On the go Battery solution for the Pocket 4K/6K

I just want to share a battery solution that I have found to be useful, economical, and gets the least attention on a crowded scene. Before that, I would have to rig up my Pocket 6K and use a bulk v-mount solution for a day of “on the go” shooting. I still use v-mount on set and with the URSA, but this is so simple and convenient, I just don’t think twice about it.

So what is this solution. For the P6K (and also works for the P4K), I just want to have a battery solution that integrates with the camera body and that means using a battery grip. When on the go, I usually just want to keep it simple, a camera, a wide zoom an a tele zoom, a good shotgun mic, and enough battery to last me 6 to 8 hours without recharging. I can achieve this with 3 battery grips from Vello. Why the Vello grip and not the BMD original battery grip? That’s because of 2 reasons. First is cost and second it’s easy to charge the batteries with the Vello grip and not having to have take another charger with me. For less than the cost of 1 BMD original battery grip, I can buy 3 of the Vello grips so as I go through the day, I can just swap the battery grips. Each grip when fully charged can get me 2-3 hours of recording time. Since I shoot in Prores HQ, I get more hours with the batteries. However at 6K BRAW 3:1, I get at least 1 hour and 50 minutes of recording before I get to swap. That’s pretty good, almost as much as the Core SWX Edge vmount I used on the P6K before this. Here’s what I usually take with me.

AF478544-B859-45BA-9EAA-1613EE5CAEF9.jpeg (83.72 KiB) Viewed 615 times

This hassle free battery solution makes it easy to carry the camera and does not get the attention of the public when I’m filming in public view (I have to do this often in the last year). Some of you might say that the Vello grip casing may not be durable and can’t withstand heavy fall. Well, that may be true and for me it is a matter how you take care of your gear. Even the camera and lenses cannot withstand a fall, even with a cage (I know from experience). And since it is cheap enough that it pays itself after one use, it’s a no brainer for me and I just consider it to be a disposable item. When I am done for the day, I take the grip out of the camera, plug all of them using the usb-c power adapter that came with it, and charge the LP-E6 (using 3 of them for each grip), which are also cheap and most likely, anyone of use may have a few lying around. I’m ready for the next day. If this interest you, there are two things you have to do to insure you don’t accidentally brick the grip or worse your camera, and also to get the most from your batteries. The first is NEVER charge the grip with batteries when the grip is on the camera. This is stated in the manual of the Vello grip. And two, I always use the same brand and type of batteries on each grip. I’m not trying to sell you on this idea or the Vello grip. I’m just sharing my personal experience after tying to get an optimal battery life and convenience with my Pocket 6K. Good luck!

Oh, if you are looking for this grip, here is the link to B&H. I got mine when they had a 50% deal but at $70, it’s still a good deal. For LP-E6 batts, I use Kastar 2950mAh ones from Amazon (see link below). Other brands like Blackmagic, Watson, or Wasabe are fine… they’re more expensive and I have not had issues with the Kastars.

Grip: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/ ... tml?sts=pi

Batteries: https://www.amazon.com/Kastar-Battery-R ... 62&sr=8-21

EDIT: I forgot to mentioned that this idea actually started when I had to travel and bringing several V-mounts on the plane, beside being heavy, was limited to < 100w and some international airlines limited you to bring no more than 3. The grip doesn’t take any attention by the tsa and passes hand carry checks. So it’s also a traveling convenience.

I appreciate this post. Great to know about products that have been tested by a credible source.