Film/Digital.. Arrrg!

[minicooper]

I'm going on a fairly 'roughing-it' kinda trip this year around the Grand Canyon, and national parks such as Zion and Bryce, and I am agonising over the decision of taking the 10D or investing in something like the EOS 3 or EOS 30. (my only other 35mm is a EOS 300).

The problem is that I won't have ANY access to a powerpoint for 10 days, so I would have to invest in loads more batteries, charge them, and hope for the best. With film however, this obviously wouldn't be a problem. I am confident about shooting and not seeing what I would be getting, but with film I obviously wouldn't be able to experiment quite so much, and there is the problem of the cost of film/development.

So I guess the question is: Do I invest in £500 worth of batteries and memory cards, or do I invest £500 in a 10D equivilent film body?

Also- Is it wise to take a fairly delicate digital camera into such an environment? After all, its always going to be preferable to drop a EOS 30 into a canyon rather than a 10D!

What would you do?

Thanks in advance!

[sparktography]

For the sake of experimentation I would suggest bringing digital only. Batteries are cheap ($30 for a generic one that can take 900 photos), and you will use them again and again. I am never going back to spending $7 a roll on film/developing!

[samdring]

agree with Sparky - couple of cheapish batteries - no need for huge amount of CF cards - something like Apacer CD recorder - mine lasts me for days without charge - CDs 10 a penny

[Sam North]

You might find this article of interest:

http://www.luminous-landscape.com/locations/wilderness.shtml

Sam

[robertwgross]

The problem is that I won't have ANY access to a powerpoint for 10 days,


Does that mean that you are going to be on foot and not even have a vehicle around?

If strictly on foot, then you will have to go with more standard Li-Ion battery packs.

If supported by vehicle, then simply recharge your battery packs off the vehicle's electrical system. The standard Canon battery charger only plugs into AC power, and a small inverter can make that out of 12VDC. There are other battery chargers (for these kinds of Li-Ion batteries) that will plug directly into 12VDC.

Whichever way you go, you will need more than one battery pack. I don't think any of us try to get by on only one single pack.

---Bob Gross---

[RichardtheSane]

For wilderness landscape shooting you can really increase the life of your batteries with a bit of careful power management.

1. Turn off the review and don't use the LCD*
2. Use CF and not microdrives
3. keep you batteries warm, ideally inside trouser or inner coat pockets.
4. Where possible turn off the AF and use manual focus
5. Avoid IS altogether :D

*This may require an extra investment in CF cards or a digital wallet device

Just a few ideas.

[Andy_T]

Just a simple thought:

Compare the weight and price of a BP511 to the weight of the film cartridges you need to get the same number of shots ...

Best regards,
Andy

[robertwgross]

To further Andy's thought...

and you don't have to worry about dragging film through the airport X-ray machine.

---Bob Gross---

[defordphoto]

If it was me? I'd definitely buy batteries. Film is such a PITA anymore. Not just to carry, but to deal with all the processing and then scanning and then ARRRGGHHH!!!

I love digital.

And you can get batteries for $11-$15 all day long too.

Here's one source: http://www.amondotech.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=54

I purchased two sets from them on a Sunday and received an email the next morning that they had been shipped at 9:30am and was given a tracking number. I had them two days later. Awesome service. They're on the left-coast in S Calif

[iwatkins]

Even if no where near a vehicle, I've seen solar trickle chargers advertised.

The panel itself you just strap to the top of your backback and the charger/cable/batteries can go in a pocket. The solar charger will charge up a set during a day.

You can also get large powerpacks that connect to the camera. Just one large pack would last you a couple of weeks with careful power management, but there again, a little more cumbersome than a BP511.

Cheers

Ian

[cgratti]

For the sake of experimentation I would suggest bringing digital only. Batteries are cheap ($30 for a generic one that can take 900 photos), and you will use them again and again. I am never going back to spending $7 a roll on film/developing!

Almost agree.... if you want a 35mm camera anyway, buy one and maybe 2-3 extra batteries for your 10D, shoot with the 10D until your batteries run dry, then switch to the 35mm film camera. You can even let your wife/girlfriend shoot with the film camera while you shoot the 10D.

JMO

[robertwgross]

Even if no where near a vehicle, I've seen solar trickle chargers advertised.

The panel itself you just strap to the top of your backback and the charger/cable/batteries can go in a pocket. The solar charger will charge up a set during a day.


Solar trickle chargers are difficult to use. If you put the solar panel in direct sun, you can get a little current, but then you have to orient the panel to keep avoiding shadows all day long. You really don't get that much current out of a panel unless you have a very large one.

In general, you would have to hook up the 12-volt version of the regular Li-ion charger to apply directly to the battery, but I'll wager that you don't get enough current out of the panel to drive that charger.

If you take the charger out of the middle, then you would have to match up the solar panel output voltage to the input of the Li-ion battery, and that is awkward if you want to keep the charge current to the battery optimal (which, for Li-ion batteries, is important).

The bottom line is that solar panels aren't much good in a foot-mounted portable situation. If you were in a base camp for a longer period, then one big solar panel producing 12 volts to a big storage battery would make sense. Then run the 12v charger from it.

I've been down this road.

---Bob Gross---

[minicooper]

Cheers for all the input guys, I think I will take the ole 10D, it would seem silly not to.

Thanks!

Tom

[kraterz]

Get something like a used EOS-33/Elan-7 or even an EOS-50/Elan-II and a set of batteries. They are cheap now. The CR-123's last me 4-6 months with moderate shooting and flash use. You'll never have a power problem with film cameras.