Charging a Nikon ENEL-15 battery whilst shooting sunset at Cadini di Misurina in the Dolomites.
Being power independent is extremely important for landscape photographers, especially when off the grid for several days at a time such as when you are wild camping or up in the mountains. Being able to charge your camera batteries, mobile phone and any other rechargeable batteries means you will never miss a shot due to a dead battery, skimp on shooting to save battery power or end up without dead phone in case of an emergency.
I have refined what I carry over the years and the below is my most recent kit. To ensure compatibility and keep things simple, everything is I carry can be charged via USB.
List of Equipment:
Bagsmart Electronic organiser pouch
Dragon case for Anker Powercore+
Anker PowerPort 4 (USB Wall charger)
Anker PowerCore+ (Power bank)
Nitecore UNK2 Dual slot charger (Primary charger for Nikon EN-EL15 batteries)
EBL AAA/AA USB Pencil battery charger
4 x Anker Micro USB Cables (To charge the Powerbank / Camera Batteries)
3 x Anker iPhone Lightning cable (To Charge my phone)
Anker PowerDrive Ciagrette Lighter Dual USB Charger (To charge whilst driving)
6 x Nikon EN-EL15 Batteries (2 in camera bodiess, 4 in pouch)
Nylon battery pouch
8 x Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable AAA Batteries (Head Torch / Intervalometer)
Plastic 8 x AAA battery case
Left: Anker PowerCore with a protective case; Right: Bagsmart electronics organizer with all items that I travel with.
Wall outlet charger (Anker PowerPort 4)
When connected to a wall outlet, I use an Anker 4 port charger. This charger has interchangeable prongs, meaning it can be used for both 3 pin (Malta / UK) and 2 pin (European) wall outlets. If I am staying in a hotel or a mountain hut with access to a wall outlet, my first priority is always charging my power bank (Anker PowerCore+), the reason for this is that this can then in turn be used to charge everything else. The power bank uses 2 of the 4 ports as it has quick charge technology, and charges in half the time using 2 cables. I would usually also connect my mobile and 2 camera batteries in a dual slot charger.
However if my AAA batteries (Used for my Head Torch and camera remotes) are nearly dead, I would charge them instead of the camera batteries, as I usually carry 6 Nikon EN-EL15 batteries with me, and I never have more than 2 which need charging.
Left: Anker PowerPort 4 Wall charger with interchangeable prongs; Centre: EBL USB AAA/AA Charger; Right: AAA Enelopp batteries.
Power bank (Anker PowerCore+ 26,800)
When off the grid and without access to a wall outlet, I rely solely on my Anker PowerCore+ Powerbank. This powerbank has a huge capacity and therefore is bigger and heavier than most other power banks. It weighs 495 grams, but considering it has a capacity of 26,800 mah and enough juice to charge an iPhone 6S Plus 6 times, I think it is worth its weight in gold! It can also charge my Nikon EN-EL15 camera batteries several times over or Sanyo Eneloop AAA pencil batteries if needed.
Anker PowerCore+ 26800 mah powerbank.
The 3 USB outlet ports enable you to charge 3 items simultaneously. The 2 Micro USB input ports enable you to charge the powerbank with 2 cables. reducing the charging time by 50%
Camera Batteries (Nikon ENEL-15)
I carry 2 USB ENEL-15 battery chargers on all my trips, these are the Nitecore UNK2 and the Expro EN-EL15 charger. Both these chargers are dual slot chargers, meaning they can charge 2 batteries at the same time. The reason I carry 2 chargers is purely for redundancy, if one stopped working, I would have the second. Both these chargers can be charged using my Anker PowerCore+ 26,800. Since buying the Nitcore UNK2, I have used it on all my trips, it is a great addition to my kit as it shows all relevant stats for the battery being charged.
Left: Nitecore UNK2 Dual slot charger; Right: Expro EN-EL15 Dual slot charger
Battery pouch which can store 4 x Nikon ENEL-15 batteries.
Pencil Batteries (Sanyo Eneloop rechargeable AAA batteries)
I usually carry 8 AAA batteries in a plastic battery container, these are used to power my LED head torch (3 batteries) and my intervalometer (2 batteries), with the remaining 3 batteries to be used in either as spares.
Note: As you can see, I use a lot of Anker products, I am not in any way affiliated with them, but have found them to be fantastic products. Their products have an 18 month warranty, and its hard to find many other brands who will provide the great customer service and products that they do at such reasonable prices!
Conclusion:
Its now easier than ever before to keep your electronics powered up when off the grid, even when its for several days at a time!
Anker PowerCore+ charging 4 x Nikon ENEL-15 batteries simultaneously.