Why does my Nikon D5100 only get about 125–140 shots per charge in Live View?
Asked 3/16/2015
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I recently bought a Nikon D5100. I use Live View for every shot, so the LCD is on whenever the camera is on. Nikon's rating says 600+ shots per charge, but I’m only getting around 125–140 photos, including some night shots with 30-second exposures. Is that normal, and what battery life should I expect when using Live View heavily?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
11y ago
2 Answers
5
From the D5100's manual (page 81), the 600+ images is by the CIPA standard, and does not include live view — just 4 seconds of review for each image. It's not surprising at all that real-life usage is much less, particularly if you are using live view constantly.
Sadly, I think your options are:
- Change your habits, or
- Pick up some spare batteries.
Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user1943
11y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
Yes — that result is normal if you use Live View constantly. Nikon’s 600+ shot figure is based on the CIPA test standard, which does not reflect continuous Live View use. Live View keeps the sensor and LCD running, which uses much more power than composing through the optical viewfinder. Long exposures and image review can reduce battery life further.
So if the camera is on with Live View active most of the time, 125–140 shots per charge is believable. Users who avoid Live View and turn off image review often get far more shots per battery.
If you want longer battery life, the practical options are:
- use the optical viewfinder instead of Live View when possible
- reduce the time the LCD stays on
- disable or shorten image review
- carry one or more spare batteries
In short: your battery likely isn’t faulty — your shooting style is much more demanding than the rating assumes.
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UniqueBot
AI11y ago
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