Really soaked my 5D MK II today..... | FerrariChat
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Really soaked my 5D MK II today.....

Discussion in 'Creative Arts' started by MarkPDX, Apr 4, 2010.

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  1. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
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    #1 MarkPDX, Apr 4, 2010
    I have been out in the rain with both my Rebel and 5D quite a bit and have never had problems with either until today. A couple weeks ago I was in St Johns NFL and got the camera pretty wet with sea spray which fortunately got rinsed off by all the rain coming down. No problems from that..... Today I was hiking in Hawaii and got caught in a torrential downpour that soaked absolutely everything. Camera was good through most of it despite water running off of it everywhere. Then the autofocus started having some problems and the display started showing error messages that the battery needed to be removed and reinserted. This seemed like a bad sign so I went ahead and pulled the battery out and kept it out. There was a small amount of condensation visible behind the LCD window on the top of the camera which didn't seem like a very good thing and there was also some condensation visible in the 24-105 lens. Opened all the little rubber plugs and hatches on the camera up and blew it with a hair dryer for a while until it was a little bit warm and then put it over a lamp to keep warm for about an hour. Did the same thing with the lens. All the moisture seemed gone so I gave it the once over with the hair dryer again gave it a try.... 100% operational!

    So the moral of the story is..... the waterproof seals on Canon cameras might not be completely waterproof if you really get caught in some serious rain. If you do have problems pull the battery out and get to work with a hair dryer and everything should turn out OK :)
     
  2. Jedi

    Jedi Moderator
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    #2 Jedi, Apr 4, 2010
    Indeed... let EVERYTHING DRY OUT before powering back up, even if it means missing
    days of shooting. My Canon pocket cam went through the washing machine AND dryer,
    but after a couple days in front of a fan, worked fine.

    Good luck - I'm sure you'll be OK. Never done that with my Nikon or Canon 20D....
    but I'm sure it's the same... let it DRY OUT FIRST.

    Jedi
     
  3. Zahiba

    Zahiba Formula 3

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    #3 Zahiba, Apr 4, 2010
    Quick tip that I heard works is to put the gizmo in a bowl of rice. In theory the rice absorbs all or most of the moisture.
     
  4. agup48

    agup48 Two Time F1 World Champ

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    #4 agup48, Apr 5, 2010
    Either that or those little moisture packets that come in stuff like beef jerky and shoes.
     
  5. Billy10mm

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    #5 Billy10mm, Apr 7, 2010
    Quick note ... the 5D isn't weather sealed.

    You need to move to a 1-series to get weather sealing.
     
  6. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
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    #6 MarkPDX, Apr 7, 2010
    Funny you say that..... I was pretty sure I had read that it was weather sealed and even checked it out before leaving Hawaii. So I go to check it on the Canon web site right now and can't find it anywhere, only thing I can find is some of the reviews made reference to it being splash/light rain resistant. Oooops.....

    Well I guess I might have dodged a bullet here because it really was soaked, looks like I will be a little more careful in the future.
     
  7. blackwood

    blackwood Formula 3

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    #7 blackwood, Apr 7, 2010
    Last edited: Apr 7, 2010
    I believe that parts of it (the CF compartment, for example) are sealed.

    Edit: the red lines are seals on the 5D2: http://a.img-dpreview.com/reviews/CanonEOS5DMarkII/Images/seals.jpg
     
  8. alexD

    alexD F1 Rookie

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    #8 alexD, Apr 21, 2010
    wow. Pretty sure I wouldn't let it get soaked even if it was weather sealed....especially by salt water. It's nice to know now that these canon bodies can handle a little water so I won't worry too much if my 7D catches some rain drops.
     
  9. 4REphotographer

    4REphotographer F1 Veteran

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    #9 4REphotographer, Apr 21, 2010
    Also Canon states that lenses that are weather sealed aren't really sealed until you put on a UV filter.

    I soaked my 40D last May at a car show, after about 10 minutes I got a could not read memory card error and just wiped off the camera and pulled the battery and all was well. Have yet to get caught in the rain with my 5D1.
     
  10. MarkPDX

    MarkPDX F1 World Champ
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    #10 MarkPDX, Apr 24, 2010
    Interesting about the UV filter, water got behind it as well. Had to take the filter off to dry it out. Lens is a 24-105L and I suspect the water got past the part where it slides in and out.

    It was really more like copious amounts of salt spray rather than a real drenching. It was on the coast of Newfoundland which is pretty windy.
     
  11. 4REphotographer

    4REphotographer F1 Veteran

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    #11 4REphotographer, Apr 24, 2010
    That's strange, the 24-105 is fully weather-sealed with the UV. Water should not be able to get through the lens, it has internal gaskets to keep the water out, must have somehow gotten through the filter, and I'd be more concerned about the salt than the water.
     
  12. Carsleuth

    Carsleuth F1 Rookie

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    #12 Carsleuth, Apr 30, 2010
    I was up at Ferrari Nationals in '09. Last hour of the concours it poured. I have a Rebel XTi and the same lens as you, 24-105. (It's great, isn't it? :)) Completely soaked the camera. Got back to the hotel room and I removed the battery and let the camera dry out. Within an hour, everything was dry and fully functioning again. Amazing. :)
     

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