Some days I can't believe the things I end up doing. I'm packing up kit for a wedding tomorrow and finally got round to a test I should have done ages ago.

Different types of batteries charge flashguns at different rates. Alkalines are generally pretty slow (and get slower when they get depleted) and NiMH are generally pretty fast. AFAIK the power rating of the battery has NOTHING to do with recycle speed - that's a measure of how many times it can charge a flash but I'd love somebody to tell me if I have that wrong.

Anyway, I recently started using Hybrios. These are some kind of whacky battery that hold their charge for about a year or so (like alkalines) but can be recharged (like NiMH etc). AFAIK there are no figures on how fast they can recycle flash guns. Until now

I used an SB800 set to full power manual. I loaded it with 4 freshly charged batteries and fired off one shot. I timed how long it took for the ready light to come back on. Then I fired off 10 shots - each time waiting for the ready light to come on and timed the total time.

Uniross Hybrio 2100 mAh
1 flash - 4.7 seconds to recycle
10 flashes - 51.2 seconds

Control
7 Day Shop 2500 mAh NiMH
1 flash - 4.8 seconds
10 flashes - 52.4

Using 4 batteries, NiMH are about as fast as you can cycle a gun. The Hybrios are a shade quicker (though there's lots of margin for error in me watching for a red light and hitting a button). Given their other advantages I'd happily take a 10% speed hit. Since they are faster these are now my new favourite batteries

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Jonathan Ryan:

. AFAIK the power rating of the battery has NOTHING to do with recycle speed - that's a measure of how many times it can charge a flash but I'd love somebody to tell me if I have that wrong.

That's about right. The speed at which the gun charges will depend on the amount of current flowing and the amount the gun stores. If we assume the capacity of the gun is constant (there may be a small variation due to the tolerance of the components but its small), then the charge rate is dependent on the current.

The current is dependent on the resistance of the circuit its connected to. This includes the circuitry in the gun, but also the internal resistance of the battery. Rechargeables have a very low internal resistance and so can supply a huge amount of current (I once got 10 Amps out of a D cell) compared to a standard battery.

Hope that helps. Do the Hybrios work in a standard charger, or do you need a special one?

PS Do you want to e-mail me an address for the chocolate?

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Paul Montgomery:

Do the Hybrios work in a standard charger, or do you need a special one?

They are supposed to work in any "quality" charger. They charge fine in my Energizer 15 minute chargers.

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Check out my Soup - pretty cool for one of the best
wedding photographers in the UK.