Other Equipment
Battery Grips
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Battery Grip for EOS 5D Mk II |
My 1D came with an integral battery grip, but I bought a separate grip for my 10D.
A battery grip plugs into the camera battery compartment and accepts two batteries. This means that with fully charged batteries you can usually get through a whole day in the field without hving to change batteries.
My battery grip came with exposure lock, focus point selection, and shutter release buttons for use when the camera is held in the vertical (portrait) orientation.
Grips for popular Canon models:
Spare batteries
The battery thing always fill me with terror from the start! When I considered whether I should have a spare battery I imagined being on the Farne Islands or over in mid-Wales for the day and running out of battery power - how would I feel?
With my 10D I had four batteries - two in the battery grip and two fully charged in my bag.
With my 1D I have one spare battery in my bag - they're much bigger and the camera takes one at a time.
Batteries are quite expensive, but I have only bought original Canon batteries. You should also make sure that the Canon battery you buy is genuinely Canon. From the Canon Website:
"Counterfeit lithium-ion battery packs pose a significant risk to your Canon digital camera – and your health. Because these battery packs are not equipped with protective devices that meet Canon's basic quality standards, they could cause your Canon digital camera to malfunction. These battery packs could also overheat, leak, ignite or explode, potentially causing injuries such as burns or damage to eyesight.
How can I tell it's genuine?
You can tell if a battery pack is genuine by checking for the unique hologram sticker found only on Canon's genuine battery packs. The hologram shows the word 'Canon' running in horizontal bands. A helix shape is displayed in between these bands, overprinted with the word 'Genuine.' In addition, the colour changes from gold to green when tilted from front-on to a horizontal position. If this transition does not occur, the hologram is a fake.
Canon will not be liable for any malfunctions or accidents caused by the use of non-Canon genuine lithium-ion battery packs (including counterfeit lithium-ion battery packs) in Canon products."
Battery Chargers
A single charger came with my 10D and a double charger with the 1D.
I fell into the trap of buying a double charger for the 10D batteries, when an additional single charger would have been better and cheaper.
I wrongly assumed that the double charger would allow me to charge two batteries at once, when in fact it doesn't. It allows me to put both batteries in the charger, but they are charged one at a time. Two single chargers would be twice as quick!
Things might have changed now, but check before you buy.
Memory cards
I remember paying £100 for my first 1GB memory card. Wow!
Memory is so cheap now compared with the cost of my camera equipment that I don't buy on price. Why would I spend thousands on cameras, lenses, etc, and then try to save a few pounds on memory cards?
I only use Lexar: 3 x 2GB cards and 3 x 1GB. You might wonder why I don't have bigger cards?
Firstly, I bought these cards a few years ago, and they have worked flawlessly, as you'd expect. So I haven't felt the need to change them.
Secondly, I'm not sure it's a good idea to store so many images on one card. What happens if my 16GB card fails when it's almost full; or if I lose it? The loss or failure of a 2GB card is not so disastrous.
The only reason I might find to justify changing them is to improve the write-speed. My cards are 133x and you can get write speeds of up to 600x. Would I notice a significant difference? Perhaps so, but I certainly don't sit around waiting for my 1D to save the images.
As with batteries, watch out for counterfeit memory cards. Always buy from a well known reputable dealer.
Have a look at the CompactFlash Cards and MultiMedia and SD Cards categories (Browse by Categories) in my Amazon Shop.
Cleaning
After a visit to Pennington Flash one day, I realised just how filthy my 10D sensor was! Shoot at a small aperture against a plain background - the sky in low light, for example - if you want to see the contamination.
Although Canon recommends that its cameras should be returned for sensor cleaning, this is hardly practical, especially if it occurs on a regular basis - £20+ with a 2-day to 2-week turnaround!. I remember regularly carrying out a test with a plain sheet of paper to check the cleanliness of my sensor and attempting to clean the sensor myself with various tools (very risky). Thankfully, there are now much better options - see the Other Equipment page.
