John_K
addict
Reged: 03/09/2006
Posts: 584
Loc: North Yorks
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Can anyone suggest just how many shots I can expect to get out of a genuine Nikon battery when fitted to a D200? The camera will be used on J.Peg at the finest setting, very little flash, but the screen will be on to view the image (approx 10 Seconds) I am going away to Europe and will be taking 4 batteries and cards with the capacity of 4.75 gig of recording space. As I will be travelling on a motorcycle and camping the opportunity to recharge may be very limited.
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Nod
Carpal \'Tunnel
Reged: 08/04/2006
Posts: 4411
Loc: Devon, UK.
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I've just spent a day shooting with a D200, using a VR lens on Continuous AF. I didn't review every image (and that eats batteries) but I got over 700 shots on one battery and there's still some juice left in it. You could always invest in a battery grip which would allow you to use AA batteries in an emergency.
I reckon you might need more memory though, unless you transfer images to CD or DVD at Internet Cafés on your travels.
Have a great trip!
-------------------- MATWSIJ.....
To avoid being offended, please insert apropriate smiley.
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weasley
addict
Reged: 11/01/2006
Posts: 508
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I have found the D200 quite power hungry, particularly compared to the apparently perpetually-powered D70s, and a day's shoot can see the battery drop from full to two bars (I do have the auto-review enabled, but don't use VR lenses and most are AF-S/HSM). To conserve power you could manual focus and keep the monitor and flash off.
However I have recently put on the MB-D200 grip and with 2 EN-EL3Es on-board it appears to last more than twice as long as just with the 1 battery in the body (that's the feeling I get anyway - I'm sure physics doesn't actually allow it!). Plus with the grip you can still run it on 1 battery if you want (or need) to and there's the emergency AA adaptor that will get you out of a hole in most countries. Of course it does add significant bulk and weight to the outfit, probably a concern when travelling light.
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hech54
addict
Reged: 20/05/2006
Posts: 456
Loc: Germany and U.S.A.
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Quote:
I have found the D200 quite power hungry, particularly compared to the apparently perpetually-powered D70s
 I agree....my D70 seems to be powered by oxygen.
-------------------- Does the picture turn out differently than what you see in the viewfinder?
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John_K
addict
Reged: 03/09/2006
Posts: 584
Loc: North Yorks
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Because of the remote areas that I will be visiting and travelling through, the battery usage concerns me so I am leaving the D200 at home and taking the F100 and a shed load of film plus a couple of sets of extra AA batteries.
I still use film as my main recording medium and can do these in the darkroom without any problem.
Thanks for the input anyway.
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hech54
addict
Reged: 20/05/2006
Posts: 456
Loc: Germany and U.S.A.
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Quote:
Because of the remote areas that I will be visiting and travelling through, the battery usage concerns me so I am leaving the D200 at home and taking the F100 and a shed load of film plus a couple of sets of extra AA batteries.
I still use film as my main recording medium and can do these in the darkroom without any problem.
Thanks for the input anyway.
All you would have needed to do is get a power plug adapter for the charger since the Nikon chargers are "universal"....meaning all they do is change the power cable that is included in the box. The power cable for the Nikon chargers is nothing more than the same power cable used for most computer printers and external hard drives. My computer monitor cable, my HP Printer cable, my Harmon Kardon computer speaker power cable, my Philips VCR cable, and my Canon video camera cable are all identical and work perfectly. It might be as simple as walking into a electronics store (like Saturn or Media Markt here in Germany) and buying a 2 euro printer power cord/cable.
-------------------- Does the picture turn out differently than what you see in the viewfinder?
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sillyconguru
enthusiast
Reged: 05/11/2005
Posts: 357
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Quote:
As I will be travelling on a motorcycle and camping the opportunity to recharge may be very limited.
Buy a 3rd party charger that has a 12v input, cut the cigarette lighter adapter off it and connect the wires to your bike's battery, and put it under the seat (or wherever). Job done.
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weasley
addict
Reged: 11/01/2006
Posts: 508
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Quote:
All you would have needed to do is get a power plug adapter for the charger since the Nikon chargers are "universal"...
...of course this does presuppose that any kind of power outlet is available at all! The OP did say "remote"!
Quote:
...The power cable for the Nikon chargers is nothing more than the same power cable used for most computer printers and external hard drives....<etc>
Be careful with this - not all such cables have the same rated fuse in them.
The bike power may be an option though, although power inverters can be quite bulky and may draw too much from the bike's alternator/battery (if you think a dead camera battery is a problem in a remote area, try a dead bike battery!)
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John_K
addict
Reged: 03/09/2006
Posts: 584
Loc: North Yorks
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I need not have worried at all. I went with 4 full batteries and with the camera set on RAW all the time, fired away and used the equivalent of 3Gig of memory and the 1st battery still had a bit of life left. This expired on the way home when I was on the ferry and to fill in my time was reviewing the images so now I know.
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