Solve idea for Light Leak Issue of the 5DMK3

[Chris GER]

Hello,

is it possible for Canon to solve the LCD light leak issue with new firmware ?

All LCDs of the 5DMK3 are constructed identically. So all 5DMK3 see the same offset of light from the backlight of the LCD display on the metering sensor. Firmware could subtract this offset of light in the signal of the metering sensor. This firmware has only to know that the LCD is on and then to subtract the offset and to recalibrate the exposure. I know this solves only the problem with the backlight of the LCD and not the light leak issue itself, but I think it could help to reduce the problem very well.

ciao
Chris

 

[prestonpalmer]

Yep. Should work just fine.

 

[Mokh24]

What about when the leak is from the sun light and not the lcd ?

 

[Chris GER]

Yep. Should work just fine.

How can i tell this to Canon ? Support Center or something like that ?

ciao
Chris

 

[prestonpalmer]

Yep. Should work just fine.

How can i tell this to Canon ? Support Center or something like that ?

ciao
Chris

Call support. Ask to talk to a senior rep. Let us know if you get anywhere. It's a big company!

 

[AnselA]

If this is a design problem that is substantive, Canon should fix it at the design lever for proper manufacturing. This camera will be out for years.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Fortunately, its only a issue for those who shoot in bright light with the lens cap on and use the Canon metering for that exposure. The good thing is that it does not effect the result, its still black be it 10 seconds or 1 second.

 

[eeek]

I remember the iPad 2 had a phenomenon that was exposed (see what I did there) out of proportion, too. Also about light leaks. Once the photons settled, it was apropos of nothing. Much like this leak issue.

 

[briansquibb]

That is why the 5DIII has such good low light - so we can take our pictures in the dark and not have the Light Leak Issue ;D ;D ;D

 

[mrmarks]

Canon EOS 60D
I tested 2 bodies and found no issue once I placed the folded black fabric over the viewfinder. No change with backlight on.

Canon EOS 7D
I tested 2 bodies and found no issue once I placed the folded black fabric over the viewfinder. No change with backlight on.

Canon EOS 5D Mark II
I tested the one body I have in stock. This camera exhibited the same issue as the 5D Mark III in direct sunlight, however the backlight didn’t affect exposure. I also did the flashlight test that is mentioned below and nothing changed in exposure.

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV – Body #1
There was an ever so slight shift in exposure with the viewfinder cover down. 10 seconds out of the sun, 8 seconds in the sun. I stuffed the viewfinder with the black fabric and there was no change. The variance in exposure went away if I wrapped the LCD with the black fabric and only left enough space to see the exposure number. No change with backlight on.

Canon EOS-1D Mark IV – Body #2
This body exhibited no movement in exposure. No change with backlight on.

-----------------------------------------------------

Could someone check which side is the LED (inside the LCD) on all the tested bodies? In the 5D3, the LED is on the left side, closer to the metering sensor. Could it be that all the other bodies have the LED on the right side? Just a hyphothesis. You could check the LED position by looking sideways into the LCD.

 

[JR]

That is why the 5DIII has such good low light - so we can take our pictures in the dark and not have the Light Leak Issue ;D ;D ;D

lol... funny man... ;D

 

[michi]

I remember the iPad 2 had a phenomenon that was exposed (see what I did there) out of proportion, too. Also about light leaks. Once the photons settled, it was apropos of nothing. Much like this leak issue.

Hardly. The light leak on the iPad 2 was pretty bad, at least on the two I had. You could see it even on a not toally black screen. They exchanged pretty much all of them, that's the reason the dust (photons) settled. Don't think that's a good comparison.

 

[Mt Spokane Photography]

Canon has already responded to the issue. The meter meets all specifications.

It is rated to meter down to -1 ev. When you put the lens cap on, you are getting a much lower ev value, far far out of the specification by a factor of 10 or even 100.

 

[mrmarks]

Canon has already responded to the issue. The meter meets all specifications.

It is rated to meter down to -1 ev. When you put the lens cap on, you are getting a much lower ev value, far far out of the specification by a factor of 10 or even 100.

Where was this response? Any link?

 

[Chris GER]

Canon has already responded to the issue. The meter meets all specifications.

It is rated to meter down to -1 ev. When you put the lens cap on, you are getting a much lower ev value, far far out of the specification by a factor of 10 or even 100.

Is there any response ?

 

[t.linn]

Fortunately, its only a issue for those who shoot in bright light with the lens cap on and use the Canon metering for that exposure. The good thing is that it does not effect the result, its still black be it 10 seconds or 1 second.

The ol' "only affects users who leave the lens cap on" bit may make you feel better about your 5D3 but even a cursory investigation will demonstrate that this is simply not true. There are plenty of examples where this design/manufacturing flaw (take your pick) makes a difference. Here's one:

http://www.cameratown.com/reviews/canon5dMKIII/light_leak.cfm

Now obviously this isn't an issue that's going to affect most users most of the time. If it were, it would have never made it past the testing period w/o being corrected. But it can be a problem and should be fixed. Smug comments implying that people actually taking photographs won't be affected is wrong.

 

[esi32]

The ol' "only affects users who leave the lens cap on" bit may make you feel better about your 5D3 but even a cursory investigation will demonstrate that this is simply not true. There are plenty of examples where this design/manufacturing flaw (take your pick) makes a difference. Here's one:

http://www.cameratown.com/reviews/canon5dMKIII/light_leak.cfm

Now obviously this isn't an issue that's going to affect most users most of the time. If it were, it would have never made it past the testing period w/o being corrected. But it can be a problem and should be fixed. Smug comments implying that people actually taking photographs won't be affected is wrong.

You do realize that the behavior that's shown in that link is how ALL TTL SLRs behave. Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax, it doesn't matter. Nor does the model. When you remove your eye from the view finder, you allow more light to enter the viewfinder which is where the meter is, as a result the meter reading changes. This has been the case going back to well as long as cameras have had metering mounted in the viewfinder and is, in part, why SLRs have built-in viewfinder shutters or covers to black out the viewfinder.

Edit to add:

This is exactly the problem with "cursory investigations" when it comes to cameras, or any other complex system, when you don't control all of the variables you have no idea what is actually going on, and any conclusion you draw from the test is just as likely to be incorrect as it is to be correct. And just because you don't think the environment is such that there is sufficient light entering the viewfinder to affect the metering doesn't mean that there isn't.