32 aperture range, if you go down to macro level, effective aperture can be F/64 if I’m not mistaken. But yeah, for that image it’s at F/20 (effectively).
At almost 1:1, it’s not that shallow, the text from “400 mAh Rech” is sharp. If I were to have left it at F/2.8 (readout would say F/3.2), only “40? would be sharp.