A 2nd car battery for on-location shooting power

I worked with Hurley's Automotive in McLean, Virginia to design and install a portable power system in my Range Rover Sport.

Many of my photoshoots take place on-location and I did not want to have to lug a loud and messy generator around. The solution was to install a second car battery and power inverter.

The long story short:

A second high-performance car battery was installed in an empty space in the engine compartment. A relay was connected to the car's alternator to ensure that when the truck is running, it charges the main car battery first, and the alternate battery next.

The power from the second battery is drawn from a 2-plug 1000 watt sine wave inverter hidden under the back seat. Sine wave inverters yield a cleaner current necessary to powering photo strobes than standard inverters.

The system has been working great so far and I can power a couple of strobes without running the car! I will work on more power in the future.