If you have the grip with the EN-EL18 in it, do you even need a battery in the camera itself?

And am I correct, you cannot change the battery in the camera without removing the grip?

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I should probably elaborate on the reason for the question.

A camera dealer was making the argument of using the EN-EL18 batteries only, as they last much longer and you can charge two at once (sort of) on the same charger, and if you have a D4 anyway that means only one type of battery to carry.

I also understood you had to take the grip off to replace the in-camera battery.

if the in-camera battery has to be there (and charged?) it sounds kind of awkward, and also seems to still require if travelling to take a charger for the in-camera battery as well.

If you can just leave it out entirely, that's intriging (though it's still an expensive piece of plastic and wires )

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I'm pretty sure that there must be a battery present in the grip.

Jon Kandel
A New York City Nikonian and Team Member
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>I'm pretty sure that there must be a battery present in the
>grip.

Did you mean in the camera?

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Sorry, I misread the question.

Just did a test. The battery does NOT have to be in the camera. The grip battery powered the camera.

Jon Kandel
A New York City Nikonian and Team Member
Please visit my website and critique the images!

>Sorry, I misread the question.

I have this way of using too many words and by the time you get to the end you forget the beginning.....


>Just did a test. The battery does NOT have to be in the
>camera. The grip battery powered the camera.

Thank you!


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I find it useful to have a battery in both camera and grip ... that way, if I am on a shoot, I have double the battery time. I usually have the camera set to use the grip battery first, then the camera battery (it automatically changes ove). Then if I run through the camera battery, I can easily pop another in the grip (I usually carry a spare with me), essentially giving me the use of 3 batteries in succession, with only 1 change.

Very handy when out in the field for a long day of shooting.

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But if you use the EN-EL18 in the grip as proposed in the original post you already have nearly double the capacity of a EN-EL15 in the camera. Also if you also have a D4 that requires the EN-EL18 you have to take only one battery charger on the road.

Gary in SE Michigan, USA. Co-organizer of the Southern Michigan Chapter
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with a battery in the grip you do t need to have a battery in the camera to operate the camera ..

I have not totally tested this out but with a battery in both the camera as well as in the grip the camera appears to use the grip battery first leaving a full charge in the camera battery .. ie the camera battery would be the back up battery ..

Marv ..

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>I have not totally tested this out but with a battery in both
>the camera as well as in the grip the camera appears to use
>the grip battery first leaving a full charge in the camera
>battery .. ie the camera battery would be the back up battery

There's a menu option that determines that, what I wasn't sure about is whether it can be really completely dead or missing. If you had a grip and had some of the grip batteries, one might decide just never to even put a battery in the camera -- save a few ounces, but also save ever having to remove the grip, and only travel with one type of charger.


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just checked out the menu .. you are correct .. thanks much .. I will now be using the grip / battery combo and forget about the battery in the camera .. thanks much ..

Marv ..

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