How many battery sets are enough?

[atyab]

I went Ice Skating for the very first time. It was loads of falling and fun. Anyway, I took along my K200D+18-55 mm+55-300 mm to capture pictures of my friends falling. But my rechargeable CycleEnergy Sony batteries ran out and then my Alkaline Duracell betrayed me also. So, I was stuck in the battery nightmare.

So, I don't want such a thing to happen again. So, do I buy more rechargeable batteries or Alkaline Batteries? How many? If Alkaline then when to I buy a new set?

[atyab]

One more thing, it was indoor and the lighting was not good at all. So, I had trouble in capturing bright pictures of the fast moving people. Any tips on that? And to tell you the truth, its so embarrassing when you have loads of equipment and your not able to get good pictures whereas people are clicking away with their P&S and mobile phone cameras! Help!

[roentarre]

I have 4 batteries. I only bring them as back up if I kept on using the heavy Fa* 80-200mm f2.8 during travel where it is not easy to have access to power points.

Otherwise, a day trip to anywhere else would not require more than one battery.

[Tom S.]

My experience with rechargeable batteries has been a crap shoot. One think I have found is they do not hold a charge long if they sit around unused. For that reason, I stopped using them in my *ist-Ds camera. I still use them in my BT stereo headphones, but keep them on the charger until I'm ready to use the set, and put them back in the charger when I am done.

Another thing to consider is the colder it is, the less life a battery (any kind of battery) will have. During the winter, you can increase the life of your spare batteries by keeping them warm in a shirt pocket.

Last, your flash will drain a battery very fast compared to shooting without it.

In the type of situation you described, it would be best to start off with fresh alkaline (or lithium which are better than alkalines but more expensive) batteries, and carry two sets of spares.

[Class A]

Originally Posted by atyab

But my rechargeable CycleEnergy Sony batteries ran out and then my Alkaline Duracell betrayed me also.

I also think that the cold temperature played against you and also recommend lithium over alkaline. The latter are an emergency option only.

Try Sanyo Eneloops. They hold their charge much longer (90% after 6 month, 85% after a year) and are also more temperature resistant. Furthermore, they can deliver their voltage longer than conventional NiMH accumulators so you'll typically get more out of them despite a nominally lower capacity.

[bdery]

When going in a cold area, keep the spare batteries close to your body, to keep them warm.

Regarding AA cells, select Eneloops, Rayovac hybrids, or something like that. These batteries do not loose their charge over time (well, they do, but like 20% over one year).

that's the best advice I can give you.

[JonPB]

Two thoughts. LCDs eat batteries, so chimp a few images to get a feel for exposure and then don't use the LCD between shots. And, AF eats batteries, too. Or, at least, it seems to for me. When I've used continuous autofocus, I change batteries often; when I use manual focus, I don't. My feeling is that you could probably save some battery life by prefocusing (ah, the beauty of quick-shift).

Don't worry about being embarrassed. I don't know much about action photography, but there's plenty out there: on the internet and in books. Read, learn, practice, repeat. The only way to get better is to try and fail.

...or maybe that's just what I tell myself when I get embarrassed by failing.

[pentkon52]

When i had my istD's, i would carry 2 sets of rechargeable and two sets of Lith AA's, minimum.
I shoot a lot of winter scenes here, and i needed to keep the batteries warm or i kept getting the dead battery icon a lot.

The regular AA's found in stores would only power the istD for less than 10 shots, so stay away from those. The Lith's gave me the best bang for the buck.

As far as shooting ice skating(we do a lot of that up here.:-)) I would use the fastest lens available and pan.

Dave

[Lowell Goudge]

I have only had issues with batteries due to my own carelessness. Providing you begin with charged batteries, and keep your spares warm, you should be OK with 2 sets.

I have never had my *istD or K10D fail in the winter due to cold. Maybe lucky, but I will go out for a few houors at a time.

[Nowhere Matt]

Originally Posted by atyab

I went Ice Skating for the very first time. It was loads of falling and fun. Anyway, I took along my K200D+18-55 mm+55-300 mm to capture pictures of my friends falling. But my rechargeable CycleEnergy Sony batteries ran out and then my Alkaline Duracell betrayed me also. So, I was stuck in the battery nightmare.

So, I don't want such a thing to happen again. So, do I buy more rechargeable batteries or Alkaline Batteries? How many? If Alkaline then when to I buy a new set?

It is not necessarily very cold when we go ice skating by the way. Sure the ice is cold and the air above and around the ice can be cold. If, for instance the original poster was ice skating in an indoor or outdoor rink, it could still easily be 10 or 15 degrees celsius around the ice while coils and refrigeration keeps the ice cool.
But it sounds as though you had partially drained batteries in the camera and perhaps your back up batteries were some you had previously used and forgot to remove from service.
What I want to know is where some of you get those nifty, plastic caps to go over the contact end of your battery packs for the K10/K20? I have been keeping my spare dl150 battery in part of it's original packing to make sure nothing comes in contact with the poles and discharges it in any way. Does this make sense to anyone else or pose a real concern? Where can we look for those clear, polyethylene like caps for the 150/NP400 rechargable batteries?

[craig1024]

I always used lithium AA's on my K100d. They are more expensive, but have amazing stamina compared to rechargables and especially alkalines.