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Canon EOS DSLR Tip: Saving Battery Power

I have been using Canon EOS digital single-lens-reflex (DSLR) cameras for a long time. But it wasn't until a few days ago that I wised up. See, with the invention of digital cameras, you can see the image you shot right away. So I became obsessed with pushing the LCD review button as soon as I shot the picture. Because I shoot everything in raw mode (see my "Shoot in RAW, Always!" article), it usually takes the camera some time to write the large raw file to storage. So, I end up staring at the busy message (see picture below) on the screen while I wait.

The busy message only pops up on the LCD when I press the LCD review button before the camera buffer has been written to storage. If the buffer has already been written, then you would see the image right after pushing the LCD review button. In order to show the busy message, the camera has to turn on the screen. The screen eats up the camera battery very quickly.

I wised up a few days ago by learning patience. Instead of pushing the LCD review right after taking the shot, I waited till the buffer has been completely written to the memory card. You can tell that the buffer has been written to storage by looking at the storage card access light (see LED in the picture below). When the access light stops flickering and turns off, writing is done. You can also tell by looking at the number of shots remaining. The number of shots will continue to blink while the data is being written. By waiting patiently, you can conserve a lot of battery life. Because, what is the point of looking at a busy screen in the first place?

Attached Image:

Busy with Hand Signal.jpg

Chieh Cheng
Tue, 8 Nov 2005 17:46:13 -0800

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