Fuji X10 - Lens stabilization - Battery consumption

dparadinha

New Member
Hello,
Has anyone tried to measure the consumption of the (small) battery with/out lens stabilization activated? Is there any gain (5%, 10%,...)?
Using the old rule of combined focal length/shutter speed (28mm 1/30, 112mm 1/125) we could shoot outside from dawn to dusk and probably not need IS, i'm guessing we could save a few photos if it was off whenever we didn't need it...
I like to shoot with lcd off, focus manual (pre focus with AELAFL button), to save battery, but it drains in an instant :)
Regards,
diogo
 
Like most new adopters of the X10, when I first got mine, I was frankly bummed at how FAST the batteries went. I worked out a strategy that saves me quite a bit of power, maybe some of this will be of help.

I use only AF-S; AF Continuous obviously uses more power than AF-S, focusing only when I push the shutter release.

I use IS Mode 2 (Shooting Only); again this ties the IS only to when the shutter release is pushed.

I use 2 minute auto power off, not 5 min.

I don't use the Quick Start mode.

In Power Management, I use 'Power Save' and not 'Clear Display'.

And when I'm walking around, since I'm almost certain to twist the lens barrel to zoom in or our anyway, I turn the camera Off, and only turn it on and leave it on when I'm shooting.

These things helped me quite a bit. These batteries are so small, no doubt, to fit into a small camera, so it's just part of living with the X10. So is walking around with at least one spare battery !
 
I KNEW I forgot something:

In EXR Mode, the camera defaults always to Continuous Autofocus, regardless of what you selected, so you might want to remember that as well; AF-C is just going to pull more power than AF-S. I would prefer AF-S to Manual+Focus Confirmation for all but a tripod situation.

OK, I THINK that's everything . . . . .
 
And incidentally, while we're talking about batteries: I own both the EF20 and EF42 flashes, and using rechargeable AA's (Eneloops) is the way to go: Fastest recycling, last a lot longer, and instead of spending more money on more batteries you're going to throw away, you just recharge the same ones over again. I'll never go back to alkalines for flashes again, they're that much better for me.
 
i'll try the 'power save' instead of 'clear display'!
next time i'll charge the battery i'll count how many frames are taken!
regards,
diogo
 
Honestly, the X10 battery is bog-standard - same one the Pentax Q uses, for example, which was a blessing for me as I'd already bought spares. :) Some Kodak models use it as well. It's so cheap, easy to find, and small, that I'd rather carry a couple of spares than spend too much time/effort/inconvenience trying to get the last erg out of the battery.
 
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