Lighting & Studio External Power for Flash - Advice Needed

[Andy Smith]

Hi all,
Just looking for opinions or advice really, as I am finding my Canon MT-26EX twin light flash burns through batteries and I sometimes have to change them out during a stacking photo session which is not good as it means there is slight movement in the images.
I put new batteries whenever possible, but I don't want to do this every time I do a stack session with 100 plus images and it is starting to annoy me.
Has anyone got any experience or advice on external power packs? or ways of using an adapter for mains power?
I am looking at rechargeable batteries but my experience with them is that they do not last as long as normal batteries before the need to recharge.
The challenge is, if I have a subject I like to capture from a few different angles, I may be taking 500 plus images and I use the flash constantly, so any help, advice or tips would be hugely appreciated as I don't really want to keep buying loads of new batteries.

What do the pro's here do?

Thanks everyone..

 

[Chavezshutter]

Hi Andy,

I have never used an external battery pack for flash myself. I do keep a set of spare batteries on hand for my flash and usually is enough for most of my shooting. Having a quick look online you got a few options for you I found:

Option 1: You can actually use NiMH batteries in the flash unit, these last 2-4 times longer than regular alkaline batteries on a single charge as well as having longer overall lifespan (cycles) than regular rechargeable alkaline batteries ranging from 500-1000 cycles, you would be lucky to get much more than 20 for regular rechargable alkalines. This solution also means no external battery to have to carry/charge,etc. Here is a snip from the MT-26EX manual:



Option 2: As the snip above shows there is an external power battery pack (CP-E4N) that can be used, this is an 8 battery pack that you can connect to the flash, theoretically giving you 3 times the capacity for the flash. You should note however that even with this external battery pack you still need to have charged batteries in the flash unit ( it is mentioned in the throubleshoot section) and "..internal power source is required to control the MT-26EX-RT". That previous quote is from the following which a custom function of the flash which allows you to choose how the flash uses external power:



Hope it helps, we may have someone with more experience with these things that may have better input and answers for you.

Cheers

 

[Andy Smith]

Hi Andy,

I have never used an external battery pack for flash myself. I do keep a set of spare batteries on hand for my flash and usually is enough for most of my shooting. Having a quick look online you got a few options for you I found:

Option 1: You can actually use NiMH batteries in the flash unit, these last 2-4 times longer than regular alkaline batteries on a single charge as well as having longer overall lifespan (cycles) than regular rechargeable alkaline batteries ranging from 500-1000 cycles, you would be lucky to get much more than 20 for regular rechargable alkalines. This solution also means no external battery to have to carry/charge,etc. Here is a snip from the MT-26EX manual:

View attachment 21255

Option 2: As the snip above shows there is an external power battery pack (CP-E4N) that can be used, this is an 8 battery pack that you can connect to the flash, theoretically giving you 3 times the capacity for the flash. You should note however that even with this external battery pack you still need to have charged batteries in the flash unit ( it is mentioned in the throubleshoot section) and "..internal power source is required to control the MT-26EX-RT". That previous quote is from the following which a custom function of the flash which allows you to choose how the flash uses external power:

View attachment 21257

Hope it helps, we may have someone with more experience with these things that may have better input and answers for you.

Cheers

Great stuff thanks Chavezshutter,
I did also read this in the manual and think it is the only viable option. It would be nice to be able to plug in the flash to a wall socket through an adapter though. I will proceed with rechargeable batteries and let you all know how it goes for future reference.

 

[Chavezshutter]

Great stuff thanks Chavezshutter,
I did also read this in the manual and think it is the only viable option. It would be nice to be able to plug in the flash to a wall socket through an adapter though. I will proceed with rechargeable batteries and let you all know how it goes for future reference.

I did a little further reading on on those NiMH batteries and I think I will be buying some .. On top of the advantages I mentioned, they are more rugged in term of use and recharging, but the best part is they can reduce recyle time for a flash faster then regular alkaline by as much 1/3 sometimes almost 1/2, so less time waiting around for flash to fire again. Eneloop batteries still have a good rep but I'll have a look at what is available, good luck with it and looking forward to hearing how it goes

 

[Andy Smith]

I did a little further reading on on those NiMH batteries and I think I will be buying some .. On top of the advantages I mentioned, they are more rugged in term of use and recharging, but the best part is they can reduce recyle time for a flash faster then regular alkaline by as much 1/3 sometimes almost 1/2, so less time waiting around for flash to fire again. Eneloop batteries still have a good rep but I'll have a look at what is available, good luck with it and looking forward to hearing how it goes

I ordered the Panasonic Eneloop Pro AA 2550 mAh so will let you know how I get on.

 

[Andy Smith]

So I received my order of Panasonic Eneloop Pro AA 2550 mAh batteries and have tried them over the past week. I must say I am impressed with the flash recharge times and have had no issues so far. It is nice to be able to shoot continuously without having to wait for the flash to recharge between shots. Still early days but I can recommend them if anyone is thinking of buying rechargeable batteries.

 

[Chavezshutter]

So I received my order of Panasonic Eneloop Pro AA 2550 mAh batteries and have tried them over the past week. I must say I am impressed with the flash recharge times and have had no issues so far. It is nice to be able to shoot continuously without having to wait for the flash to recharge between shots. Still early days but I can recommend them if anyone is thinking of buying rechargeable batteries.

Great to hear , I will have to buy some of those batteries and try them out, what about the capacity, are you getting longer run times?

 

[Andy Smith]

Great to hear , I will have to buy some of those batteries and try them out, what about the capacity, are you getting longer run times?

I feel that I am getting longer run times yes, but they are brand new and I haven't tested this against a set of brand new AA alkaline batteries.