Frozen Camera

My 1Ds stopped taking pictures this weekend.

Admittedly it was a little cold, about 5 Celsius or 40 Fahrenheit. I had the camera set up on a tripod and it was exposed for over 30 minutes to a cold north wind. I had already used it for about an hour inside at the church so the battery was run down a little.

What it did was stop reading to the card. The shutter was still working and the flash still went off. The first indication I had that something was wrong was when I noticed that the back LCD wasn’t working.

I tried turning the camera off and on again but it didn’t help. I changed batteries and everything started working again.

I only lost about a dozen photos so it was not big deal. But it did give me pause and provided another reason for having backups. I just hope it was a battery related problem.

Anyone ever hear or experience anything like it?

I have my 1Ds2 lock up on me quite regularly in a way that it won't respond to truning the main dial or pressing the upper buttons. Removing the battery for a few seconds always takes care of it.

I took my old 1Ds to Fairbanks and Antarctica in the winter (at a temperature of around -40C/-40F), and while I didn't have much of a battery life I didn't observe any ill behavior.

Stan Jirman said:

I have my 1Ds2 lock up on me quite regularly in a way that it won't respond to truning the main dial or pressing the upper buttons. Removing the battery for a few seconds always takes care of it.

I took my old 1Ds to Fairbanks and Antarctica in the winter (at a temperature of around -40C/-40F), and while I didn't have much of a battery life I didn't observe any ill behavior.

Click to expand...

Thanks Stan I didn't think of removing the battery for a few seconds. That would have saved time. As it was I had to go back to my car to get a replacement.

I've had that lockup with a 70-200 IS coming from the bright outside to low light. Everything stopped, wheel didn't work. Tried reseating the lens, no help. Tried a 50 2.5 still no good. Removed battery and put it back, it awoke!

Asher

Hi Bob,

Although it could have been an odd event, lithium-ion batteries, like most cells, do not perform well in the cold. They also age quickly. Using it for an hour in the church, if it was a year or so old, will not be the same as using it when brand new. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_ion_battery and other places gives information on that. As usual, I doubt if canon (like other major manufacturers) release any detailed information concerning battery life, or even camera operating end point voltages. They should also put a date on the case, you don't want to buy ones that have been on a shelf in a warm shop for six months.

Best wishes,

Ray

In their pro cameras, Canon uses nickel metal hydride batteries (NiMH).

I live in central Canada and regularly use my 1Ds Mark II and 1D Mark II in freezing temperatures (0 celsius to -40 celsius for about 4-5 months of the year) without any lock-up issues. I also get pretty good performance out of the batteries. I'll keep a spare in a warm pocket, and just swap as required. But, it is rarely an issue.

The only time I've had a lock up is when a camera with an IS lens is pointed directly at the sun.

Paul Burwell said:

In their pro cameras, Canon uses nickel metal hydride batteries (NiMH).

I live in central Canada and regularly use my 1Ds Mark II and 1D Mark II in freezing temperatures (0 celsius to -40 celsius for about 4-5 months of the year) without any lock-up issues. I also get pretty good performance out of the batteries. I'll keep a spare in a warm pocket, and just swap as required. But, it is rarely an issue.

The only time I've had a lock up is when a camera with an IS lens is pointed directly at the sun.

Click to expand...

What are you shooting at -40? When it gets that cold I head inside and set up my lights. I may grab a quick shot from the church to the car and that is it.

I'm not sure if age may be a factor as it might have been the orginal battery that came with the camera. Either way I will grab a new one before the next outdoor adventure in two weeks and I hope it isn't -40.

Asher Kelman said:

I've had that lockup with a 70-200 IS coming from the bright outside to low light. Everything stopped, wheel didn't work. Tried reseating the lens, no help. Tried a 50 2.5 still no good. Removed battery and put it back, it awoke!

Asher

Click to expand...

I had one with a 100-400 on a 20D. Warm (85+), no bright sunlight involved. Just an IS that was starting to go bad.

Similar lockups were slightly more common on my 300D. I think that Canon is still working out some of the kinks in their firmware, gradually making it more survivable in the face of unexpected inputs.

Bob Cooper said:

What are you shooting at -40? When it gets that cold I head inside and set up my lights. I may grab a quick shot from the church to the car and that is it.

Click to expand...

I'm usually shooting wildlife and/or landscapes at -40. As long as there isn't any wind, I find -40 quite bearable with the right clothing.

The conditions indicated by the initial poster should pose no problem, as has been already pointed out, for the 1Ds. With both the 1Ds and the 1Ds2 I've been in very cold conditions with snow and biting wind and while I was worse for wear, the cameras functioned reliably and admirably. The same applies to spending hours in the rain with the camera exposed quite a bit. No problem for it.

Ralph Eisenberg said:

The conditions indicated by the initial poster should pose no problem, as has been already pointed out, for the 1Ds. With both the 1Ds and the 1Ds2 I've been in very cold conditions with snow and biting wind and while I was worse for wear, the cameras functioned reliably and admirably. The same applies to spending hours in the rain with the camera exposed quite a bit. No problem for it.

Click to expand...

Ralph,

How about with non sealed lenses like the 50 1.5, 80 1.8, etc?

asher

Bob Cooper said:

My 1Ds stopped taking pictures this weekend.[snip] Anyone ever hear or experience anything like it?

Click to expand...

Bob, Do you (or anybody who have experienced these 'freezes' get error codes when it happens? I've had 'freezes' but temperature was definitely not an issue at the time. I didn't remove/replace battery but did turn off/on. BTW this is for 1D-MkII. If this sounds at all familiar there is another thread under 'error codes' in this forum.

Jan Rifkinson said:

Bob, Do you (or anybody who have experienced these 'freezes' get error codes when it happens? I've had 'freezes' but temperature was definitely not an issue at the time. I didn't remove/replace battery but did turn off/on. BTW this is for 1D-MkII. If this sounds at all familiar there is another thread under 'error codes' in this forum.

Click to expand...

No error codes. The back LCD was blank and the top LCD showed the normal stuff but none of the dials or back button would work.

I have had microdrives freeze up in very cold temps (-35C), I now use CF almost exclusively. I recently spent an entire day at -20 to -35C in Harbin, China with no problems occuring on my 1Ds2. The biggest problem that I had, was a frozen Markins ballhead...