Dead battery! Yargh!

sly · Feb 11, 2013

I spent a leisurely few hours setting up for an 8x10 still life.

Ate dinner and then got serious about finishing touches, got out the flash meter...... And it's dead.

Lithium battery, not available at corner store or anywhere else until tomorrow.

Grrrr, grrrr, grrrrr.

R.Gould · Feb 12, 2013

I hate camera battery's, they always give up at the most awkward times, I now do not own a camera that is battery dependant, I sold my last battery dependant camera a while ago, now all my cameras are over 50 years old, bar a couple of old Pentax's, and they only need meter battery's and I always have my hand held, a Weston, and my flash meter uses a AA battery, available anywhere,
Richard

benjiboy · Feb 12, 2013

I know this is infuriating when it happens but there's no law against having the forethought of keeping at least one spare Lithium battery in stock.

Dan Fromm · Feb 12, 2013

Um, sly, that's why I've always tested my flashes to determine their guide numbers and learned how do add GNs so I could use multiple flashes. Old fashioned, I know, but it still works.

benjiboy · Feb 15, 2013

I'm in my seventys, and It amazes me at the beginning of the 21st century that so many photographers are so battery averse, one of my cameras a Canon A1 that I have that's completely battery dependant I've used regularly for twenty five years has only ever had the battery changed three times, and it's not rocket science to always have a spare new one in stock for any item of equipment..

bobwysiwyg · Feb 15, 2013

benjiboy said:
I'm in my seventys, and It amazes me at the beginning of the 21st century that so many photographers are so battery averse, one of my cameras a Canon A1 that I have that's completely battery dependant I've used regularly for twenty five years has only ever had the battery changed three times, and it's not rocket science to always have a spare new one in stock for any item of equipment..

+1

About to enter my seventies and have always carried spares which sometimes come in handy for extended cold, winter shoots.

sly · Feb 15, 2013

Yeah, most of my frustration is directed at myself. It's possible that I have a spare battery, but don't remember the safe place I tucked it away 3-5 years ago.

I bought 2 batteries, and am set now for quite awhile. The new spare is in the drawer we keep AA's and AAA's in. That was my husband's idea. I was trying to come up with a new "safe" place that I'd remember for years, as if my memory is likely to get any better.

I could have taken the photo with a loooooong exposure using the modelling lights, but I just felt too angry with myself to go ahead.

Hope to get into the darkroom to develop the negs in the next day or so.

mgb74 · Feb 15, 2013

What frustrates me a bit is the variety of batteries that serve the same function. Granted, each type may be slightly advantageous for it's particular use but those benefits are outweighed by needing to keep a variety of batteries around. So give me 1 lithium coin size, 1 button battery size (maybe a 2nd for watches). Does the world really need a CR2 and a CR123?

I'll go back to spitting into the wind now.

JBrunner · Feb 15, 2013

I always carry spare batteries for my cameras that take them. Only once has a battery given it up unexpectedly in the field. Smugly, I fit the spare battery, which, of course, turned out to be dead.

Pioneer · Feb 15, 2013

Yeahh. There is certainly something very nice about smugly walking out the front door with my Leica IIIc, a couple lenses, and my Walz Coronet B headed for the back country to take pictures, blissfully secure in the knowledge that I need no batteries.

Fast forward an hour and a half and I am screaming uselessly at the beautiful blue skies and gorgeous mountain scenery as I realize that I left all my film in my other coat pocket!!

StoneNYC · Feb 15, 2013

Like others I always carry a second battery, but in cold environments they tend to go temporarily dead and often the spare then is also dead :/

What frustrated me the other day was I set up a long exposure 20 minutes, walked away sat in my car for that time then came back to discover the shutter had closed early but I have no idea when it died.. :/

Grrr

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

bobwysiwyg · Feb 15, 2013

StoneNYC said:
but in cold environments they tend to go temporarily dead and often the spare then is also dead :/

Keep the spares in a warm pocket.

StoneNYC · Feb 15, 2013

bobwysiwyg said:
Keep the spares in a warm pocket.

Yea I know... But when it's -15 it's still tough... Lol

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

winger · Feb 15, 2013

sly said:
Yeah, most of my frustration is directed at myself. It's possible that I have a spare battery, but don't remember the safe place I tucked it away 3-5 years ago.
I bought 2 batteries, and am set now for quite awhile. The new spare is in the drawer we keep AA's and AAA's in. That was my husband's idea. I was trying to come up with a new "safe" place that I'd remember for years, as if my memory is likely to get any better.

This is exactly me.

And all the similarly named batteries (CR2, CR123, 2CR2, etc..) drives me nuts 'cause I never remember which I might need. I only have one camera that really needs one, at least.
At the lab, we needed some P&S digis to replace us having to draw pictures for our files and we chose a lesser camera because it took AAs.

mosport72 · Feb 15, 2013

Traveling in New Zealand few years ago with small Nikon P&S d**** camera [dam Nikon with special batteries] had battery that came with camera left charger [weight] at home and a few Duracell's used them all up on south island still had north island to go. So spent half a day walking around Christchurch looking for more Duracell's no [Walmarts] found a camera store that had the same camera in stock and they took the charger and battery out of box and sold it to me saved vacation. Wish I could remember their name to thank them again small store just around corner from town center.

Jim Jones · Feb 16, 2013

The years I spent in Alaska and Greenland were before battery-dependent cameras. Leicas and Nikons would work down to -60 Fahrenheit. Having such a camera now for backup might be worthwhile.

E. von Hoegh · Feb 16, 2013

R.Gould said:
I hate camera battery's, they always give up at the most awkward times, I now do not own a camera that is battery dependant, I sold my last battery dependant camera a while ago, now all my cameras are over 50 years old, bar a couple of old Pentax's, and they only need meter battery's and I always have my hand held, a Weston, and my flash meter uses a AA battery, available anywhere,
Richard

I bring spare batteries for my non-battery-dependent cameras, plus a batteryless Weston meter.

StoneNYC · Feb 16, 2013

Jim Jones said:
The years I spent in Alaska and Greenland were before battery-dependent cameras. Leicas and Nikons would work down to -60 Fahrenheit. Having such a camera now for backup might be worthwhile.

If they made a MF camera with really good glass that was non battery, but nothing beats the Mamiya 7 for MF and I don't shoot much if any 35mm but I do have a non battery 35mm Zeiss Ikon Contina Matic II for such occasions.

HOWEVER once I get into LF (when I can get a 4x5 field camera with lots of movements for cheap, I'll be set since they don't take batteries

~Stone

Mamiya: 7 II, RZ67 Pro II / Canon: 1V, AE-1, 5DmkII / Kodak: No 1 Pocket Autographic, No 1A Pocket Autographic | Sent w/ iPhone using Tapatalk

winger · Feb 16, 2013

If they made a MF camera with really good glass that was non battery, but nothing beats the Mamiya 7 for MF and I don't shoot much if any 35mm but I do have a non battery 35mm Zeiss Ikon Contina Matic II for such occasions.

Um, Hasselblad good enough? My 503cxi doesn't need batteries.

EASmithV · Feb 16, 2013

It is for this reason i'm glad my flash meter takes a standard AA battery (Sekonic L-508)

winger said:
Um, Hasselblad good enough? My 503cxi doesn't need batteries.

yeah... beat me to it.

Doesn't the RB67 also function without batteries?

StoneNYC · Feb 17, 2013

EASmithV said:
It is for this reason i'm glad my flash meter takes a standard AA battery (Sekonic L-508)

yeah... beat me to it.

Doesn't the RB67 also function without batteries?

It functions but only at 1/400 so it's only good if it fails in your studio, where you have the most likelihood of having batteries accessible... not very smart, They should have made it so you can use it with Bulb at least....

PS I just posted my battery failure image after developing it tonight... it's not so bad... could have used 5 more minutes for the effect but it's not too shabby....

EDIT: posted in my gallery, so for subscriber eyes only

MattKing · Feb 17, 2013

StoneNYC said:
It functions but only at 1/400 so it's only good if it fails in your studio, where you have the most likelihood of having batteries accessible... not very smart, They should have made it so you can use it with Bulb at least....

Sorry Stone, the RB67 doesn't use a battery at all.

Some of the accessory metering finders do use a battery.

I think you are thinking of the RZ67.

StoneNYC · Feb 17, 2013

MattKing said:
Sorry Stone, the RB67 doesn't use a battery at all.

Some of the accessory metering finders do use a battery.

I think you are thinking of the RZ67.

Yes you are correct Matt, I was talking about the RZ67, I misspoke and I apologize if I mislead anyone. Now I know why people choose the RB system over the RZ system even though the RZ has slightly sharper lenses and finer focus tuning... hmmm...

Newt_on_Swings · Feb 17, 2013

Dang, I know the feeling. I always keep 2-4 silver oxide batteries on me if im shooting on a battery dependent camera. I try to only buy and use stuff without the weird cr123, cr2, etc etc batteries. There are even a few compact flashes that run on those weird sized batteries, though more compact and more uses you are pretty screwed when you arent around a store that sells them. AA all the way haha.

Vaughn · Feb 17, 2013

Always carry extra batteries with you -- then sell them to other photographers when theirs die...for a nice mark-up! :

Dead battery! Yargh!

sly

R.Gould

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Dead battery! Yargh!

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