Canon EOS 60D Manual page 14

Licensed to: CengageBrain User
12 David Busch's Canon EOS 60D Guide to Digital SLR Photography
Battery Included
Your Canon EOS 60D is a sophisticated hunk of machinery and electronics, but it needs
a charged battery to function, so rejuvenating the LP-E6 lithium-ion battery pack fur-
nished with the camera should be your first step. A fully charged power source should
be good for approximately 800 shots, based on standard tests defined by the Camera &
Imaging Products Association (CIPA) document DC-002.
A BATTERY AND A SPARE
My experience is that the CIPA figures are often a little optimistic, so it's probably a good
idea to have a spare battery on hand. I always recommend purchasing Canon brand bat-
teries (for less than $50) over less-expensive third-party packs. My reasoning is that it
doesn't make sense to save $20 on a component for an advanced camera, especially since
batteries (from Canon as well as other sources) have been known to fail in potentially
harmful ways. Canon, at least, will stand behind its products, issue a recall if necessary,
and supply a replacement if a Canon-brand battery is truly defective. A third-party bat-
tery supplier that sells under a half-dozen or more different product labels and brands
may not even have an easy way to get the word out that a recall has been issued.
If your pictures are important to you, always have at least one spare battery available, and
make sure it is an authentic Canon product.
All rechargeable batteries undergo some degree of self-discharge just sitting idle in the
camera or in the original packaging. Lithium-ion power packs of this type typically lose
a small amount of their charge every day, even when the camera isn't turned on. The
small amount of juice used to provide the "skeleton" outline on the top-panel mono-
chrome LCD when the 60D is turned off isn't the culprit; Li-ion cells lose their power
through a chemical reaction that continues when the camera is switched off. So, it's very
likely that the battery purchased with your camera is at least partially pooped out, so
you'll want to revive it before going out for some serious shooting.
There are many situations in which you'll be glad you have that spare battery:
Remote locales. If you like to backpack and will often be far from a source of elec-
■
tricity, rechargeable cells won't be convenient. They tend to lose some charge over
time, even if not used, and will quickly become depleted as you use them. You'll
have no way to recharge the cells, lacking a solar-powered charger that might not
be a top priority for your backpacking kit.
Unexpected needs. Perhaps you planned to shoot landscapes one weekend, and
■
then are given free front-row tickets to a Major League Soccer game. Instead of a
Copyright 2011 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).
Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.