jcsnell Loc: SW Ohio

Question concerning a battery grip. When using a battery grip with 2 batteries are you actually using 2 batteries or just one and the other is just your "back up" It seems to me whenever my camera shows low battery both need to be charged. Sorry for being so dense but I do not understand electronics very well. Thank you.

Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

You didn't mention the camera, but on my Nikons there is a menu item that let's me choose which battery to use first, body or grip. After it drains one, it goes to the other. I get a battery warning when both have been drained.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I guess it uses both then, in parallel.
When the camera says "low battery", why would it warn you about "one". Total power available from both is "low".

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Interesting. I suppose it depends on the camera?
How do you know it uses one first then the other? Is it in the manual?
(I don't worry about which one gets used first or if both are used at the same time. Exhausted is exhausted.)

Strodav Loc: Houston, Tx

You have to check. There is another menu item, battery info, which gives the charge on both batteries. Most of the time the batteries last a whole day of shooting, over 1000 images, but I always have a spare battery with me just in case. Usually when downloading images, I check and charge as needed.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Just wondering because I don't have that camera. Obviously it depends on the camera model as to how concise the battery level indicator works.

I have a dual battery grip for my Canon, and also carry spare batteries.
I just plug them in and use them until they get lower than I feel comfortable using.
I pull the card to download photos. More expedient than connecting the camera.

SonyA580 Loc: FL in the winter & MN in the summer

Assuming I start with 2 fully charged batteries in the grip, both of my Sonys use one completely and then switch to the second one. I know this because the battery status shows on the LCD screen.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Nice.

rwm283main Loc: Terryville, CT

The process you described is similar to the Fujifilm battery grip I use with my X-T2 camera. It doesn’t allow me to choose which battery to use first but it does use the two in the grip first. When the left battery in the grip gets low it starts using the right battery before switching to the body battery. The extra batteries definitely come in handy during the winter months.

Tracy B. Loc: Indiana

On my Canon R5, it shows the % of each battery. They are about them same % all the time.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

All camera's are different. The camera manual or vertical grip manual will tell you exactly how your grip works with two batteries.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

elliott937 Loc: St. Louis

Longshadow: I believe your are very correct. In my case, I do teach electronics in my physics class. When two identical batteries are connected in -parallel-, the current is doubled, and the voltage stays constant. That is why we get a "longer life" before we need to recharge them, both of them. Like you, I have Canon, and always with a battery grips. I will always remember the bitter cold winter storm we had a few years ago. I went to a local park to capture many beautiful images. Two fresh batters in the grip, and I put two more in a shirt pocket that would keep them close to my chest, hence receive body heat from me. Remember, in nearly all batteries, the output is a function of temperature. That's why in very cold weather, as the temp goes down, your "car battery cranking power" also goes down. So, back to the cold park. After about 40 minutes of shooting, the two in the pack ran down, so back to the car, and insert the two from my shirt pocket. Yep, I got another 40 minutes. In fact, I capture an image of a young father and his young child on a sled coming down a small hill, surrendered with snow covered pine trees on both sides. I capture some nice image. The dad asked if he could see them, and fell in love with the images. I told him to pick the one he likes best, and I'll email a .jpg to him. He told me used it to make their Christmas cards, all 400 of them. Kind of makes you feel good when you can 'make a difference'.

So, two (identical) batteries, in parallel, will double the current, and keep the voltage constant. In fact, I have a former student who likes to help fellow students when the bitter cold makes their cars difficult/impossible to start after classes. Dan bought a second truck batter, wired them in parallel and was then able to help many many students. 12vdc and a major high value of dc current. I hope this helps.

Sorry for the story about the young dad and child, but I thought the double battery part of the story might interest you and suggest we all look for ways to help other people with our images.
Bill

photoman43

For my Nikon bodies, you select which battery is used first, either the one in camera or the one in the battery grip. You make the selection in the Set Up menu screen.


https://onlinemanual.nikonimglib.com/d850/en/18_menu_guide_06_30.html

User ID

In my "Brand-X" camera both batteries are easily accessed by a door in the grip. So I dont care if they drain sequentially or together.

HOWEVER in my "Brand-Y" camera one battery is easily swapped by a door while the other remains in the camera, trapped there by the grip. In this camera you want sequential use, so the trapped battery is the back up, but mostly youre just swapping out only the accessible battery.