FS7: on/off on/off all day?

P

Publimix

Veteran
How do you use the FS7 on a day filming?


Switch camera on, shoot untill battery dies, replace battery and go on, or switch camera on shoot for a while and when don, turn camera off, and switch on 15 minuter later?
I use the on/off switch all the time, when I don't use the camera (5-10 minutes).
I am not sure if this is good for the camera. Is it better not to switch on/off too often? Is it bad for electronics etc?
 
The only way constant on/off switching might be bad for the electronics is if you pull the battery out after shutting the camera down and before the camera fully shuts down. I'm sure it warns against this in the manual of most cameras, but even then I think it is only to do with writing directory files to the memory or something like that.

Having said that, I generally leave my cameras switched on unless I know I won't or can't shoot anything (eg I'm driving for an hour between locations). It just means I'm ready a lot faster in the event something unexpected happens and I need to start shooting. (I do lot's of doc/reality stuff). Batteries are much cheaper than missed shots!

My FS700 recently took a fall and the power switch was knocked completely off. Fortunately it was in the "on" position at the time so whenever a battery was inserted it would power up. The only way to turn it off was to pull the battery. One thing I noticed was that after pulling a battery and re-inserting a new one, it would default back to the same settings as when the damage happened. I'm guessing that the camera saves a profile somewhere of all the settings whenever it is powered down, so that when it is turned back on everything comes back exactly how you left it (eg same shutterspeed, F-stop, WB, PP, etc). In abruptly pulling the battery, I'm guessing the camera couldn't perform that operation so it reverted back to the last time is was switched off properly. I've had my camera repaired now and there doesn't seem to be any lingering issues, so I'm guessing even the warnings in the manual about removing batteries are over-cautious.
 
Doug Jensen said:
I turn my cameras off if there will be more than a few minutes between shots and there is no other reason to leave it turned on. More hours on the meter = less resale value.
Click to expand...

Does the camera track power cycles? My P2 Vari's not only track the hours, but the on/off cycles, as well.
 
Doug Jensen said:
I turn my cameras off if there will be more than a few minutes between shots and there is no other reason to leave it turned on. More hours on the meter = less resale value.
Click to expand...

Fair point.

To be honest though, resale value is about the last thing on my mind when I'm on a shoot. An extra thousand dollars or so could not pay for all the shots I would've missed over the life of a camera if I didn't have them powered on all day.
 
I turn off but just to save batteries.

Does anyone really care about hours now? Hours used to be useful in the days of tape because of the cost of replacing tape heads was so high and general wear and tear on a myriad of moving parts.

I just don't see hours as meaning much now.
 
I just figure its a computer and its always better to turn those off before powering on and off. May not be true though.
 
I guess I'm not sure of the question. The OP asking if its OK to pull batteries while the camera is on, or just whether it matters if you save juice by turning the camera on and off when between things. It certainly doesn't hurt the camera to turn it on and off when not in use so its just a question of battery life and how soon you may need to go again. I always the turn the camera off when changing batteries though.
 
Capacitors on the circuit boards have a more finite life in digital electronics. And then there's also the fan.
 
deltoidjohn said:
Fair point.

To be honest though, resale value is about the last thing on my mind when I'm on a shoot. An extra thousand dollars or so could not pay for all the shots I would've missed over the life of a camera if I didn't have them powered on all day.
Click to expand...

If you read my post a little closer I said that I turn it off to save hours unless there is a GOOD REASON not to turn off. Obviously if there is any risk of missing a shot I would not turn it off. I can't remember the last time I ever missed a shot due to the camera taking a few seconds to power-up, yet I save hundreds of hours on my cameras' meters every year. And I don't know about other people, but I have never sold a camera where the buyer wasn't interested in how many hours were on it - and with good reason.
 
One of the few things that is likely to fail on the FS7 is the mechanical switches.. like the on off slider.

Mechanical things wear out.

--

On set I do what is sensible.. baby the battery or be ready to roll whichever is most appropriate.


--

It is still annoying to boot my fs7 - Id say at least 30s to boot.

power
menu
menu
(kills apr warning)
dp502 power,
screen screen (to bring up the correct page)

Overall if I had a battery wrangler Id keep it on all day and not worry about 'hours'

.. not to mention if you only have 12 hours on your camera you look like a newb.

S
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top