Another Newb Question- Batteries and Straps

[Gig 'Em Mickey]

Question 1-in the past I've always 2-3 spare batteries for my p&s or more recently my wife's megazoom. I just bought a nikon and the nikon branded batteries are ~$70. Are off brands safe to use with the same performance? Any brands better than the others? Or should I just suck it up and buy the nikon brand?

Question 2-Camera straps. The strap that came with it is I guess your standard Nikon strap. Kinda thin, nikon written all over it. I don't mind the branding but it's not real comfortable. I'm also a big guy and the strap isn't long enough to where it hangs comfortably. I want another one, but most of the good ones I see screw into the tripod mount. Not sure how much I trust that. Would prefer to have the strap secured on the side like it is now and still have access to tripod threading.

jeez, this hobby is a little more expensive than I thought it was going to be.

 

[wdwmagic]

Stick to the branded batteries. Playing with your camera's power source is not a good idea. A fault in a third party battery could fry your camera. If you read reviews on sites such as Amazon and BH, you will typically see people rate them below the originals.

The tripod mount straps are safe. Black Rapid tend to lead the way with those, but I am personally not a fan. Like bags, I think straps are very much a personal choice. I have been through 4 or 5 and still to find the perfect one.

 

[Gig 'Em Mickey]

Isn't it a pain to unscrew the strap if you want to mount your camera on the tripod?

 

[dadddio]

Question 1-in the past I've always 2-3 spare batteries for my p&s or more recently my wife's megazoom. I just bought a nikon and the nikon branded batteries are ~$70. Are off brands safe to use with the same performance? Any brands better than the others? Or should I just suck it up and buy the nikon brand?

I have a Canon camera and use both Canon and off-brand batteries. I haven't recognized a performance difference between them, but I haven't been looking for one, either. I start the day with a charged battery in my camera and one in the bag. I almost always finish the day without touching the one in the bag.

Question 2-Camera straps. The strap that came with it is I guess your standard Nikon strap. Kinda thin, nikon written all over it. I don't mind the branding but it's not real comfortable. I'm also a big guy and the strap isn't long enough to where it hangs comfortably. I want another one, but most of the good ones I see screw into the tripod mount. Not sure how much I trust that. Would prefer to have the strap secured on the side like it is now and still have access to tripod threading.

I got lucky and had an old comfy strap from an earlier SLR, so I just tossed the cheap thing that came with my 70d and used the one that I had. That being said, if I were to choose to replace mine, I would likely go with the Tamrac Boomerang.

jeez, this hobby is a little more expensive than I thought it was going to be.

Once you get past the initial investment of camera, a few lenses, bag, strap, tripod and software it begins to not be so expensive, unless you want it to be. It's not like golf where you are blowing a hundred bucks every week.

 

[wdwmagic]

Isn't it a pain to unscrew the strap if you want to mount your camera on the tripod?

Yep. I'm not a fan of tripod mount straps for that reason amongst others.

 

[Allen C]

I switched from a Black Rapid to a Crumpler Industry Disgrace strap and have never looked back.

As for batteries, off-brand MAY perform as well as branded but you should realize that you're paying for quality control. Your chances of getting a lemon are much higher with off brand.

 

[Grumpy-Fan]

I Strongly recommend The Crumpler Industry Disgcrace but over on another sight they`re saying that this model has been discontinued. Very comfortable.

Go ahead and bite the bullet and get the branded batteries.

 

[Allen C]

I Strongly recommend The Crumpler Industry Disgcrace but over on another sight they`re saying that this model has been discontinued. Very comfortable.

If the Crumplers are not available I suggest checking out the Op/Tech Pro straps.

 

[afb28]

For straps I just found someone on Etsy who would make a Haunted Mansion one. I usually just make sure to slide it through my left arm so it hangs diagonally across me as opposed to around my neck and straight down. That, for me, has caused the standard straps to be super comfortable and not give my neck any issues.

For batteries, as wdwmagic said, don't stray away from the brand. Maybe because I'm local to WDW I don't have the need to take extra batteries but some tips I would suggest if you're coming from out of town: 1) Charge it each night/morning at the resort so it's full for the next day (which goes without saying probably) 2) For most shots, you'll be taking them from park open til about 11am ish and then not again until Sunset. This does two things, makes sure that the light isn't super harsh and have bad shadows and two, it allows you to turn the camera off for those 6 or so hours and preserve the life. The only time I would recommend using it between those hours is if you're doing indoor/ride photos.

 

[NowInc]

Nikon is notorious for doing firmware updates on your camera that will make 3rd party batteries inoperable. Granted, you don't HAVE to update the firmware, but keep in mind that that "feature" is never listed..they kind of sneak it in with other important updates. This also applies to 3rd party battery grips.

 

[Gig 'Em Mickey]

Thanks everyone. I actually like the look of the Black Rapid RS-7 and that might serve my needs nicely. Might still be a pain to take off to mount to tripod but I think I can probably deal with that, or at least I'll give it a try. But I've save the other recommendations as well.

I haven't updated the firmware, I honestly didn't even know you could do that. I assume you just download from the Nikon site it has a loader that takes care of the rest?

 

[Jahona]

Usually you download it and put it on a blank SD or Compact Flash card. In the settings you'll find an option on firmware and the choice to update it.

 

[JediMasterMatt]

Question 1-in the past I've always 2-3 spare batteries for my p&s or more recently my wife's megazoom. I just bought a nikon and the nikon branded batteries are ~$70. Are off brands safe to use with the same performance? Any brands better than the others? Or should I just suck it up and buy the nikon brand?

Question 2-Camera straps. The strap that came with it is I guess your standard Nikon strap. Kinda thin, nikon written all over it. I don't mind the branding but it's not real comfortable. I'm also a big guy and the strap isn't long enough to where it hangs comfortably. I want another one, but most of the good ones I see screw into the tripod mount. Not sure how much I trust that. Would prefer to have the strap secured on the side like it is now and still have access to tripod threading.

jeez, this hobby is a little more expensive than I thought it was going to be.

Re: Question 1 - If you are going in with the idea of having extra batteries for back up, then I personally don't have a problem in reading reviews on some of the 3rd party ones and use those exclusively for backup. I wouldn't rely on them being in the camera body the majority of the time. I also have used 3rd party batteries in my grips and have never had an issue. My last two grip batteries are nicer than the Nikon version as they are higher capacity and I don't need to pull them out of the grip to charge as they have a connector at the end to plug it in. Just be sure to take the grip off the body before charging. Just be sure to do your research and don't purchase any from vendors you can't find any 1st hand feedback online from.

Re: Question 2 - the straps included are never the most comfortable. I finally made the switch over to a sling strap and picked up the Black Rapid RS-7. Before doing so, I spoke with many of my photography friends and even had a call with one of their contacts from Nikon's HQ here in the US regarding the issue of using the tripod mount instead of the lugs. Based on what I was told, I feel much more comfortable in using one of the lugs vs. the tripod mount. While the tripod mount can take abuse, the Nikon engineer explained to me that the lug is a solid piece of steel inserted into the magnesium chassis. The entire lug or chassis would have to fail to cause an issue. Using the tripod mount, the only thing holding the strap is place is the friction of the threads. So, not only in theory would there be more chance of thread failure due to less material involved, you are compounding the risk in that the friction is user dependent in that you screw it in and out. So, both lug and tripod mount have the risk of structural damage (perhaps a bit more with the tripod mount); but, the tripod mount runs the risk of not being tightened properly every time you take it on or off. In the end, I opted to use the BosStrap Bostail as my method of connecting to the RS-7. Whatever could break my lug would certainly break my tripod mount as well; but, I don't run the risk of it becoming unscrewed. I put the tail on the body and bought one of the LockStar protectors to make sure it doesn't come loose either.

BTW - your comment about the expense is very true; but, you are doing something very right with it - asking questions and thinking long term. The number 1 mistake I see people make when it comes to photography is trying to save money up front and then pay to replace and upgrade down the road. When you buy equipment, buy things that you can reuse only once. Lenses, tripods, shutter releases, flashes, etc. The body is replaceable; but, what you purchase to go along with it can last forever if you plan right.

 

[Gig 'Em Mickey]

That bostail things looks cool. I was thinking about crafting something similar out of paracord and a key ring or carabiner just to have a safety tether.

Thanks!

 

[ddbowdoin]

if you're spending good money on a branded body why cheap out on batteries? Also, DSLR batteries are tanks... they go for the longgggg haul as compared to mirrorless batteries which might as well be disposable.

 

[fractal]

if you're spending good money on a branded body why cheap out on batteries? Also, DSLR batteries are tanks... they go for the longgggg haul as compared to mirrorless batteries which might as well be disposable.

My mirror less camera battery is over 3 years old and still gives my 500 shots.

So there!

 

[ddbowdoin]

My mirror less camera battery is over 3 years old and still gives my 500 shots.

So there!

when I was using Fuji... holy smokes, half a day and it was dead.

 

[Gig 'Em Mickey]

Yeah I've been impressed with the battery so far. It hasn't come close to running out even after shooting an all day soccer tournament. Still, I'm about having backups. "Always prepared." Usually it's overkill, but I like the security blanket. I went ahead and bought a nikon battery. It was $40 at B&H, much more reasonable than the $70 I had seen at other places.

 

[NowInc]

Yeah I've been impressed with the battery so far. It hasn't come close to running out even after shooting an all day soccer tournament. Still, I'm about having backups. "Always prepared." Usually it's overkill, but I like the security blanket. I went ahead and bought a nikon battery. It was $40 at B&H, much more reasonable than the $70 I had seen at other places.

You'll be thankful for that extra battery as you start doing more and more long exposures.

 

[JediMasterMatt]

You'll be thankful for that extra battery as you start doing more and more long exposures.

Long exposures and cold weather will drain your battery faster than you can imagine. So, the time of the year you are shooting comes into play as well. *I do a lot of my WDW shooting in the frigid late January/early February time frame where it can get down to almost freezing... those are fun nights to be in the parks.