Battery Grips-Do you use one and why/why not?

Used to hate them, never used them, couldn't understand why 90% of the people that used them did so. Then when I started using a longer lens, sig150-600 C and then the DO, ans specifically started doing more birding, I got one for my 7DII. Holding the camera in portrait for long periods waiting for a bird to pose just right was straining my wrist.

Since I started using one, I now have one for my 5DIII as well for just general shooting, even though I shoot landscape most of the time and will just twist my wrist anyway to take a quick portrait shot or two. I just find it more comfortable and easier to manipulate the camera, even just changing lenses and such. I only take it off for hiking or when I specifically want to lighten it or make is smaller for packing.

It's just one of those things. No right or wrong, but I surprised myself, never thought I use one for general shooting.

ejenner wrote in post #18377137
Used to hate them, never used them, couldn't understand why 90% of the people that used them did so. Then when I started using a longer lens, sig150-600 C and then the DO, ans specifically started doing more birding, I got one for my 7DII. Holding the camera in portrait for long periods waiting for a bird to pose just right was straining my wrist.

Since I started using one, I now have one for my 5DIII as well for just general shooting, even though I shoot landscape most of the time and will just twist my wrist anyway to take a quick portrait shot or two. I just find it more comfortable and easier to manipulate the camera, even just changing lenses and such. I only take it off for hiking or when I specifically want to lighten it or make is smaller for packing.

It's just one of those things. No right or wrong, but I surprised myself, never thought I use one for general shooting.

It is often the case with something like a grip, that you find a situation where one is an advantage, such as with the big lenses, so you start to use one. Then you one day you don't take it off the camera for some "normal" use, because it is less bother. Then very quickly it becomes the norm, and removing it at all seems odd and strange, as if it were something you would now never consider.

Alan

Not having to swap out batteries in the middle of a wedding/video/timelaps​e etc. Also, my pinkie almost always ends up at the bottom of a an ungripped camera, so a grip fixes my grip

On my 6D, no... on my 7D2, yes. The 6D tends to be on tripod about 75% of the time and on me 100% of the time. 7D2 is used only when I need the AF abilities. The extra battery is helpful as I burn through a lot of frames sometimes.

Depends...

If I know I am going to oriented vertically for extended periods, then yes.
If it's already on and just too lazy to take it off and put it away properly, then yes.
If I am out of room already, or it is already off and I am not around where I store it and I am generally too lazy to go get it, then no.
If I am wanting to get the MAXIMUM battery life out of what I have, then no.
I rarely care about the weight.

I don't know about other grips, but my 3rd party one for the T1i consumes 2 batteries faster than the camera alone running on 1 battery at a time. So, if I know it is going to be a long time before I get back to a charger, then I will not use the grip.

Noitca wrote in post #18378300
Depends...

If I know I am going to oriented vertically for extended periods, then yes.
If it's already on and just too lazy to take it off and put it away properly, then yes.
If I am out of room already, or it is already off and I am not around where I store it and I am generally too lazy to go get it, then no.
If I am wanting to get the MAXIMUM battery life out of what I have, then no.
I rarely care about the weight.

I don't know about other grips, but my 3rd party one for the T1i consumes 2 batteries faster than the camera alone running on 1 battery at a time. So, if I know it is going to be a long time before I get back to a charger, then I will not use the grip.

Your comments about your third party grip seems odd. I certainly haven't seen that behaviour with the two Canon grips I have used with three bodies. I originally had a 300D that came in a kit with the OEM grip, and I have since had a 20D then a 50D, with which I have used the same grip, it was common across the 20D to 50D models. Mine was the later "N" version of the grip.

Have you tried your grip with just the one battery? A correctly operating grip really should not use any power from the batteries, except where it has a built in intervalometer, and that shouldn't really use very much power. It sounds to me as if your grip is faulty.

Alan

RDKirk wrote in post #18376748
I've been using cameras with "grips" since my Topcon Super DM in the early 70 and then a bite later Canon F-1 with the MF motor drive (with the handle stuffed with ten AA batteries).

Wow! This is my exact progression also...

I got the grip mostly for the ability to flip to portrait easily. I hardly ever use the total battery capacity, but its nice to know it's there if the job runs longer than expected.

Yes, been using them since my 10D. I like the extra battery capacity, creates more room for gripping the camera and it balances the camera out more with larger/heavier lenses.

Yes I do use one on all of my cameras, because they are more comfortable in my hands.