Managing Multiple Camera Batteries to Equalize Wear and to Know Which are Charged/Depleted
Multiple batteries are essential for my outings. I typically find that two batteries is a bare minimum for an all-day outing. Rarely do I use four, but sometimes I dip into the 3rd one.
There are several issues involved:
- Equalizing wear across batteries over the life of the system (keeping a LiIon battery fully charged for a long period is not good for it), so it’s best to cycle through them.
- Knowing at a glance which battery to use next.
- Knowing which ones to recharge at the end of the day if you have a ziploc of 'em. You can segregate them (I often do) but sometimes a bag o' batteries is simpler.
Below at a glance is my system. Whatever battery is in use, the next one to use is the higher number, wrapping around from "4" to "1".
Label the outer (non-connector) end of the battery using white gaffer's tape @AMAZON and a black sharpie @AMAZON. Yellow also works well. You want to be able to see the number easily in dim light, inside a bag, etc. Use a scissors for cleaner edges vs tearing the tape as I did here. Replace if/when the numbering smudges.
For cameras like the Fujifilm GFX100S, I strongly recommend using a dual-charger like the Fujifilm BC-W235 Dual Battery Charger—I prefer not to wake up in the middle of the night to swap another battery in for charging.
