KM 5D Lockup

[kberntsen]

From time to time, when I pickup my camera, turn it on and snap off the first shot, the camera seems to lock up. It happens with and w/o the flash (3600HS & Internal) and with different lenses. When this happens, I turn the camera of and then back on and then I will have no more problems with it.

What will happen is I will focus, then when I release the shutter, it will take a longer than needed or expected exposure and the image on my card is black (or blank) It does take the few seconds to save an image but until I cycle power it doesn't respond to any thing I do.

Has any one else seen this? The last thing I can think of before blaming the camera body itself is the memory card.

[JimC]

Yes... this is as problem I've seen discussed before.

At one point, my 5D was doing it every time I let the camera sit idle for a few days. Then, the camera would hang on the first photo taken until you power cycle it, and the image produced was dark.

I cleaned all contacts (lens mount contacts on camera, contacts on lenses, battery contacts on battery and in camera) and the problem went away.

Some users have reported that KM replaced their shutter mechanism when the problem occured.

Personally, I think that the camera is probably monitoring voltage or current and when it seens too much variation, it results in the problem (and if you look closely when it happens, you'll see ERR flashing in the viewfinder).

My theory is that the shutter is probably binding just enough to cause a voltage or current variation, and if contacts are dirty, that's a contributing factor. But, cleaning the contacts and using the camera more solved my issue (probably because the shutter became broken in more over time).

I haven't seen this problem in long time, and it was doing it every time I let the camera sit for a few days between uses.

Try cleaning all contacts and see if that solves it.

[kberntsen]

That is something I didn't mention. Is it does seem to happen when it sits for a few days.

Course after reading this thread http://www.stevesforums.com/forums/v...mp;forum_id=84

Maybe I'll send it in for repair and see if I can get upgraded :-)

[rhowe7op]

if this has just started happening recently then i might beable to tell you what's up. the same thing happens to my 5d but only after it been either hot in a car, or more importantly in a humid enviroment. i suppose when it gets hot the water vapor in there heats up. It also does this when i'm shooting in a lot of fog or misty/drizzle.

[kberntsen]

A humid area, like Houston?:-)

[meanstreak]

rhowe7op wrote:

if this has just started happening recently then i might beable to tell you what's up. the same thing happens to my 5d but only after it been either hot in a car, or more importantly in a humid enviroment. i suppose when it gets hot the water vapor in there heats up. It also does this when i'm shooting in a lot of fog or misty/drizzle.

I'm not sure under what conditions you keep it in a car, but it is not good at either temperature extreme or leaving it in the car with the sun bearing down on it for prolonged periods for many reasons. One of the items that is very sensitive to extremes is the LCD.