FAQ -digital camera battery tip

SUMMARY: Why you should use rechargeable batteries with your digital camera.
If your digital camera supports AA batteries, read the camera manual and check to see if it also supports a kind of battery called NiMH. These batteries tend to last much longer than most standard alkaline AA batteries - plus, they are rechargeable, so they can be re-used for quite a long time. Granted, the cost of four NiMH batteries plus a charger is more expensive than four alkaline batteries, but you'll more than make up the difference in costs once you recharge and use the batteries a few times.

SUMMARY: Got a digital camera? Always keep extra batteries handy!
Alright, this is a simple tip and it should be a no-brainer. However, I will mention it anyway, because, as the maxim goes, "common sense is not so common".
Whatever you do, wherever you go, always, ALWAYS bring extra batteries when shooting photos! Cameras suck the power out of batteries quickly, even rechargable ones, so you should always carry extra batteries in your camera bag (you did buy a camera bag to protect your camera from the elements, didn't you?)

SUMMARY: Make your digital camera batteries last longer. Here's how.
Are you always running out of battery power just before you take that perfect picture with your digital camera? Here are some tips to conserve your batteries when you are out "snapping away".

1) Turn off your digital camera when not in use. If you are in a situation where you must snap pictures quickly, this may not apply as turning digital cameras on and off take a few seconds, and may cause you to miss a picture-taking opportunity. However, if you are taking a leisurely stroll and can afford a couple of seconds before snapping a still subject, by all means, conserve your digital camera's energy!

2) Many digital cameras have a regular viewfinder and an LCD viewfinder. While the digital LCD viewfinder has its benefits, it can drain battery power. Turn it off when applicable and use your regular viewfinder for taking pictures.

3) Don't stop after taking every photo and look at the picture in your digital camera's playback mode. Granted, you sometimes need to look at photos immediately after shooting them in order to make sure your exposure is correct, the lighting is ok, etc., but doing this does use up your digital camera's battery power.

4) If you are using MicroDrive media, be forewarned that these miniature hard drives may take up quite more power than Compact Flash cards.

Use these tips and you'll save some digital camera battery power for when you want to take that perfect picture. But, of course, the best tip to make sure that you don't run out of power is . . . take some extra charged batteries with you on trips!

SUMMARY: Even if you have lots of rechargeable AA batteries, you should still bring a charger with you on trips.
First off, if your battery takes AA batteries and you are not using rechargeable batteries, read the other digital camera tips on MalekTips on why you should.

Now, assuming you use rechargeables, and that you take several sets of charged batteries with you on a vacation or photo-shoot, realize that it just makes sense to also bring a battery charger or two with you. When you return to your hotel room, condo, etc. for the evening, after backing up your photos to your laptop or external digital media storage (hint, hint!), take your used-up batteries and give them a recharge. If you are new to digital photography, you might think three or four sets of batteries are enough for a multi-day trip, but you'll be surprised when you start using up a set or two of batteries each day!

SUMMARY: Using the playback mode of your digital camera may wear out your batteries.
I know it can be tempting to show your friends and family pictures you take with a digital camera immediately afterwards, but try to keep image playback to a minimum while you are still out taking pictures. Picture playback can drain batteries, and nothing is worse than seeing something great to photograph and watching your camera's battery meter flash empty. Just politely tell your friends and family that as soon as you are done shooting, you'll be happy to run a slideshow of the photos.

Of course, feel free to play back one or two photos while you are out having fun; just don't take 100 photos and show people the results of every single image capture.