1D MK II - Does grip on/off switch drain batteries?

I keep forgetting to turn off the vertical grip on/off switch. Does it drain the battery to leave that switch on even with the main power switch is off?

No.

^^^ What he said... All the switch on the grip does is turn the camera controls on the grip on and off.

Good - and bad. I had a battery that didn't last very long (400 shots?) and I was hoping it was because I left the grip switch on. Apparently it is just a battery that is getting old ...

Just remember not to buy Canon batteries for your mk2. There are many other brands out there doing just the same things for a fraction of what Canon wants for them. I only bought Canon batteries while my Mk2s were under waranty and since then have used cheap ones from Ebay. Absolutely no difference in performance at all and the only way I can tell that they are copies is that the release toggle feels looser on the copies than it does on the Canon originals. I can buy 4 copies for the price of one Canon. Make sure you get the 2200mAh ones, I've noticed that some on sale are rated at 1800mAh

Hmmm,

I used only Canon batteries in my 40D because I wanted to do everything possible to prevent body damage due to any battery (leakage?) issues. In my 40D grip, I ran Sterlingteks because I figure the grip isn't really that expensive.

Right now I have 2 Canon batteries for the 1D Mk II. I'll see how long they last before I start buying replacements.

400 shots isnt that bad is it? Do you chimp a lot? Some of my 1D classic batteries would last 150 shots because it was a power hog.

I had bad luck with the aftermarket battery. Mine would not latch good into the body and it would seem to run down over night. I finally isolated it to the battery latch. I replaced the end cap with the lock with one from a dead Canon battery and then it was a good battery. That is great as long as you have dead Canon batteries to rob the cap from.

Canon rates the NiMH batteries at 1200 shots. I've heard that shooters often get 1300 or so shots out of their 1DMk2 batteries. So, 400 shots is weak. It needs replacement.

You can get decent aftermarket batteries but be warned, the weather sealing is probably not all that great (that's what I've read). Keep your camera away from water and dirty environments if you're using aftermarket batteries.

Have you tried refreshing the battery? I've seen a battery last about 150 shots before dying, then after a refresh last a good 1500 or so.

n1as wrote in post #7715763
I keep forgetting to turn off the vertical grip on/off switch. Does it drain the battery to leave that switch on even with the main power switch is off?

No, thing only thing I have found is if you enlarge an image on the rear screen a lot, this does seem to drain a battery quicker.

Some times on my 1Ds II the battery will show almost empty after about 500 shots but will last to 1000 or so. The battery gauge will sometimes go back to showing full after the camera is shut off and turned back on. When you say your battery only lasts 400 shots does that mean the camera shut off or just shows that it's low?

BscPhoto wrote in post #7719910
Some times on my 1Ds II the battery will show almost empty after about 500 shots but will last to 1000 or so. The battery gauge will sometimes go back to showing full after the camera is shut off and turned back on. When you say your battery only lasts 400 shots does that mean the camera shut off or just shows that it's low?

Mine does the same, be interesting if anyone has any thoughts on this!!!!!!!!

I've had the 1D II for about a week (love it, BTW). I refreshed and charged one battery, then did a firmware upgrade. After a couple hundred shots, the camera said "low battery" and quit shooting.

With the 2nd battery, I refreshed and fully charged it. Shot a wedding rehearsal with it, then the wedding the next day. Maybe 400 shots total. Battery indicator said less than full so, not wanting to take any chances, I swapped it for the other fully charged battery.

I have since put the 1/2 full battery back in and will continue to see how far I go before the camera says "low battery" and the camera shuts off.

Oh - and I don't do a lot of screen viewing on the 1D. The screen is too small to be of much use so I pretty much just shoot. I'll check the historgram now & then but I'm not reviewing every shot, that's for sure.

You might need to do a few refresh cycles to get the batteries up to speed if they haven't been used in a while. Either that or they're just on their way out.

I turned off the review feature to save battery.