Nikon batteryquestion??

[patty_h.]

<p>Hello!<br /> I shot a wedding this past Saturday and as usual I take two Nikon batteries fully charged, now one usually lasts about 6 hours or a bit more I never wait once I am on the last bar I replace it. So here is the issue, I was shooting for about 4 hrs. I looked at my LCD and it read that I had barely used one bar so I did not bother to change it, 5 minutes later i was shooting and out of nowhere the LDC showed that I was out of battery!!!! I have been using this battery for about 1 year or so. Now my question is does this mean that this battery is not good anymore? How long do you guys replace batteries? Thanks in advance.</p>

 

[elmroc]

<p>PATTY,</p>

<p>Which camera and battery combination are you referring to?</p>

[laughing buddha production]

<p>The battery indicator on the LCD's is usually just an approximation of the actual battery power level. You don't say which body you're using, but on my D700/D300 it has 5 marks, so assume each one represents about 20% power. When you're getting down to the last couple bars - it's helpful to go into the menu (the wrench) and get the actual % remaining by looking at "Battery info" for a more accurate reading.<br>

It's strange that you didn't get the warning inside the viewfinder of a low battery - there's a indicator that comes on (may not be on all bodies though).<br>

Another possible issue is that the batteries are out of calibration, which means it may not be transmitting the most accurate data on the power remaining to the camera and thus your LCD is giving you an inaccurate reading of remaining power.<br>

The EN-EL4's can be recalibrated (on their charger) and the camera tells you when this is required. I don't believe this function is available for the EN-EL3 series batteries. I've used my EN-EL3's for 2-3 years now (rotating three of them) and never had an issue where one quit without the in viewfinder low-battery warning.<br>

This might be a sign that it's time to replace that particular battery. I number all mine in case I need to notate any anomalies in their performance. You might want to try that one a couple times, let it run all the way down and see if you get any warning - if not, get a new one.</p>

<p> </p>

[tobey_bilek]

<p>Replace it if you can not recalibrate. Notebook computer batteries need recalibration also. I will tell you Li batteries like to be recharged as often as possible. Running them down significantly shortens their life. Recharge at 3/4 if at all possible. </p>

[elmroc]

<p>Patty,</p>

<p>Also, not sure if you've done anything differently then in the past, but remember, if you are using VR lenses, these consume more battery life, as does reviewing photos on the rear screen(chimping).<br>

To say that you get 5 hours or 2 hours or whatever battery life is a little broad, as i shoot sports and in the 5 or 6 hours, i can shoot as few as a couple dozen photos, or 3 or 4 hundred. both will use different amounts of battery</p>

[pete_s.]

<p>It's a clear sign that it's time to throw it away. As batteries are used their capacity will diminish more and more. I test my batteries capacity on a computerized battery analyzer on a regular basis so I don't have to look unprofessional or even miss shots in front of clients.</p>

[patty_h.]

<p>This is the thing, my main camera is the d300 with vr lenses so the lcd showed I had only used one bar then 5 min later it was dying so I replaced it and used the so called dead battery on the d80 and it showed that only one bar had been used! I cannot calibrate it, so I will just get a new one.<br>

Thanks</p>

[kaiyen]

<p>The D300 has a battery status/condition function in its menu as well. I think under the "wrench" set of menu items. It can tell you if the battery is toast.</p>