battery pack?

[BlueTreePhoto]

Ok, I have been shooting weddings with my 580 on bracket. I bought an 80/20 and used it for a few recent ones, which I really liked. Yesterday I decided to use direct flash with the lighting conditions, and I bounced flash. My problem was that the bridal couple, both in white, were always underexposed, and everyone else in the party, all in black, were always well lit. This is when I did couple photos while dancing. The other shots were hit or miss and I am not sure why.

I speculate that perhaps it is my battery situation and that the flash was not getting enough juice after an hour or so... I use Energizer rechargeable lithiums and have never had these issues. I am thinking perhaps the batteries are wearing down? I have charged them before they care competely drained at times and am not sure if that would be a factor... By the end of the reception my flash went from recylcing in about 10 seconds to taking minutes in about 2 shots.

I know I need to get a better battery configuration for next season... so I am looking for suggestions. I am interested in a battery pack, but I don't know much about them. I appreciate any thoughts or suggestions!!

[chabooky386]

I have Sanyo Eneloops and those work great! Or you can try a Quantum battery pack.

[PacAce]

Ok, I have been shooting weddings with my 580 on bracket. I bought an 80/20 and used it for a few recent ones, which I really liked. Yesterday I decided to use direct flash with the lighting conditions, and I bounced flash. My problem was that the bridal couple, both in white, were always underexposed, and everyone else in the party, all in black, were always well lit. This is when I did couple photos while dancing. The other shots were hit or miss and I am not sure why.

I speculate that perhaps it is my battery situation and that the flash was not getting enough juice after an hour or so... I use Energizer rechargeable lithiums and have never had these issues. I am thinking perhaps the batteries are wearing down? I have charged them before they care competely drained at times and am not sure if that would be a factor... By the end of the reception my flash went from recylcing in about 10 seconds to taking minutes in about 2 shots.

I know I need to get a better battery configuration for next season... so I am looking for suggestions. I am interested in a battery pack, but I don't know much about them. I appreciate any thoughts or suggestions!!
Getting some sort of battery pack would be a good idea if you are going to be shooting events over an extended period of time. However, an external battery pack will not resolve your underexposure problem as it has nothing to do with the charge level of your batteries. The reason the bride and groom, both in white, underexposed is because they are both in white. What you need to do to correct this is to apply about +1 FEC to the flash exposure.

[tim]

You need to understand flash metering, check out the EOS flash bible in the stickies. Summary is for people in white you'll need between +1 and +2 FEC, for people in black the opposite. Understanding how it works is invaluable if you're doing this professionally.

[Blackey Cole]

Quantum QB1s one for each flash cheap on ebay, easy to replace the cell if it is bad and the replacement cells are cheap also.

[BlueTreePhoto]

Thanks! I have difficulty with the flash metering concepts... It takes a long time for that stuff to 'come naturally' to me! I will check those stickies and look into the packs.