Battery Grip Worthyness...

[gaptrick]

Hey all,

I may have an opprotunity to purchase a barely used "Canon Battery Grip" for the T2i...Is this a nice addition or gimmic? I see where the additional battery could be a nice feature, and the additional grip can add to the stabillity of the camera when going vertical...But what do the people here who've actually USED one say? It it worth the hundred bucks or do I apply that c-note to my next lens?

Thanks in advance for any input you may have...MUCH appreciated!

Gap

 

[Josh66]

If you shoot in portrait orientation a lot (I do), I'd say it's worth it.

You also get more battery power too, so you can go longer between charges.

The only real down side is that it makes the camera bigger and heavier. Some people would say that's a good thing though.

 

[lyonsroar]

I loooove mine!

Got it for Christmas.
Makes me look like a professional!

 

[Overread]

I've got one on my 400D and its never come off since I bought it - a fantastic addition to a DSLR for so many reasons - including:

1) I don't have big hands, but even I found my pinky finger would fall off the bottom of the camera when using it; which led to it rubbing the edge which just gets irritating. The battery grip solves this by giving the pinky finger somewhere to hold onto.

2) 2 batteries at once in the camera gives a great battery lifespan - though I would say always keep at least one spare battery outside of the camera (you can use 1 battery in the battery grip if you only have 2 in total). This is because I find that the grip power report will drop from half to low and then to nothing very fast, but will sit at half for a long time; so it can catch you out. I keep 4 batteries - two in and two out so I've always got at least one to swap in when those in the grip give out

3) The vertical controls and hand grip give a great support when shooting; plus whilst some say "you only need portrait if you shoot portraits" I've found that any field of photgoraphy you'll end up taking landscape and portrait aspect shots - so having those extra controls and the grip really makes it a lot easier

4) I can use a canon wrist strap with the battery grip - a great addition in its own right for helping to hold the camera so another plus for the battery grip (you can get them which clip to your tripod mount instead, but they always look a little fiddly to me for actual use)

5) Weight - overall this might be less of a factor if you use lighter, smaller, lenses but the added weight does help a little with balance in the medium weight lenses.

Overall the grip is all positive things for me (save actually paying for it ). There are only three things to look out for

1) Don't forget that it has a battery door holder to put the battery door from your DSLR in for safe keeping (a fantastic idea!)

2) Jiggling - sometimes the contacts in the grip won't make a perfect connection to your camera body - just take the grip off and put it on again. Generally a bit of jiggling and it goes away and once it has a solid connection you should never have any problems thereafter

3) Over tightening - if you over tighten the screw mount the grip can become stuck onto your DSLR - this has happened to mine, but honestly since I've had it I've not had any reason to want to take it off (and even if I could the strap strap loss and having to fiddle with it would be a pain each time).

 

[Marc-Etienne]

The weight issue is all relative. I don't shoot a lot of portrait (but when I do, I love my grip!), I mostly do wildlife. My lens is pretty heavy, so having an heavier camera helps me the balance my setup. Also, I find it easier to carry around on hikes. When you go gripped, you never come back! Well almost... I highly recommend!:thumbup:

 

[Dao]

For the small Canon Rebel series, the weight increase is not a big deal, but the grip just make the camera much easier to handle. So I use it all the time with the Rebel.
And the portrait shutter button is really nice to have. I can do without, but it is much better to have a grip with the Rebel.


As for the 40D, if I really want to travel light, I will leave the grip at home.

 

[PJL]

Since I have big hands, I love having a grip. SLRs feel awkward to me without them.

 

[Zrock]

can't wait for my grip. One thing you can get a after market grip for less than $100 and they review quite high

 

[Ryan L]

The only thing I can say bad about aftermarket is...make sure your finger button on the vertical grip is on the corner like on the camera. I have a Rokinon grip for my 50D that has a IR sensor for remote...but the vertical shutter is on the front, so I have to curl my finger around instead of on the corner. Really irritating.