Traveling with Camera Batteries

Dave — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:42:40 +0000

If you’re traveling outside the United States, you’ll definitely want to bring your digital camera. Being able to take great shots of Buckingham Palace, the Eiffel Tower, or the Leaning Tower of Pisa can make for fantastic memories. Bring extra memory cards to take tons of pictures, and don’t forget to bring rechargeable camera batteries.

One thing to remember when traveling is that in Europe and other parts of the world, the voltage is different than in the United States. For example, the voltage in the US is usually 120V while in Europe its 220V – 240V. The plug styles used in other parts of the world are also different. What this means to you is that you’ll have to get a different charger that is compatible with the voltage and plug style where you’re headed. You may find some chargers that are capable of using more than one voltage, and have adapters to make it easy to make the switch. These may be listed as travel battery chargers or international battery chargers. They are probably more expensive than single voltage chargers, but could be worth it, since one charger for each voltage may cost even more.

If your camera uses proprietary camera batteries, you may end up having to spend quite a bit for a charger that works overseas. If you haven’t gotten a digital camera yet, finding one that takes readily available batteries, like double-A’s, might be something to take into consideration if you plan to travel outside the US. You should seriously think about taking extra sets of batteries so you can have a couple sets charging where you’re staying, and one ready to go in the camera so you don’t miss anything.

Be sure to do your research for what type of voltage and plug styles are used so you’re prepared for anything you run across, especially if you plan to go to several countries on this or future trips since there are several different types of plugs and voltages, even in neighboring countries. You can easily find the different voltages online, sometimes on a country’s official website, or from other sources.

Another thing to bear in mind is that wherever you decide to take pictures, you can extend the life of whatever kind of camera batteries you have. You can do this by using the viewfinder instead of the LCD, only using flash when absolutely necessary, not looking at the pictures or video right after you shoot, and turning your camera off when you’re between shots. It is also great to have one of the best rugged digital cameras and some great digital camera accessories with you when travelling as this will mean less problems in harsh environments.

Should I Get Rechargeable Camera Batteries?

Dave — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 00:25:11 +0000

You want to have the most economical use of your digital camera, never missing a perfect shot due to dead camera batteries. If your camera happens to take easy to buy batteries like “AA’s”, then you can pretty easily carry spares for a quick change. But is it better to get regular batteries, or should you spend the extra money to get rechargeables? Hopefully this article will answer your questions.

Most of the less expensive digital cameras take easy to find batteries and you don’t need to go to a specialty store to find what you need. For those cameras your main consideration is the price difference between regular, single-use batteries, and the more expensive rechargeables. One of the big considerations is how often you actually use the camera. If you’re an aspiring professional photographer, or just an avid amateur, you probably use your camera fairly often. This means you go through a lot of camera battery changes. Even though rechargeables are more expensive than regular batteries, the frequency of use can more than offset the greater cost since you only pay for the batteries once, and can have many charges before the battery wears out.

If you only use your camera rarely, you probably don’t need to have the extra expense with rechargeables. Rechargeable camera batteries also, like any battery, lose their charge over time, especially if left in the camera. You may grab your camera, dying to take that cute shot of your grandkids, and the rechargeable batteries have lost their charge since you used the camera 3 months ago. You pretty much always know that fresh batteries from a new pack have a charge, while sometimes even rechargeables have lost their charge over time. If your regular batteries do die, they can be easily disposed of and new ones put in.

For some, a big consideration that may override other aspects of a decision is the impact on the environment that disposing of camera batteries may have. If you use regular batteries you only use them once, then you throw them away, which can put chemicals into landfills. However, if you rarely use your camera, you may not throw away enough batteries to make too much difference. Besides, you can always use whatever batteries you buy in other things, like TV remotes, some mp3 players, or even switch them between two different cameras. Whatever you decide, happy shooting.

There are many steps that need to be taken in regards to battery care. Here is a great place to find out about camcorder battery care. This site will give you some great hints and tips about how to care for your camcorder and its batteries. This is one of the main points that is overlooked these days and it is proabably the most important. Without well looked after, well performing batteries, even the best camcorder will not work at its potential. So head on over and see if you can pick up some handy tips and hints.

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Traveling with Camera Batteries

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