Power source- extra batteries or something else?

I am planning to get into DSLr film making. But very much concerned about how to get constant power shooting in remote locations.

Is it only that I have to carry extra batteries? Or any other trick/tip? What do you guys do?


I wish DSLRs and cameras could be charged through solar/USB chargers like cellphones do. There are some cameras from samsung that do charge from USB but i am not sure.
 
alright so just looked into various sites, and here is my solution:

1. Buy two extra batteries!
2. Buy an external USB charger.
3. Buy a portable USB power source.
4. Use the camera with one battery while allow other ones to be charged!

Hmm... looks like this is the cheapest way to do it! And reliable/safe too!
 
How long do you need power for? Batteries are relatively cheap. Just get a whole bunch (we often have ~8 Canon LP-E6 batteries for a single on-board monitor, even when we do have access to power to charge).

What else do you have access to? Do you have a car around? You could get a car battery charger.
 
How long do you need power for? Batteries are relatively cheap. Just get a whole bunch (we often have ~8 Canon LP-E6 batteries for a single on-board monitor, even when we do have access to power to charge).
Yep, I have 8x Canon batteries on set with 2x double rechargers and 1x single recharger - all on set. The Canon DSLR with battery grip takes 2x batteries. Our SmallHD field monitor takes another 2x.

I also bring an AC adapter along for the SmallHD field monitor just in case...
 
Priyankeshu - Don't be tempted by unbranded cheap chinese import batteries. They generally start off over-rated in mah in the first place, work alright for a while, but they degrade really fast and you will lose capicity. The cannon batteries I use totally outperform all 3rd parties I've tried in the long run so far, though thier price often puts people off. The cheapies are still handy to have though, there's nothing wrong with them if you know what you're buying into and don't have particularly demanding shooting shedules.

I have just recently found a Duracell LP batt for my Canon which I am confidently expecting to keep up its performance over time too, but obviously I don't know yet. It's rated about the same mah as the Canons, but is considerably cheaper (it was about £12 I think - twice the price of some of the cheapos). I trust Duracell to produce quality products at thier rated specs though, so I think they may be the the best compromise for price-performance I've found, but only time will tell in the long run.
 
A car inverter (12vdc to 120vac) for your chargers is useful (assuming you drive there). From my experience, an inverter charges batteries just fine on every charger I've tested.

But don't leave it charging in a closed car. Sunlight and interior heat while recharging can start a fire inside cars.
 
This is somewhat skewed because we used the same batteries for the 5" monitor, but I usually had about 12 batteries on set. A couple "real" ones and about 10 Chinese knock offs. You should be able to get a car adapter for the charger as well. This was Canon for me, but I imagine the same for most DSLR.
 
Back
Top