Running out of juice

Have you ever been in a situation where you're limited by the shortage of power in your camera? I know my answer - yes.

I made the leap into DSLRs and enjoyed making photos without needing to think about how many shots left before film had to be reloaded. What I duly forgot on one outing was "reloading" the battery in my new camera. Inevitably I lost power at the worst possible time and missed plenty of opportunities, and that was one of the more important lessons I've learnt with digital. Check power the day before you need to use your camera.

But other than checking, there are ways to reduce the likelihood of such downtime. Carrying a spare battery is one method. But make sure that that's charged too!

A more costlier method is a battery grip. It can be a practical solution to utilise two batteries whilst giving better handling in a portrait orientation. A grip shouldn't just be an additional block to add onto the camera body. Official versions usually have a thumbdial (or two) to adjust settings, and an electronic shutter release. There are third party grips available in the market that don't have thumbdials or an electronic shutter release. I'd recommend caution when using these. They give the benefit of utilising a second battery and improving handling in portrait orientation. However they are useless when in that rotation. In portrait orientation you have no control over the camera, and you therefore have to reach over to the original grip to control the thumbdials and in releasing the shutter. With this in mind, for all those who've been seeking a grip for the paltry Nikons D40, 40x and 60 - there's no point. A spare battery is better. If you're attempting the vain notion of making your camera look more professional, it really doesn't matter. It's not the camera that's important about a professional - it's how YOU use it. Bear in mind these 3 cameras were also designed small and compact - the idea of a grip is against this - and therefore Nikon never made electronics capable of accepting a grip with an electronic shutter. Third-party grips exist but with infra-red releases that don't allow auto-focus.

Moving onto other cameras in general, a grip with the right controls will provide extra juice in your camera while also increasing functionality in the portrait orientation. It can also balance the camera when heavier lenses are fitted. Some grips also have an adaptor to fit AA-sized batteries - a handy addition when you run out of power in the field and there are stores nearby. AA-sized batteries are quite common that they can be easily found.

If you're shooting a wedding, I'd recommend bringing at least a spare battery and your charger - you can then roll batteries. When you drain one battery, you simply swap it to the spare and then recharge the one that's run out. By the time you're getting close to draining the spare you ought to have another that's fully charged.

Until next time.