Sooner or later, every photographer runs into their camera’s dreaded low battery warning. The eighth law of photography states that the charge left on your battery decreases as the scene in front of you grows more interesting. But never fear – that’s where the tips in this article come in.
Below, I’ll explain the most important things you can do to improve your camera’s battery life and never miss the shot.
1.Cut Down on the LCD
The biggest battery drain in a camera is the LCD – both the rear screen and the electronic viewfinder. This is the big reason why DSLRs almost always have longer battery life specifications than mirrorless cameras – the optical viewfinder lets you skip LCDs altogether.
However, if you use your DSLR in live view, you’ll notice that its battery life slides dramatically. Side by side against a mirrorless camera, there’s actually a good chance it will die first. LCDs just take a lot of power to run.
What does this imply? Quite simply, you should always do what you can to cut down on LCD usage when your battery is running low.
For DSLR users, that means switching to the optical viewfinder. For mirrorless photographers, it means turning off the camera frequently, or setting it so the viewfinder only activates when you hold it to your eye.
And regardless of the camera you use, drastically cut down on the amount of time you spend reviewing photos. Chimping has its place, but not while your battery warning is blinking red.
2.Optimize Your Battery Saver Settings
Most cameras have menu options designed to improve battery life and maximize your shooting time. For example, the “metering timeout” setting lets you select how long you want the camera to wait during inactivity before shutting off its metering system.
Beyond that, a number of cameras today have an “Eco mode” that minimizes power consumption from the camera’s LCD. On the Canon EOS R, for example, Eco mode dims and then turns off the LCD when not in use, improving your battery life significantly – from 370 to 540 shots per charge, according to Canon’s official specifications.
It’s also important to note that mirrorless cameras are generally more efficient using the rear LCD than the electronic viewfinder. In terms of the EOS R again, Canon only rates 350 shots using the EVF, with no Eco mode to improve it. On the Sony side of things, the new A7R IV is rated for 530 shots via the viewfinder and 670 via the rear LCD.
If none of that applies to you, one option at your disposal is always to lower the brightness of your rear LCD. It might make photography a bit trickier in bright conditions, but the payoff is getting the shot rather than missing it completely due to a dead battery.
3.Keep Your Batteries Warm
In cold environments, camera batteries die far faster than at room temperature. The same is true to a lesser extent in very warm conditions.
Often, the best solution here is to remove the battery from your camera when not in use and keep it in an inside pocket of your clothing. At the very least, it’s a good idea to do this with the extra batteries that you’re not using at the moment.
Using this technique, I’ve sometimes managed to revive batteries that my camera said were dead and capture an extra series of shots. But it’s better to keep your battery warm as a preventative measure rather than a post-empty fix.
In short, if you’re not actively using a battery in cold environments, keep it in a warm pocket. The innermost possible layer of your clothing is ideal.
Conclusion
A dead battery is one of the more annoying experiences a photographer can have, and it can be downright devastating if that’s the only thing standing between you and a once-in-a-lifetime shot.
With enough planning and preparation, you’ll rarely be in a situation where battery life management tips like the ones above are necessary. But everything doesn’t go right 100% of the time, and chances are good you’ll run into low-power danger eventually.
When that happens, the good news is that there are things you can do. DSLR users should shoot through the optical viewfinder; mirrorless users should (with most cameras) shoot with the rear LCD. You can avoid using camera settings like WiFi, IBIS, popup flash, and image review. You can turn down your LCD brightness and keep extra batteries warm if you’re shooting in the cold.