Battery depleted every day!

I am sure that this has been dealt with many times but I am new to the forum and also to photography. I have a Pentax OptioE0 and I am using good AA batteries, but I get a warning 'Battery Depleted' nearly every day, after taking just a couple of photos. I am leaving the memory card in the camera - is that wrong?
I live high in the French Alps amongst stunning scenery, but I can't get definition between the snow-capped peaks of Mont Blanc and the grey or blue sky above them.
I have learnt how to post my photos on Facebook using Picasa, but when I try to post them on my ex-pat forum I am told the file is too big, but a friend has told me about a website which you can use to shrink photos
I am a woman of 70, not much good at any kind of technology, so any advice in simple terms would be much appreciated.

Welcome to the forum.

Are you sure its an Optio EO? I dont recall that model number.

Leaving the memory card in the camera wont make any difference but AA batteries are not all the same, exactly what make and type are you using?

If you are only using your photos on the web then reducing the quality setting in the menu will result in significantly smaller file sizes.

Welcome to the forum Carol.

I was going to say the above but Ken beat me to it

Picasa will let you resize your pictures, no need for another website:
link

I would use the 'Resize for Export' method and save the smaller images in a new folder.

Not sure about the battery issue. Perhaps the Alpine subzero temperatures aren't helping?

Sorry, I missed out a number - it is a Pentax OptioE90
I have tried many makes of battery, including Duracell, Panasonic and Energiser - it doesn't make any difference.

Many thanks, I will look more closely at the Picasa page.

I had a quick check on the Pentax USA web site, your camera is supposed to use AA size Lithium batteries and not the sort you've been using. Although lithium batteries are quite expensive you should be getting 600 shots to a set. You could invest in lithium re-chargeables and a charger.

As far as the lack of definition in your landscapes is concerned, this is almost certainly caused by aerial haze, have you tried your camera in different capture modes such as 'landscape' or 'surf & snow'?

If you buy some rechargeable NiMH batteries and a charger unit (they should be sold together for quite a reasonable price) you should find they last much better than alkaline AA batteries.

They will however need regular recharging as they lose charge even when not used.

If your camera will accept Lithium AA batteries, then even better and no problems with losing charge either.

Thank you, everyone. I haven't seen anything in the rather poor manual I got with the camera, or the on-line manual which told me to use lithium batteries, but I will get some now.
I will also try using different modes for my landscape shots.

First read the manual and see what batteries you can use. Then, if you can:
1 - Like JR said, use Lithium batteries. Energiser Lithium in Silver/Blue colour were the ones supplied with my K200D, and they lasted nearly a year.
2 - Rechargable (NiMH), and note that the Eneloop/Ready-to-go/Ready-to-use sort will hold their charge better - but wull have a bit less capacity.
Note also that you might have to venture into the setup menu to tell the E90 what you are going to put in it.
Geoff

I live in France so I looked at French sites to find lithium batteries and one site listed the OptioE90 and the correct batteries for it I could also buy a charger for €27.
I am afraid that anything too technical is lost on me - I still listen to the wireless!

Welcome to the forum.

From your location I'd guess it's cold too. Warm batteries will work longer so keep a spare set in an inside pocket when you go out taking photos.

Have a look at these from Leroy Merlin.

Never tried Leroy Merlin for batteries.
Used to buy the normal AA ones from Leclerc (eco+), and I am still using one set of rechargeables from Carrefour.
Most of the Hypermarches have on-line shopping and they have to be cheaper than a specialist shop.
If you can, buy on-line from the 7-Day shop in Guernsey, but I don't know if there are any import problems into France.
Geoff

When in France I have always been able to obtain good AA batteries from any of the supermarchés [ not necessary to visit a Hypermarchéfor batteries ] and on my last visit spotted that the Energiser Lithium in Silver/Blue colour , were now available very easily and in fact were cheaper than in the UK

As Mannesty said - if cold keep a set in your pocket - wrapped up so they are well above the ambient temperature.

I was out with my K-x [ also uses the Energiser Lithiums ] last week and it was cold but not below freezing , and the K-x was giving me the yellow warning symbol of batteries going low. I foolishly didn't have spares with me so was a little concerned.

It's now a good bit warmer , I've taken several shots with the K-x , the batteries have not been changed and still show green and well charged [ as so they should - I've only taken about 500 shots with that set ]

I am very grateful to all of you for your replies. I will buy some lithium batteries at one of our big supermarkets and I will make sure I keep a spare couple warm in my coat pocket - I am often taking pictures when the temperature is well below freezing, as I live in a ski resort.