With all the features digital cameras have these days, you may find keeping charged batteries a problem. And let’s face it, today’s digital cameras are useless without sufficient battery power.

Whether you choose to stay with one-time use disposable batteries or invest in either rechargeable batteries or a rechargeable battery pack, this could well be your biggest expense, however, there are some things you can do to increase the length of time your batteries stay charged.

 

First, let’s start with the three biggest sources of power drain:

 

The LCD screen takes up the most power.

If your digital camera has a viewfinder, use it to view your scene and set up your picture. However, many compact digital cameras do not have a viewfinder anymore, so you are forced to use the LCD backscreen. Also, many digital cameras have a feature where after so many seconds, the backscreen will shut off anyway. Set this feature for a short amount of time.

 

Another big power drain is the flash.

Whenever you can, use natural lighting to take your photos and turn off the flash.  This will help save your battery for times when you absolutely need the flash.

 

A third drain on your battery in a compact digital camera is constantly using your zoom.

It takes more power zooming in and out than it does keeping your zoom at a steady place. Try to find a setting you like and stick with it as much as possible.

 

Some other things you can do to make your battery last longer are:

 

• Make sure, if your camera has a power saving mode, that it is switched to “on” or simply switch off your camera when you’re not using it.  With power saving on, your camera will go into a “hibernate” mode and conserve on battery power.
• Make sure that your “VR” (Vibration Reduction) setting on your lens is switched to “OFF”. This may also be referred to as “IS” (Image Stabilizer) setting. This setting should only be used when shooting in situations where there is risk of camera shake of movement and you are trying to avoid blurry pictures.  For most situations this setting is not needed and leaving it “ON” will cause unnecessary drain on your battery.
• In cold weather, keep your camera and batteries warm in your jacket until you are ready to use them. The cold drains batteries very quickly.
• Store batteries in a cool, dry location away from sunlight and other heat sources.
• Avoid unnecessary playback of your already taken images. Try to decide when you take the picture if it is a “keeper” or needs deleted and then refrain from reviewing until the pictures are downloaded to your computer.
• Needing to buy more batteries or recharge the ones you have is something you won’t be able to avoid, but with a few precautions, you can make the ones you have last longer or have to recharge them less often.