Query - 550D: Does the camera hang (at times if kept idle for few seconds)?

[prabhath.mp]

Hi All,

I am very new to this forum and I did not know whom to approach to understand a problem that I have been observing over few days.

I really appreciate the ML team's work in creating a beautiful software/application, something which the manufacturers (Canon) could not achieve despite the kind of experience they hold in making such beautiful cameras.

I recently upgraded the firmware version to the latest 2.3 ML on my Canon 550D

I liked every feature (my favourite is FPS override; Rack focus; Ghost Image: Manual Audio ability; the manual in it and everything that ML has )

When the camera is not recording anything (when kept idle for few seconds), the shutter would close/lock and nothing happens. I have to remove the battery and restart the camera.

Could you please advice if this is common or if it is specific to my camera? (Canon EOS 550D/T2i).

Eagerly awaiting your reply/advice.

I apologize if I have posted the question in wrong discussion forum.

Sincerely,
Prabhath MP

ML Fan/User

[Malcolm Debono]

Do you have any power saving options turned on (either from ML menu or usual Canon auto turn off)? If so, is the camera turning off (or locking) after the specified time period, or randomly?

Is the camera turning off completely (black screen and no info in viewfinder)? Did you try half-pressing the shutter when this happens?

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm,

Thank you for replying.

I have actually not seen/observed the auto power save option (I will check that and let you know).

Regarding the camera getting hanged, I have tried the below steps:-

1. Half press the shutter release button
2. Try pressing the display button/Set/Play/Delete/Menu/Direction keys/All other buttons/Turing the Aperture dial/shooting modes (nothing worked actually )
3. In the end, the only thing that worked was removal of battery manually and re-inserting it.

From the scenario, what would be the ideal setting to ensure that the application remains stable on camera.

Also, I have observed another functionality regarding AF.

When the AF in ML is set to - Trap Focus (Continuous), and if I use the Auto mode to capture pictures, the camera starts capturing pictures non-stop, then again I had to remove the battery and re-insert it.

I think I found a fix for that later by disabling the Trap Focus (not sure if that is the permanent fix).

Hope this helps

Thank you once again for your advice.

Sincerely,
Prabhath MP

[Malcolm Debono]

You're welcome!

Trap focus takes a photo when something comes into focus. Since you're on auto, the scene is already in focus, so the camera keeps on taking photos.

Just like the name it’s given, trap focus works by setting a trap for your subject. Once your subject moves into your trap, and your camera registers it as being in-focus, the shutter will release. This can come in handy when you’re taking pictures of wildlife or sports because it ensures your subject is always in focus.

http://www.digital-photo-secrets.com/tip/1303/how-to-use-trap-focus-to-get-better-sports-and-wildlife-shots/

Still unsure about the hanging issue. From what you described, I'm guessing the camera is turning off completely without turning back on right?

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm

Thank you for the suggestion and educating me about the feature. The information regarding the Trap focus provided in the blog was very helpful in understanding the feature.

Regarding the camera getting hanged, you were correct!!

The automatic power-saving mode was turned on (30" interval).

The problem got resolved after I turned that off in camera.

I have not experienced any problem after that.

Will keep you posted if I come across any.

Again, you have been very helpful in this regard. I am thankful to you and the ML team

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[a1ex]

Just a point: on 550D, the color scheme feature seems to cause random glitches, try disabling it.

I'm not aware of any other thing that may be causing this (and yes, I've tested the automatic shutdown combined with ML powersave functions and works fine).

[Malcolm Debono]

Glad that I could be of help 

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Alex & Malcolm

Thank you for sharing your observations.

I use Technicolor - Cinestyle (stored as Userdef 1 on my camera).

However, I did not observe much difference in footage.

I use a personal white balance (automatically set using a grey card that is available on my cellphone - Android 4.0 - Photo Tools).

Could you please help me with ideal setting for a dynamic range of video recording.

Also, I use Ubuntu - Cinelerra for post production (still on the phase of learning with trial/error). I tried using the ezvid software on Windows however that was not satisfactory as it compressed the quality to a greater extent

Regarding the camera hanging at times, it is resolved for now after I set the power save (off).

Thank you once again for all your advice/suggestions

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[Malcolm Debono]

Cinestyle increases the dynamic range by reducing the contrast. I think that picture styles are all a matter of taste though. I find that Cinestyle just lifts the shadows and in turn you'll get a bit more noise in shadows. Since I don't shoot for grading (usually events & weddings), I try to mimic the final look I want in-camera, and as such use either flaat10 or Neutral Flat (modified neutral).

Flaat:
http://www.similaar.com/foto/flaat-picture-styles/index.html

Comparison on picture styles including Neutral Flat by Philip Bloom:
http://philipbloom.net/2011/09/18/pictureprofiles/

Regarding white balance, I just dial in the kelvin depending on the lighting scenario, and then adjust it depending on whether I want to warm it up or cool it down. When I have mixed lighting (usually in churches during weddings), I like to find a white cloth in the church situated where the couple stand and use ML's auto WB to determine the right WB in that spot.

Can't help you out with post though, since I use Windows (Premiere)!

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm,

Thank you for sharing your view and best practices

It was good to know.

I have two queries:-

1. Does white colour (as in white sheet of paper) provide us ideal white balance or is it necessary that we should use something that is 80% (or anywhere close) grey, to achieve the appropriate white balance.

2. Does Canon EOS 550D/T2i allow ISO 25? I believe to have seen that in previous version of ML. How do I set that on my camera (if that is possible).

Thank you once again.

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm,

I found the answer for my second query (regarding reducing the ISO value to 25 through ML)

http://www.magiclantern.fm/forum/index.php?topic=1961.0

Thank you for your help

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[Malcolm Debono]

Glad to be of help 

I don't know the technical difference between taking WB on a white subject or using 18% grey. However, using a white subject to take WB is the way to go for video, and that's the way we set WB for studio broadcasting cameras at my workplace (and other studios). On the other hand, grey cards seem to be more popular with photographers.

[prabhath.mp]

Thank you so much for educating me regarding White Balance in Video recordings

It made my work/life easy (as all I will need is just a clean white paper - that is easily available everywhere, if I am not able to find something that is white in the scene to set the WB)

I have compiled a video (rack focus test rendered as .avi however the file size is showing 6.0 GB for a file that lasts for few minutes).

Could you suggest any other mode to save movie? (I tried saving in .mov native format of Canon movies however there was some problem with the colour decoding as I could see all reds, greens, blues separately. Not sure if that was problem with the application I use for post production - Cinelerra on Ubuntu the only known software to have professional capabilities yet free to download)

Thanks for any suggestions/advice.

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[Malcolm Debono]

Uncompressed video formats such as AVI do take up a lot of space. If the final output is going to be uploaded on the web, you can render it in H264, which is a compressed video format (it's what Canon DSLRs use as well within the Quicktime MOV container). This format can be either saved into Quicktime MOV or into an MP4 file. I'm unsure however which formats the applications you're using support, so you might need to use an additional program to convert the output into H264 after exporting from your editing app.

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm,

Thank you for the suggestion.

I found another software that was very simple to use (Hmm, I don't remember the exact name of the software, will post another update when I have access to my computer at home)

It is quite good and I could compile my work quite well (around 90 MB for the same file), saved in .MOV after downloading few plugins that were missing for the procedure.

Regarding the crop-mark, there was an inbuilt crop-mark in the post-production software which was set at 0.40 (Width) with (maximum being 1). At 0.40 the black portion/bars was more. I use a 20" Samsung LCD monitor and on a rough calculation I arrived at 0.26 if it had to be 2.3:1 ratio (where the black bars size reduced to a certain extent evenly (How do we calculate the exact ratio?)

However, not sure. Any suggestions/advice on that?

I will upload the video on YouTube probably tonight when I am back in home or tomorrow earliest!

Thank you once again for all your kind help on this

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[nanomad]

Glad to be of help 

I don't know the technical difference between taking WB on a white subject or using 18% grey. However, using a white subject to take WB is the way to go for video, and that's the way we set WB for studio broadcasting cameras at my workplace (and other studios). On the other hand, grey cards seem to be more popular with photographers.

To expand a little further on that: cards are used for two things
- White balance
- Exposure

As far as WB is concerned both gray and white cards are fine since the camera doesn't actually see the white or gray but only needs an homogeneous surface. Keep in mind that it's easier to have cheap white cards that have a light blue or yellow cast. On the other hand, white cards are easier to balance in low light conditions.

If you're interested in using auto exposure, you need a gray card since the camera will meter for 18% gray. Gray cards can be a life-saver if you're shooting in very bright scenes as the card will provide the camera with a correct 18% gray for exposure. Without a gray reference point the camera will probably underexpose the shot instead. You can also use a white card for exposure, but keep in mind that the camera will be under-exposing the scene of about 1-2 stops in this case (as it shifts the white of the card to the gray region of the histogram)

In the end, the best purchase is probably a double-faced gray+white card

[prabhath.mp]

Hi There

Thank you so much for the information.

It has been a great help in understanding exposure & white balance in digital cameras.

I have an application called 'Photo Tools' on my Mobile - Sony Ericsson XPERIA Neo V (4.0 ICS).

It has a grey card in it, which I have been using (and it is quite nice) however, I am not certain if the grey colour on my mobile would interfere with the natural light/the usable light in scene (as the grey is displayed on the mobile screen).

Sorry, if that is an irrelevant question. I am still on the phase of learning and honestly I only got motivated to learn more after I realized about the capabilities of Magic Lantern

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[nanomad]

I hardly think that smartphones screen are calibrated, so you're better off buying an 18%. Keep in mind that lights plays an important role in WB and the smartphone is actually a light source that won't be present in the final shoot....
It's also a light source in front of the camera which is usually bad ....

[prabhath.mp]

Oh, yes.. I had this feeling however got confirmed after your suggestion now..!!

Will try to get one grey-card (grey-white) soon then

Could you please advice which of these would be a better choice:-

http://www.linkdelight.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=2086&category_id=7&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=55

http://www.linkdelight.com/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=600&category_id=7&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=55

Thank you once again

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[nanomad]

I've got a kodak gray card, but since WB is so easy to correct in post-production you will probably be fine with any of of those. The "rigid" one sounds better if you ask me. Just treat her good and it will last quite a bit (i.e. keep it away from direct sun light, water and heat)

[prabhath.mp]

Thank you

Will go for the one that is made of hard material.

I wanted to share my work (sorry about the quality as it was compiled and rendered as .Mov despite after uploading to YouTube the quality shows only 480 p )

 

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[prabhath.mp]

Hi,

I think YouTube takes a while for showing all available resolutions.

Now, I am able to find 1080P in movie

Cheers,
Prabhath MP

[Malcolm Debono]

Nice tests! The bokeh looks really good.

As nanomad suggested, go for a physical card rather than mobile (emits light, shiny reflective surface, colour casts, etc.). It won't cost a fortune and is pretty good to have 

Regarding youtube, it does take a while to process HD videos after the upload is complete, which explains why this resolution wasn't available right after the upload.

[prabhath.mp]

Hi Malcolm

Thank you so much for the feedback.

It was an honour to hear from you

I will go for the physical card as suggested.

Regarding bokeh, I used bangles that were in home. The bangles have too many reflective surfaces and I found them useful for the scene

I am glad that you liked my work.

Cheers,
Prabhath MP