How do I extend battery life?

R

raduray

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I purchased an Olympus 35 SP recently and use an SR-43 battery with an LR-9 adapter to power the meter. Works fine and exposure readings match those of my iPhone's light meter app. Note that the meter's "eye" is on the body and not on the front of the lens.

The camera doesn't have an on/off switch and my understanding is that the meter will draw power when it's exposed to light. Can I extend the battery life if I keep it in a dark carrying case when not in use? The camera only has a half case, but I have a small spare camera bag. Note that the meter's "eye" is on the body and not on the front of the lens, so the lens cap is not the solution.

I know removing the battery is an option, but prefer to not have to do that unless the camera will sit unused for a longer period of time.
 
raduray said:
I purchased an Olympus 35 SP recently and use an SR-43 battery with an LR-9 adapter to power the meter. Works fine and exposure readings match those of my iPhone's light meter app. Note that the meter's "eye" is on the body and not on the front of the lens.

The camera doesn't have an on/off switch and my understanding is that the meter will draw power when it's exposed to light. Can I extend the battery life if I keep it in a dark carrying case when not in use? The camera only has a half case, but I have a small spare camera bag. Note that the meter's "eye" is on the body and not on the front of the lens, so the lens cap is not the solution.

I know removing the battery is an option, but prefer to not have to do that unless the camera will sit unused for a longer period of time.
Click to expand...
Yes, keeping it in an opaque case will effectively drop the battery draw to near zero. I do that with my Rollei 35S and its leather case.

G
 
Why do you not want to remove the battery? To me it seems the easiest and best way to extent battery life.

I remove batteries from all my cameras when they sit idle for more than 1-2 days. It has been a habit of mine since the 1980s when I had a battery leak goo all over. Luckily, I was able to clean it myself and the camera didn't malfunction, but I've known others who had their (admittedly all film) cameras wrecked by exploding batteries.

And BTW I'm also super cautious about keeping my cameras in cases. I wrap them in clean kitchen dish towels and keep them safely stored in a large plastic storage container in a dark closet. They get taken out at least one time every month and carefully inspected for any damage. So far so good.
 
raduray said:
I know removing the battery is an option, but prefer to not have to do that unless the camera will sit unused for a longer period of time.
Click to expand...
Nevertheless, that's what I do when I've finished shooting for the day. I was curious as to why some older camera designs were so cavalier about battery drain, so I consulted Microsoft's Copilot, and it suggested that mercury battery chemistry was kind of special, in the sense that mercury batteries "recover" somewhat when sitting idle, in a way that other battery types do not.

Where impractical to remove the battery, I guess I'd find a way to cap the light sensor and hope that a battery load in the megohm range won't drain them too quickly! If I find myself in possession of another Rollei 35, perhaps I'll print a wee little cap for the light sensor.
 
DownUnder said:
Why do you not want to remove the battery? To me it seems the easiest and best way to extent battery life.

I remove batteries from all my cameras when they sit idle for more than 1-2 days. It has been a habit of mine since the 1980s when I had a battery leak goo all over. Luckily, I was able to clean it myself and the camera didn't malfunction, but I've known others who had their (admittedly all film) cameras wrecked by exploding batteries.

And BTW I'm also super cautious about keeping my cameras in cases. I wrap them in clean kitchen dish towels and keep them safely stored in a large plastic storage container in a dark closet. They get taken out at least one time every month and carefully inspected for any damage. So far so good.
Click to expand...
Removing and replacing the battery after every use session is a bit of a pain and can actually cause deterioration of the battery compartment lid, which on many of these old cameras were never designed to be opened and closed very frequently. It's a hopeless solution for the Rollei 35 cameras as well because the battery compartment is sequestered inside the film chamber under the film cassette ... To remove the battery you need to remove the film from the camera first.

I do take the batteries out of my cameras when I'm not going to be using them for a week or more, which is never the case for a camera that has film in it around me ... 😉 And there are other times that I just want to keep a camera 'ready to use' and not have to go through a preflight check to be the battery is in it...

G
 
I was thinking all you need is a short piece of Velcro preferably black. Cut a small hole in the middle of one piece and glue it over the sensor. Use the second piece as a lens cap. Easy to pull off when you’re needing to use the meter.
 
The way these old CdS meters work is that the sensor cell is a resistor who's resistance diminishes depending on how much light is striking them. So when they're in total dark, their resistance is near infinite, and no current flows. That means that anything you do that blocks light from striking the sensor reduces battery drain .. a piece of tape, a swatch of light-proof velcro, or the camera case, all work well.

To me, I dislike fussing with bits of tape or velcro; I just keep said affected cameras in the fitted leather case and that does the job. 🙂

G
 
Different strokes for different folks... and different battery conserving methods.

A few truly good ideas in this thread. As much as I've always disliked keeping my photo gear in cases, with my Weston Masters all of differing vintages I've found it best to keep them living in the dark in their cases when not in use. Selenium cells thrive on light, but it also shortens their useful avatars.

I had to do extensive cleans on two Nikon F65s (aka N65s) when the Vartas I had in them blew up and spewed noxious whatever it was all over the cases. I found them in time and cleaned them up, a dirty job it was too, but both cameras did survive, and they continue to work well to this day.

One of y 1960s Rolleiflex TLRs had a selenium cell meter in it, this worked fine when I bought the camera (used but well maintained) but the meter gave up the ghost after about five years. Those cells are now irreplaceable. One of my many Westons now does the substitute metering work. So maybe if I had kept that camera in its 'never ready' case...
 
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