Problems with Canon mk3 locking up

[starflux]

I work for a major corporation and we employ 11 Canon 5D Mark II cameras for shooting both still and (corporate training and PR) video. I have shot endless hours and countless Gigs of video using the mark II. Lenses we use range from the 70-200 IS f2.8 to first gen. 24-70's to Zeiss ZE lenses. Memory cards are mostly 400x Lexar 16gb and a few Sandisk Extreme 8gb. With many years of experience with this type of camera for video I have learned a lot about the pro and cons regarding dslr video usage. One of the biggest drawbacks being the 12 minute clip length of the Mark II. Upon receiving my first Canon 5D Mark III in April of 2012 i was to shot a corporate event involving a long speech about 25 minutes in length. I decided to try out the new Mark III and its claimed longer recording time. The camera was set up using a standard video tripod. I was also using a Canon 70-200mm f2.8 IS II lens. Mounted on the hotshoe was a Rode shotgun Mic that plugged into the cameras mic port. I was also using Bose QC II headphones for monitoring. The cards i used for media capture were all (4) 16gb Lexar 400x. The first two speeches i recorded were all perfect but they were also less than ten minutes in length. I decided for the 3rd speech, which was to be about 25 minutes in length, to format a new blank card to make sure I would have enough space to achieve this. At about the 12 minute mark of the recording i started to notice the image on the live preview screen begin to skip and act like it was in slow motion. The blinking record light on the back of the camera changed from blinking to a solid red on. No matter what button I pushed or no matter what switch I switch on or off the image stayed frozen in the preview and the red light remained on. I quickly decided to remove the cameras battery and switched to a third card and managed to start recording once again. Unfortunately, all of the video that had been recorded prior to the freeze was completely lost. I tried numerous rescue software to no avail. It's def. never a good experience having to tell a client/co-worker that your camera mysteriously malfunctioned and you lost important footage. Regardless of the pros and cons of shooting dslr for video, in all the years of shooting dslr video with the Canon 5D Mark II i have never had this problem, ever... period. The Mark III will be shelved for video until this problem is address properly and fixed properly. Shame on you Canon for making us your beta testers.

 

[@!ex]

Possible the new high megapixel camera in a bigger body than the 5D Mark III is an option for you. The image quality is amazing.

You act like you have used or seen actual output from the new high megapixel camera, if so please elaborate....

 

[Camerajah]

Mine have locked up at least 3 times and twice in a single day had to remove and reinstall the battery magazine and I only shoot stills-pixel vertex grip with a pair of canon batteries and rare bird canon lens EF28-80 usm metal mount,I am thinking it may be the lens or silent shutter setting,but I think this will all vanish with April's firmware update from Canon

 

[curtisp777]

I'm using the 90Mb/s sandisk extreme pro, must have the same problem as the 60Mb/s.
Has anyone had this problem with the lexar 1000x ?

I have the lexar 32GB 1000x CF Card and it has not locked up on me yet. I have not taken very many videos with my 5d MK3. Sometimes I have processing issues with my images when I try to edit them with ACD See Pro Ver 6.0

 

[East Wind Photography]

I shoot video on the 5DIII frequently. I used Sandisk Extreme Pro 32GB 90MB/sec. But I only use one of the cards at a time. Either CF or SD but never both for video. I usually just use the CF card.

I didn't pick up on it in the threads but maybe it's related to having both cards in the camera at the same time regardless of whether you are using the 2nd. I've found the best performance is with JUST the CF card installed.

 

[smphoto74]

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[jeffabbyben]

I don't know if it is related but I almost exclusively shoot stills. I have had it happen around 3-4 times where the display buttons on the back of the 5d mark iii become unresponsive. The lcd will not show any images (or menu items) for review. The camera will allow me to continue taking pictures though. I use lexar 400 and 1000 cf cards. I haven't found any pattern as to when it occurs. I wonder if this is the stiils equivalent of what you are seeing in video.

 

[East Wind Photography]

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[smphoto74]

Both CF & SD cards where in the camera at the same time. I tested the SD card first and it failed 3 times before I switched to the CF card where it failed 7 times. Both cards were formatted in camera. Both cards are 32GB cards so plenty of room. Battery was down to 50%

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[East Wind Photography]

Try it again with JUST the CF card and with JUST the SD card. That is an important data point that Canon will want to know. If you cant get it to fail with 1 card then they may have an issue with the card bus timing trying to respond to both cards at the same time. Even when you are writing to only one card, the camera bus still polls the other card if it's inserted. At these speeds when you are pushing the limits, timing is critical. IF it's out of spec a little it can cause a crash. We have the same issue with PCs and memory. Things gotta work like clockwork or it just fails.

Both CF & SD cards where in the camera at the same time. I tested the SD card first and it failed 3 times before I switched to the CF card where it failed 7 times. Both cards were formatted in camera. Both cards are 32GB cards so plenty of room. Battery was down to 50%

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[smphoto74]

I will check that out first thing in the morning and let everyone know. Even if this is the issue, it will be good to narrow down what it is so it can be fixed but I don't believe it's a solution. Canon still needs to address and fix the issue.

Maybe I missed it but I didn't see where I could record video to both cards at once. I can only record to either a CF or SD card. Is there an option to record video to both CF & SD at the same time and if not, why would the camera time out if its trying to read the second card if there is no option for it in the first place? It could be as simple as a program change and fixed with a firmware update...which would be awesome. Either way I'll test it first thing in the morning and post results.

Try it again with JUST the CF card and with JUST the SD card. That is an important data point that Canon will want to know. If you cant get it to fail with 1 card then they may have an issue with the card bus timing trying to respond to both cards at the same time. Even when you are writing to only one card, the camera bus still polls the other card if it's inserted. At these speeds when you are pushing the limits, timing is critical. IF it's out of spec a little it can cause a crash. We have the same issue with PCs and memory. Things gotta work like clockwork or it just fails.

Both CF & SD cards where in the camera at the same time. I tested the SD card first and it failed 3 times before I switched to the CF card where it failed 7 times. Both cards were formatted in camera. Both cards are 32GB cards so plenty of room. Battery was down to 50%

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[smphoto74]

I can confirm with only 1 card in the MK3 at once whether it's a CF card or SD card the camera still freezes. 28 seconds on the CF card and 2:20 on the SD card.

I personally think the issue has something that involves the cards but the cards aren't the problem. I think it's a programming/writing/buffering issue. I think we need to stick together and quit putting so much blame on the cards. My MK2 has no problem recording 1080p on CF cards, the same cards and slower cards. The problem is within the MK3 and needs to be addressed as such.

I'll be sending off all the information I have including several videos to Canon Monday and hopefully this is a one time deal although from reports elsewhere people are still having issues after getting their camera back. Personally I love the MK3 and hope it gets fixed. I do not want to give it up. lol. I want to do more testing myself, different settings, different lenses, there are so many things to check it all takes time.

On a side note, my second 5D mk3 has not frozen in the 2 days I've tested it so I don't think this is happening to every camera but looking online quite a few people are having issues so it does need to be addressed.

Try it again with JUST the CF card and with JUST the SD card. That is an important data point that Canon will want to know. If you cant get it to fail with 1 card then they may have an issue with the card bus timing trying to respond to both cards at the same time. Even when you are writing to only one card, the camera bus still polls the other card if it's inserted. At these speeds when you are pushing the limits, timing is critical. IF it's out of spec a little it can cause a crash. We have the same issue with PCs and memory. Things gotta work like clockwork or it just fails.

Both CF & SD cards where in the camera at the same time. I tested the SD card first and it failed 3 times before I switched to the CF card where it failed 7 times. Both cards were formatted in camera. Both cards are 32GB cards so plenty of room. Battery was down to 50%

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[East Wind Photography]

The problem with writng to both cards is the card buss has to do twice the load. I'm not even sure if it was possible if it could keep up 30fps at full HD. Just too much data to push down at once.

So it's interesting that it happens with only one card. Honestly I think there is an issue with the camera card bus. Either faulty or just out of spec. I don't have any issues with recording video on my 5diii with 32 gb sandisk extreme pro 90 mbps. I've taken a full card of video on the CF and the SD but I didn't use both at the same time. It's possible the spec is tight and its drifting over time and requires a "tweak" to get it back to spec.

Since it seems you can reproduce it with good regularity, you should send the whole thing back to Canon for evaluation...lens, battery and memory card too. It's a pain but so is losing video. Should be under warranty still so don't give up on it.

I can confirm with only 1 card in the MK3 at once whether it's a CF card or SD card the camera still freezes. 28 seconds on the CF card and 2:20 on the SD card.

I personally think the issue has something that involves the cards but the cards aren't the problem. I think it's a programming/writing/buffering issue. I think we need to stick together and quit putting so much blame on the cards. My MK2 has no problem recording 1080p on CF cards, the same cards and slower cards. The problem is within the MK3 and needs to be addressed as such.

I'll be sending off all the information I have including several videos to Canon Monday and hopefully this is a one time deal although from reports elsewhere people are still having issues after getting their camera back. Personally I love the MK3 and hope it gets fixed. I do not want to give it up. lol. I want to do more testing myself, different settings, different lenses, there are so many things to check it all takes time.

On a side note, my second 5D mk3 has not frozen in the 2 days I've tested it so I don't think this is happening to every camera but looking online quite a few people are having issues so it does need to be addressed.

Try it again with JUST the CF card and with JUST the SD card. That is an important data point that Canon will want to know. If you cant get it to fail with 1 card then they may have an issue with the card bus timing trying to respond to both cards at the same time. Even when you are writing to only one card, the camera bus still polls the other card if it's inserted. At these speeds when you are pushing the limits, timing is critical. IF it's out of spec a little it can cause a crash. We have the same issue with PCs and memory. Things gotta work like clockwork or it just fails.

Both CF & SD cards where in the camera at the same time. I tested the SD card first and it failed 3 times before I switched to the CF card where it failed 7 times. Both cards were formatted in camera. Both cards are 32GB cards so plenty of room. Battery was down to 50%

So you said you used both CF and SD cards. Were they both in the camera at the same time or in one at a time during the test?

I've had the issue and decided to record it. Over a 2 hour period yesterday I was able to get it to come up a total of 10 times ranging in times from 18 seconds to 4 minutes even. I'm not so sure it's a card issue. I'm using CF 90mbps and SD at 45mbps. Maybe I could see issues with the 45mbps cards but 90mbps.? Once you see my video, it's 18 seconds into recording so I'm just not 100% sure it's a card issue but to be fair I don't think we should rule out the card issue completely. More testing has to be done for sure. Either way loosing footage because of a camera freezing during video recording is hazardous in our business. Canon must be made aware of the issue and get it fixed for everyone involved.

Check out the video, I've sent it to Canon as proof and will be sending in my MK3 Monday.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame during video

Please forgive me for it being out of focus but capturing this one freezing 18 seconds into recording I couldn't pass up the chance to show it.

 

[smphoto74]

I won't give up. I was planning on sending in the 35mm anyways so that will work out great for Canon to have exactly the same equipment as I have be using. I also agree with what you're saying and I believe it will be a simple fix. If it's a firmware thing hopefully they can throw it in the next one coming in April.


I'll keep you all updated.

Thanks

The problem with writng to both cards is the card buss has to do twice the load. I'm not even sure if it was possible if it could keep up 30fps at full HD. Just too much data to push down at once.

So it's interesting that it happens with only one card. Honestly I think there is an issue with the camera card bus. Either faulty or just out of spec. I don't have any issues with recording video on my 5diii with 32 gb sandisk extreme pro 90 mbps. I've taken a full card of video on the CF and the SD but I didn't use both at the same time. It's possible the spec is tight and its drifting over time and requires a "tweak" to get it back to spec.

Since it seems you can reproduce it with good regularity, you should send the whole thing back to Canon for evaluation...lens, battery and memory card too. It's a pain but so is losing video. Should be under warranty still so don't give up on it.

 

[smphoto74]

Magic Lantern asked me to install their software to see if the freezing still happens. I used different cards for this and put the cards from yesterday into the other MK3 I have and that other MK3 recorded a full 29:59 before stopping(due to time limit not freezing) From the video below you can see it still freezes with ML installed and different cards and settings changed slightly to 1920x1080 24p IPB. I also tried it using the 640x480 30p setting and it still stopped. Also put it in still mode and shot continuous for 58 shots. Now the buffer paused the shooting but I just kept the button pushed. No freezing and I've also shot thousands of images prior to this without issue. Settings for stills was full Raw.

5D MK3 Freeze Frame with Magic Lantern Installed

 

[STvideography]

http://www.change.org/petitions/canon-fix-the-canon-5dmk3-camera-freeze-and-lost-files-problem

Sign the petition to get canon to fix this problem.

 

[smphoto74]

Wow, Canon must really be taking notice. I just got an email from Canon CPS loan department along with a tracking number and I'm guessing they are sending me a MK3 loaner while they fix mine. I didn't even ask. I just let them know via email that I was sending in my MK3 march 4th along with the video of course. Since my MK3 reproduces the error consistently I hope Canon can find a fix for everyone.

I will keep everyone up to date with the progress and outcome but this is a good sign Canon is taking notice and someone is getting on the ball to getting this fixed.

http://www.change.org/petitions/canon-fix-the-canon-5dmk3-camera-freeze-and-lost-files-problem

Sign the petition to get canon to fix this problem.

 

[Denisas Pupka]

Conclusion: If you have many SanDisk Cards test the camera and if you have problems return it and demand your money back. Or forget the 5D Mark III and wait what is coming next. The image quality from the 6D is better than the image quality from the 5D Mark III, but the shutter in the 5D Mark III is better build.

Still considering 6D, but from video perspective 5D Mark III looks better. Not only because 6D have problems with moire, no headphone jack, but also I found discussion in YouTube Video: 5D mark III reviewed by Philip Bloom, there people was asking author how it compares to 6D and one of the Philip Blooms answers, that sharpening video in post doesnt work that good, like with 5D mark III. (the same problem like with 5D mark II)

 

[smphoto74]

Agreed, I saw Philips review of the 6D vs the MK3 and I wouldn't get the 6D. 70D is out soon and then I'd consider a GH3 before finally a 6D(if you couldn't go with a MK3). From the rumors I'm reading a 7D mk2 won't be out till late summer or early fall. Actually I'd most probably pick up a used MK2 before a 6D. lol

 

[filmdock]

I am scheduled to buy a Mark III tomorrow and I saw posts about video capture lock-up/freezing and I was alarmed so I immediately reviewed my Mark II footages. Here's what I think. I have used a Mark II for a feature film last year and I know that these DSLRs can only record up to about 12 minutes of full HD footage in .MOV format. Why? Because any card whether CF or SD and even flash drives are formatted in FAT32 regardless of its capacity which means they can only keep up to 4GB (I've recorded a 4.18GB of 00:12:12 footage) of file at a time and 12 minutes of full HD in .MOV is exactly 4GB. I think that's what causing it to lock up. The only problem is that it shouldn't freeze to avoid losing data. Mark II just stops recording and stores that long footage. Then you just have to push record again. So to those of you who already have the Mark III who use it to cover long events, hit that pause/record button before it reaches that 12 minute mark.