Canon R5 Canon R5: Mains Power for Continuous Shooting

[Deepgreen]

Hello -

I am a newcomer to the forum. With astrophotography, I am finding that my battery is not lasting the night when undertaking long exposure shoots. I am looking at (UK) mains power supplies and wondered if there is an economical way to do this. Canon's AC socket on the side of the R5 appears to be specifically designed such that ordinary AC adaptors won't fit, but do I really need both the DR-E6 coupler and the AC-E6N adaptor to do this?

 

[Deepgreen]

This is what the current R5 manual has to say on page 857.
Using a USB Power Adapter to Charge/Power the Camera
Using USB Power Adapter PD-E1 (sold separately), you can charge Battery Pack LP-E6NH or LP-E6N without removing it from the camera. The camera can also be powered. Note that Battery Pack LP-E6 cannot be charged this way.

Continue reading the section for the next few pages for more information. There is a text box full of "cautions" on page 859. Most of the cautions are really just helpful details about using an external USB-C power supply.

This is me speaking: the port is a USB-C port so the voltage and contact assignments are specified by the USB-C standard which implies that any DC power supply or extender battery pack with a USB-C output should work as well as the PD-E1 as long as it provides enough current to keep up with the R5's current requirement.

Many thanks - very helpful. I need a 7.2v output to power the camera and the two tor three I have don't have the right circular plug to attach to the camera's direct power socket, so I am now thinking I could attach a USB cable. I have an Apple MacBook Air 20w power unit and cable which can provide 5V and 9V outputs but I imagine neither of these would be worth risking (and I don't know if the output is selected automatically by the attached device, i.e. the camera in this case).

 

[Deepgreen]

I took the plunge and used a spare Apple MacBook Pro DC power adaptor and cable plugged into the USB port on the camera. It works! It powers the camera directly rather than charging the battery, which is fine for my purposes. Thanks to all for your replies.

 

[DaveTX]

I took the plunge and used a spare Apple MacBook Pro DC power adaptor and cable plugged into the USB port on the camera. It works! It powers the camera directly rather than charging the battery, which is fine for my purposes. Thanks to all for your replies.

All of the phone chargers I have used for the past several years use a USB-C cable. I suspect they would work just as well.

 

[Deepgreen]

All of the phone chargers I have used for the past several years use a USB-C cable. I suspect they would work just as well.

You're probably right, but my phone is a 2016 model (yes, really!), and it's pre-USB-C. I'm happy that my spare MacBook Pro adaptor works - so I now have my star tracker and camera both on mains power for all-night shoots!

 

[DaveTX]

You're probably right, but my phone is a 2016 model (yes, really!), and it's pre-USB-C. I'm happy that my spare MacBook Pro adaptor works - so I now have my star tracker and camera both on mains power for all-night shoots!

Note that you should start with a fully charged battery per the manual in the "Caution" box on page 859. Have fun! Don't forget to post some pictures!

 

[Deepgreen]

Note that you should start with a fully charged battery per the manual in the "Caution" box on page 859. Have fun! Don't forget to post some pictures!

Yes, indeed - thanks for the reminder!

 

[Jake Shoots Birds]

This is what the current R5 manual has to say on page 857.
Using a USB Power Adapter to Charge/Power the Camera
Using USB Power Adapter PD-E1 (sold separately), you can charge Battery Pack LP-E6NH or LP-E6N without removing it from the camera. The camera can also be powered. Note that Battery Pack LP-E6 cannot be charged this way.

Continue reading the section for the next few pages for more information. There is a text box full of "cautions" on page 859. Most of the cautions are really just helpful details about using an external USB-C power supply.

This is me speaking: the port is a USB-C port so the voltage and contact assignments are specified by the USB-C standard which implies that any DC power supply or extender battery pack with a USB-C output should work as well as the PD-E1 as long as it provides enough current to keep up with the R5's current requirement.

The key element here, as described by the Canon rep I know, is that the power supply is a "good quality PD compatible power source" emphasis on the most important part.

 

[Deepgreen]

I did a 6 hour shooting session last night with my star tracker and the camera on mains power and it worked perfectly. I took confidence from the advice here that any USB-C connection should be OK, and took the plunge to try it. Thanks all.