7/16/2011

Battery Grip for Canon EOS 550D / Rebel T2i SLR BG-E8 Review

Battery Grip for Canon EOS 550D / Rebel T2i SLR BG-E8
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(More customer reviews)
... but looks can be deceiving.
I have had two other Rebels, each with a Canon OEM battery-grip, along with my 5D with a Canon OEM grip. I am comparing my experience using those two Rebels, with my recent experience using my T2i and a third-party grip. It still *looked* good throughout the entire ordeal. This third-party grip made my T2i malfunction, enough to call for repair information.
For no known reason at the time, my T2i began by acting strange. I had it up on my Gitzo, in the studio, shooting small ring-size items. The T2i has a feature to turn off the screen as your eye approaches the viewfinder. It got to where it would shut off the screen if even my hand was 12-18 inches (30.5-45.7 cm) away from the camera. And if I attempted to shutter it, it acted as if it were dead ... it would not release the shutter.
I stopped, moved to my work table, and attempted to trouble-shoot the problem. Until the very end, the camera had this battery-grip attached to it. The malfunctions continually compounded until I began thinking I got a lemon ... I did in ways, but it was NOT the T2i.
I then noticed that pressing the shutter with any exposure setting (e.g., M, Av, Tv, etc.) resulted in a functionality somewhere between *bulb* and *second curtain*... when I pressed the shutter, it stayed down, and required that I press it again to come up. But no matter how long I waited, it captured the correctly-exposed image only when I pressed the shutter the second time (i.e., to come back up), and it did that with or without the flash. It would also not fire in succession, but only single shots at a time.
I also reset the T2i, and placed fresh batteries in it ... all to no avail. I finally accepted that I would need to send the T2i in for repairs.
When I was removing this battery-grip, I decided to place one Canon OEM battery into the body, put the battery door back on, and try to fire it again. The result was it fired flawlessly and did everything as it was designed to do.
I then placed the battery back into the grip, and just as I had originally done, carefully mounted the grip to the camera. The problem was gone ... at least on my work table.
The Solution ...
Try to picture this: T2i with said battery-grip and 100mm lens. That set-up was mounted on my tripod. The problems began to appear when I tilted the camera about 45-75° forward to look down upon the ring-type items. Although I mounted the grip properly, the grip apparently tweaked inside the battery shaft, and messed-up the contacts. But once it got tweaked, it stayed that way until I removed the grip from the camera, and re-mounted it.
I would not recommend this to a serious shooter. And for the record, I have no connection, whatsoever, with the camera or electronics industries.
I hope to get Amazon to apply credit towards the purchase of a Canon OEM grip, and take this PoC back. This is not built to pro standards.
NOTE: I did just buy this grip here, but Amazon no longer ships it directly. I did not buy it from the current vendor.

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This battery grip/holder is compatible with Canon EOS 550D/Rebel T2i SLR cameras. It has all the same functions as the original Canon BG-E8 battery grip. The grip has a built in vertical shutter release button, and can hold two LP-E8 lithium-ion battery packs, or six AA batteries using the included battery holder. Additionally, it supports features such as AE lock and FE lock, and retains access to the Index/Reduce button, main dial, AF-Point Select button, and Aperture/Exposure Compensation Buttons.Hold 6 AA batteries or 2 LP-E8 Li-ion batteries.Vertical shutter with half-press function. More comfortable vertical shooting.Professional edition with vertical-grip shutter-release button, main dial, AE-L button, Index/Reduce button and Exposure button.Tripod screw mount.Same functions as the original battery grip Canon BG-E8. High quality product with big discount from the original one.One Year WarrantySpecifications:Type:Battery grip for the CANON EOS 550D / Rebel T2iBattery (not included):2X Battery pack LP-E8/6X AA BatteriesPower Switch:Camera's power switchColor:BlackDimensions:130x75x105mmWeight:Approx. 395g. (without batteries and battery magazine)

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