Dear Canon et al. - DPChallenge Forums

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

11/11/2010 07:08:15 PM · #1

please for the sake of soup make a flash head that uses the same damn battery as my freaking camera. i'm really tired of dealing with 500 energizer quick charge ( and die ... ) AA's. seriously how many of those little things am i supposed to keep track of ?

here - i'll give you some incentive to mull over whether this is a good idea or not. and if i save you some $$$ on R&D expenses... if you choose to use my advice, feel free to offer me a discount on some equipment i can't afford next october.

say i had four - yes only four - of your canon flash heads ( well - i really only have two - but this is just an example... ). each takes 4 AA batteries. correct ? so i need 16 AA's to power my current ( portable ) lights. but, i also need back up AA's for each one as well - correct ?

so that's 32 AA's so far. but i am going to be using them all day in the cold outdoors. so maybe four sets would be a better idea. that's 64 AA's. you with me ?

i should probably also bring a couple of the 15min chargers with me - just in case - i know i will have some access to 120v plugs.

at the same time. i can't remember if i've mixed up the old AA's with the newer ones. and you know what that means - right ?

so for the time being i purchased a second bag to house my army of AA batteries, and their charging generals.

ok - with that said - i am out in the cold. everytime i have to change batteries - i have to handle four little things. if i use all the batteries on a given day. i've handled 320 AA batteries. now you think i only handled 64 ?

i have to charge them all = one handle.
i have to pack them all = two handles.
i have to unpack them all = three handles.
i have to recharge them all = four handles.
i have to repack them all = five handles.

for soups' sake - make it happen !

thanks for taking the time to ignore me,
soup

Message edited by author 2010-11-11 19:24:08.

Eagle40Fox2

Canon EOS-5D Mark III

11/11/2010 07:13:38 PM · #2

Great idea!! I just went through a mound of batteries!!

Yo_Spiff

Olympus OM-D E-M5 Mark III

Olympus 12-100mm f/4.0 M.Zuiko ED IS PRO

11/11/2010 07:14:02 PM · #3

Nice idea, though I'm not sure they are listening. Certainly they would love to sell more batteries.

11/11/2010 07:15:34 PM · #4

hence my closing...

Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:

Nice idea, though I'm not sure they are listening. Certainly they would love to sell more batteries.

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

11/11/2010 07:22:29 PM · #5

bah - my math is off.. 64 AA's for 4 sets. anyhow. same theory. too tired to think i seem to be..

my bad

ETA - fixed math. i think... :)

Message edited by author 2010-11-11 19:24:55.

LVicari

Canon EOS-50D

11/11/2010 07:37:44 PM · #6

I once took a course for outdoor shooting(

Coley and I met in this course) Now this course was all about natural light. The instructor was old school. He shot film with a 4x3? Camera. He would laugh at all us digital shooters because we were taking dozens if not hundreds of shots while He spent his time out there writing down exposures and checking his spot meter for readings waiting for the right light.At the end of the day we would compare our hundreds of shots and he would come back with 3 or 4 images.

My point is no need for all those batteries! Take more time setting up the shot and use a light/spot meter. Once you have all your lights set up there is no need to take so many shots that would burn your batteries

Of course this is easier said than done.

Simms

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM

11/11/2010 07:47:57 PM · #7

Originally posted by LVicari:

I once took a course for outdoor shooting( Coley and I met in this course) Now this course was all about natural light. The instructor was old school. He shot film with a 4x3? Camera. He would laugh at all us digital shooters because we were taking dozens if not hundreds of shots while He spent his time out there writing down exposures and checking his spot meter for readings waiting for the right light.At the end of the day we would compare our hundreds of shots and he would come back with 3 or 4 images.

My point is no need for all those batteries! Take more time setting up the shot and use a light/spot meter. Once you have all your lights set up there is no need to take so many shots that would burn your batteries

Of course this is easier said than done.

Sounds like an ideal technique for weddings... ;)

LVicari

Canon EOS-50D

Canon EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS

11/11/2010 07:51:13 PM · #8

Originally posted by Simms:

Originally posted by LVicari:
I once took a course for outdoor shooting( Coley and I met in this course) Now this course was all about natural light. The instructor was old school. He shot film with a 4x3? Camera. He would laugh at all us digital shooters because we were taking dozens if not hundreds of shots while He spent his time out there writing down exposures and checking his spot meter for readings waiting for the right light.At the end of the day we would compare our hundreds of shots and he would come back with 3 or 4 images.

My point is no need for all those batteries! Take more time setting up the shot and use a light/spot meter. Once you have all your lights set up there is no need to take so many shots that would burn your batteries

Of course this is easier said than done.

Sounds like an ideal technique for weddings... ;)

Ya weddings these days are ridiculous! I remember when they shot film at weddings they weren't taking 1200+ shots during the day.

Mick

Canon EOS-5D

Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM

11/11/2010 08:16:05 PM · #9

There are lots of external battery packs available that let you do away with the AA's. For example, this one will run your camera and your flash. And with the price of AA batteries being what it is it shouldn't take very long to pay for itself.