Batteries

WelliesNBrellas

Somewhere I read that it was best to wait to charge a battery until you are ready to use it. Is this accurate? I've put that advice into practice, planning ahead when I'll need a freshly charged battery, but when I've miscalculated, I'm tough out of luck. Like this evening, grrr, and the pretty light outside is not waiting while the charger works its magic.

bruto

First off, I'd suggest having two batteries, so that you can always have a backup in such situations.

The idea that you should wait and charge before use applies mostly to cameras that are not used often. If you rarely use your camera, it's better for the battery to be stored, out of the camera and without a full charge, and charged before use. But if you use the camera regularly, the best solution is to keep it topped up. After a day of shooting, charge it in the evening, and put it back in before you go out again. Some of the precautions that were applicable to older batteries are not relevant to the kind we're getting now.

Taking the battery out when you're not using it can help some, but if you do that, make sure you keep it with the camera, because it's really easy to forget and leave it behind.


Finally, don't forget that a battery will keep working even when it's not at top charge. If you don't have time to finish charging, take it out and use what you have. As I found out last year when my charger quit on a trip, you can get a lot of pictures out of a half-charged battery if you're careful.

There are various ways you can get the most out of the battery in use if it's getting tired. Don't preview, don't use the LCD screen, and use single servo auto focus when you can, or back button C mode. Turn off the camera between uses. Avoid flashing and multi shots, and enable power saving options. Don't keep your finger on the shutter button when you don't need to.

WelliesNBrellas

Thanks, Bruto. This all makes much sense. I do use my camera daily so the risk of a battery leak while it sits idle isn't an issue (I suppose batteries could leak on a whim, but the probability is much less for much-used items). Thanks also for the tips on preserving battery power, great to know!