Travel and Lithium Batteries

Plus, my stupid mistake #37.

Today is my last full day of a 3 night stop in Bangkok. Tomorrow I head down to the beaches of Phuket, for some much needed R&R. Traveling with cameras continues to get more frustrating. Carry on bag allowance is 7kg, and with two cameras and a couple of lenses + my laptop, that ain’t ever going to happen. Fortunately I was luck this time and my bags were never weighed. On top this this restriction, we now have to be careful with our lithium batteries. Camera batteries are expensive, and with mirrorless cameras we are forced ta carry a couple of spares to get us through the day.

Traveling with Batteries

Here is a quick reminder of how you should carry your batteries.

1. Put your best battery in the camera, this is the least likely one that will be confiscated. It is usually the battery that came with the camera (if you are like me your spares will not be made by the same manufacturer as your camera. I have found Hahnel to be a good brand).
2. Cover up the battery terminal with tape.
3. Place each battery in a small plastic bag.
4. Check the small print of your ticket. Some flights only allow one spare battery.
5. Do not put the batteries in the hold. Carry the in your hand-baggage.

That should be enough. Some people have still experienced problems getting through security. If you really value your batteries, it is advisable to carry the instructions from your flight company with you, these can then be presented to any over-zealous customs officials.

My Stupid Mistake.

I continue to make stupid mistakes. Read about them here and then you don’t have to do the same.

This morning I headed out at around 5.30am. This is a great time for photography along Sukhumit road. Early in the morning you see the regular market traders and street cleaners alongside the dregs of the party crowd from the night before, in addition to that you get to capture the coveted morning light.

I had placed a fresh battery in my Olympus, so know I was good for a couple of hours shooting. However, when I turned on the camera; nothing happened. It took me longer than I am willing to admit to work out what was wrong…

Today’s Tip.

In point 2, I mentioned that you had to cover the battery terminal. I had done this with clear tape. The battery will not work if you leave this tape on. Remember to take the tape off for best results! I am not sure if I have actually made 37 stupid mistakes, to be honest there are probably many more, but this may be the start of a new theme that could run on pagespics.

With this in mind, I am heading off to a slum area today. As always, all photos can be seen via my G+ account, and will also be posted here.

Take care and keep clicking, Chris