Ah, but what electronic circuits are you talking about keeping energized all the time? I doubt anything is energized in the ZX-M except the LCD (which probably draws as much power as a digital watch), because the meter on the body does not come on until the shutter is pressed half way down... What other circuits are there? I doubt that the winder motor is activated either; at least not until the shutter is fired. (Why would it be?) Would good shutter readiness require a constantly energized circuit when the camera is set to "on"? (And if so, isn't that just the very reason to leave the camera "on"? And how much power would this draw? -I'm asking here, not being contentious..,) I've left the ZX-M on (accidentally) for days at a time in my camera bag, and it's been up for 3-4 months now with no ill effects. But of course it has no flash, and I use the FG 4/AA's battery pack, so those things have to be considered also. But I would bet that this camera's power, with its switch left on, should easily last as long as a single AA battery powered clock on a wall... Anyway, I'm not really talking about keeping the switch on ALL the time! (Keeping it on in the bag was a mistake, of course...) But if I were at a sporting event, say a basketball game I was shooting, I most certainly would keep the camera on constantly whilst it was hanging around my neck! (And would probably miss my best shot anyway, while changing rolls...) Skip > On the ZX-10, the autofocus does not work until the shutter release is > depressed to the first detent (probably the same point where the meter > energizes on the ZX-M.) So I would think the battery drain would be the > same or similar as on your camera. But I think you underestimate the drain > on the battery. Even though the camera is basically idle, I would think > keeping all the electronic circuits energized would drain the battery > rather quickly. This is the case with all other electronic equipment. > > I know when I first changed to K-mounts, when the MESuper was first > released, that I accidentally left the battery switch in the on position > several times. I was used to my Spotmatics turning the battery switch off > after making the exposure. For several months all I did was complain about > the life of the batteries in the MESuper, and use the "sunny 16" rule until > I realized that I needed to ensure that the selector switch was in the > "Lock" or Off position. After making a conscious effort to do this my > batteries would last several months instead of a couple of weeks, while > shooting several rolls per week. I don't think the ZX/MZ series of cameras > have the option of even one mechanical shutter speed. > > We've all missed photos where the camera wasn't turned on, or there was no > film in the camera, or we had the wrong lens, wrong film, no flash, and > especially no camera. My experience indicates that leaving the power on is > not the solution on a camera that needs batteries to operate the shutter. > > K. > > > - > This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, > go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to > visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org . > > - This message is from the Pentax-Discuss Mail List. To unsubscribe, go to http://www.pdml.net and follow the directions. Don't forget to visit the Pentax Users' Gallery at http://pug.komkon.org .
