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Turns out it's not the battery, camera itself has a problem. I suspect that something is causing the battery to drain super fast.
He's the dumb way I found out!
Photographers tend to have very set ways of doing things so they don't wind up with problems. Like, I never close the SD slot on my camera when the card isn't in. Anyway, usually before I head out I turn my camera on and off just to double check that the card and battery are installed... and that the camera is in the bag. I do this 99.9% of the time I swear.
But last night I just needed to get out and walk a few miles with some weight on my back. I'd been inside way too much. I stayed at my guild thing for a while, but just hit a 'no, I need to get my blood moving'. So I just grabbed my camera bag and headed out to a spot that allegedly has a new piece of urban art. Of course, the widely posted location was 100% wrong. Of course it was. Cool art + creating illusion of it being a thing you too can come and see / photograph is the winning social media formula. That is why people *routinely* post about waterfalls and other things in Oregon as being easy, close, uncrowded, etc. Saying 'Got up at 3 AM to shoot this before the crowds arrive' is less engaging. *indistinct grumbles about tourists trusting instagram over official info or locals*
Anyway, found something else I wanted to shoot and... battery dead. The brand new, fully charged battery was 100% dead. I have never fully run out of charge on my camera since 2018. I am careful. Dead batteries on shoots does not happen to me... except for last night!
I am likely to both get the new version of the same camera, staying with am OMD 5 instead of the OMD 10, 1 or X. Just a mark iii instead of a mark ii. <- these words make sense to me at least. But also I will see if the old body can be repaired.
The upgrade should be fun, because even a newer 10 is supposed to be a step up from the old 5. Maybe I should jump to a 1 but, the 5 really feels like the sweet spot to me.
But, until I make a final decision, I do have my Pen 8 and the bright primes should do good on it. But it's got a much weaker sensor and can't support Sync IS.
Olympus PENs are very small cameras that pwn cell phones, but are still super light, easy to carry, have vintage styling and come in a few color combos to suit your vibe. They are for people who want more serious camera gear, but don't want the look of more serious camera gear. This may all sound very fashion-victimy but I love them. The new months I was without a PEN I was unreasonably sad about it. They fit in small bags and people react very different to pulling out a PEN than other types of cameras.
Carrying a serious looking camera with any sort of bulk can make people stressed. At cons, at playgrounds, at street fairs, people do pull away and are wary around serious gear, and for good reason. I mean, it was years ago but some asshole photographer from my area started selling dakimakuras of cosplayers he'd photographed at cons. Even that aside, there are plenty of people out there willing to cross boundaries for social media validation. Also, a lot of nerds and geeks I've known are nervous around any camera due to social media humiliations and my larger cameras literally stress them out. And yeah, I get that feel. There are some seriously not okay pictures of me out on the interwebs, ones taken to make fun of me online.
If I am looking to go somewhere and have a chill time, good social experience I carry my PEN or no camera.
Olympus OMDs are the more serious cameras with water sealing, etc. You can literally dunk them in arctic streams, people have just to prove it. Most other cameras can't even handle rain. OMDs come in 4 flavors: budget, medium, high end and silly. Very few people buy silly, it was more Olympus making a point about it's sensors. My camera is a medium. I currently have the mark 2 of the medium, but the mark 3 has been out for many years. At this point, technology has moved forward so much that the current version of the budget model is actually better than what I have.
But, until I figure out what I want to do and when, I have my little vintagey looking fashion victim PEN, and yeah it's also very much an older model. It's about the same age as my OMD. I think they are both 8 years old?
He's the dumb way I found out!
Photographers tend to have very set ways of doing things so they don't wind up with problems. Like, I never close the SD slot on my camera when the card isn't in. Anyway, usually before I head out I turn my camera on and off just to double check that the card and battery are installed... and that the camera is in the bag. I do this 99.9% of the time I swear.
But last night I just needed to get out and walk a few miles with some weight on my back. I'd been inside way too much. I stayed at my guild thing for a while, but just hit a 'no, I need to get my blood moving'. So I just grabbed my camera bag and headed out to a spot that allegedly has a new piece of urban art. Of course, the widely posted location was 100% wrong. Of course it was. Cool art + creating illusion of it being a thing you too can come and see / photograph is the winning social media formula. That is why people *routinely* post about waterfalls and other things in Oregon as being easy, close, uncrowded, etc. Saying 'Got up at 3 AM to shoot this before the crowds arrive' is less engaging. *indistinct grumbles about tourists trusting instagram over official info or locals*
Anyway, found something else I wanted to shoot and... battery dead. The brand new, fully charged battery was 100% dead. I have never fully run out of charge on my camera since 2018. I am careful. Dead batteries on shoots does not happen to me... except for last night!
I am likely to both get the new version of the same camera, staying with am OMD 5 instead of the OMD 10, 1 or X. Just a mark iii instead of a mark ii. <- these words make sense to me at least. But also I will see if the old body can be repaired.
The upgrade should be fun, because even a newer 10 is supposed to be a step up from the old 5. Maybe I should jump to a 1 but, the 5 really feels like the sweet spot to me.
But, until I make a final decision, I do have my Pen 8 and the bright primes should do good on it. But it's got a much weaker sensor and can't support Sync IS.
Olympus PENs are very small cameras that pwn cell phones, but are still super light, easy to carry, have vintage styling and come in a few color combos to suit your vibe. They are for people who want more serious camera gear, but don't want the look of more serious camera gear. This may all sound very fashion-victimy but I love them. The new months I was without a PEN I was unreasonably sad about it. They fit in small bags and people react very different to pulling out a PEN than other types of cameras.
Carrying a serious looking camera with any sort of bulk can make people stressed. At cons, at playgrounds, at street fairs, people do pull away and are wary around serious gear, and for good reason. I mean, it was years ago but some asshole photographer from my area started selling dakimakuras of cosplayers he'd photographed at cons. Even that aside, there are plenty of people out there willing to cross boundaries for social media validation. Also, a lot of nerds and geeks I've known are nervous around any camera due to social media humiliations and my larger cameras literally stress them out. And yeah, I get that feel. There are some seriously not okay pictures of me out on the interwebs, ones taken to make fun of me online.
If I am looking to go somewhere and have a chill time, good social experience I carry my PEN or no camera.
Olympus OMDs are the more serious cameras with water sealing, etc. You can literally dunk them in arctic streams, people have just to prove it. Most other cameras can't even handle rain. OMDs come in 4 flavors: budget, medium, high end and silly. Very few people buy silly, it was more Olympus making a point about it's sensors. My camera is a medium. I currently have the mark 2 of the medium, but the mark 3 has been out for many years. At this point, technology has moved forward so much that the current version of the budget model is actually better than what I have.
But, until I figure out what I want to do and when, I have my little vintagey looking fashion victim PEN, and yeah it's also very much an older model. It's about the same age as my OMD. I think they are both 8 years old?
no subject
Date: 2022-07-03 06:02 pm (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2022-07-04 03:15 am (UTC)From:PENs win for form factor, but they are more demanding on the user. Fuji wins for intuitiveness.
Panasonic's Lumix are mirrorless, and the M43 ones use the same lens mount as Olympus so they share lenses and are very similar in a lot of ways. Bit easier to use, a bit better if you ever want to dabble in video, also has very similar image stabilization. If you want the best image stabilization (least worry about being able to hold a camera steady) Lumix and Olympus above everyone else by several miles.
Canon is still the 9000 gorilla of the photography world with the largest customer base so troubleshooting, finding instructional videos, everything you need in stock, etc. I don't think they have what you are looking for in a camera, but using Canon is the equivalent of using Windows, it's the standard.
I find Canons hard to hold because they are made for the typical American/European guy and my camera is one meant primarily for Asian markets so it's designed for a smaller hand.
Sorry this got long, I just hope it helps :) Getting a camera you vibe with makes a huge difference.
no subject
Date: 2022-07-04 02:25 am (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2022-07-04 03:57 am (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2022-07-04 03:35 am (UTC)From:I hadn't heard of the PENs, which isn't surprising, considering I know very little about good cameras. But I can definitely see the appeal! I miss even just having my little point and shoot Sony - it was so much better than a cell phone camera.
Too true about srs bsns cameras creating that little frisson of anxiety... I hate that it's the case, but there's an unpleasant history of assholes being assholes for internet points. (Though nowadays, I'm more worried with randos with their cellphones out and ready to be dicks on tiktok, tbh.)
no subject
Date: 2022-07-04 05:27 am (UTC)From:Yeah, cell phone stealth shooting is a big problem because holding up a phone is such a typical thing. Stealth shooting or just checking twitter? Still, when I am carrying both cameras and switch between my PEN and OMD, I can see people shift away or look at me in certain situations.
no subject
Date: 2022-07-06 02:52 am (UTC)From:Right? The number of tiktok videos and things out there that are just... making fun of some random person for... existing... is pretty horrific. But cell phones are so ubiquitous they aren't immediately suspicious, and it is hard to tell if someone might be recording.
But yeah, I can definitely believe you get different reactions based on what kind of camera you're obviously carrying.
no subject
Date: 2022-07-06 05:07 am (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2022-07-08 03:07 am (UTC)From:no subject
Date: 2022-07-08 05:00 am (UTC)From:I literally can't handhold certain Canon cameras because I can't reach the dials. They are made for male hands of European descent. I have the finger length to play a flute, but I can't handhold shoot some cameras. Olympuses fit perfectly into my hand.
And in general you can't get the shot if you are getting fatigued. The whole idea that ergonomics and weight doesn't matter is a bunch of try hard alpha male nonsense. The serious photographer scene has a lot of unhinged people who likely don't actually shoot as much as I do.
no subject
Date: 2022-07-09 03:30 am (UTC)From:Honestly... yeah, 100% right - it is try-hard alpha-male nonsense. With just a hint of "bigger is always better" mixed in, maybe.
Even holding up fairly lightweight stuff can get tiring after too long, and if you ARE serious about actually shooting (not just posturing about it, or setting up a single shot and going home) then weight and ease of holding the camera is absolutely going to matter. It's ridiculous to me that so many people would refuse to acknowledge that. (Though again, try-hard alpha-male nonsense; shouldn't surprise me.)