hjoseph7 Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 <p>A couple of months ago I posted that I suspected that the battery(LP-E6) that came with my 7D was not holding the charge very well or at least as it was supposed to. It thought I was getting more pops with my previous cameras the 30D and the 5D with the old BP511 battery. Since then, I purchased a third party LP-E6 replacement battery thinking that maybe I got an old, or a defective battery.</p> <p>The replacement battery semed to work a little better, or so I thought. Last week I had to attend a shoot, so before I left my house I toped off the battery so that it was fully charged. When I got to the shoot, I took maybe about 30 shots, but to my surprise the battery indicator showed that the battery was at 54% capacity. I then started limiting the number of shots I took, turned off the IS on the lens and changed the Review/Play back time from 8 seconds to 2 seconds since i didn't have an extra battery with me.</p> <p>I called Canon about this the next day and they told me to send the camera & battery in so they could check them out. I got the camera back today, but was surprised by the Repair Report. The report said that the camera was working according to specs, but they did make some minor adjustments to the circuit board as a precaution, downloaded the latest firmware and made "other" electrical adjustments and cleaning.<br> Yesterday at work I took about 800 shots with the Canon 40D attached to 2 strobes on a fully charged battery, so I was sure there was something real funky going on with my 7D.<br> <br />In any case, today I attached the camera(7D) to a single strobe and took about 45 shots. The battery indicator showed that I was at 96% capacity. <strong>Does this sound right ?</strong> I don't know, but it sure beats the performance I got from the battery last weekend. Maybe toping off the battery does more harm than good ?</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuppyDigs Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 <p>I used to top off my 511 batteries and they would only last 9-12 months of light use. When I started running them down every month or so it seemed to double their useable life. Not supposed to have a memory effect but discharging seems to condition them. The LP-E6 in my 5D2 is 2 years old and at 72%.</p> Sometimes the light’s all shining on me. Other times I can barely see. - Robert Hunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randallfarhy Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 <p>Puppy: With any rechargeable battery, Camera, cell phone etc etc, it is best to fully drain or draw them down before recharging. Topping off, or recharging mid cycle, over time actually shortens both the usable charge cycle and the overall life of the battery. I can't offer a scientific explanation, the only analogy I know of is that it shortens the memory. </p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuppyDigs Posted May 8, 2011 Share Posted May 8, 2011 <p>Yeah, I figured that out a few years back. One of the big brags about the new batteries over the old NiCd was no memory effect. Of course it should be termed, "less pronounced memory effect" but conditioning required for max life and performance. Oddly, my old NiCd batteries lasted many years longer, albeit I needed to practice battery care more intensely. I used a charger that discharged NiCd batteries before charging them. I still have fully functional NiCd that are over 10 years old, powering drills and other devices.</p> Sometimes the light’s all shining on me. Other times I can barely see. - Robert Hunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hjoseph7 Posted May 8, 2011 Author Share Posted May 8, 2011 <p>I took another 20 shots and the battery capacity remained at 96% . I think I'm OK now.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry_gindhart Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 <p>Great Battery Life! This is an excellent, practical article on battery life for photographers by Ken Rockwell that is the guidance I've used with my Li-Ion batteries for a very long time. I operate on the idea that Li-Ions LOVE to be charged! I charge my batteries frequently and try never to let them run down all the way. I have BP511s that I've been using since 2003 that have been recharged at least 300 or 400 times.<br> Here's a link to the Great Battery Life article: http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/battery-life.htm</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PuppyDigs Posted May 9, 2011 Share Posted May 9, 2011 <blockquote> <p>KR writes, "It also means that I never try to suck either one dry. Li-ion batteries prefer frequent and shallow discharges. If you do that you'll get far more total energy out of them."</p> </blockquote> Exactly what I used to do and this resulted in short battery life (a year or less). <blockquote> </blockquote> Sometimes the light’s all shining on me. Other times I can barely see. - Robert Hunter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doug_nashtock Posted August 30, 2011 Share Posted August 30, 2011 <p>I have a problem when I use two batteries in the Battery Grip at the same time, they seem to lose power quicker than when I only use one battery at a time. I can go pretty much all day with one in the grip and half the time when I use both. I know that sounds backasswards but it is what it is.</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian_humphrey Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 <p>Beware! I bought a battery on ebay [not canon] and although it worked on the camera would not charge on the canon charger, so slung it in the bin as could not be bothered to send it back. Beware of replica batteries</p> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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