Canon 50D

[v1rt]

Hopefully someone can keep me up to speed. I've been away for a year now with my ML. I'd like to update my ML again. Is it still the same process, copy the ML firmware into our sd card, put it on our camera, boot it and install new ML firmware?

Also, which compact flash card would you recommend if I wanted to do raw recording?

I forgot, where can we download the latest stable firmware?

Thanks!

[Audionut]

The OP of this thread has the latest install instructions.  You can find a link to Canon firmwares in the sticky thread in General Help Q&A.

[v1rt]

Thank you!

[kolen]

Hopefully someone can keep me up to speed. I've been away for a year now with my ML. I'd like to update my ML again. Is it still the same process, copy the ML firmware into our sd card, put it on our camera, boot it and install new ML firmware?

Also, which compact flash card would you recommend if I wanted to do raw recording?

I forgot, where can we download the latest stable firmware?

Thanks!

Go to the first page of this thread and read the first post.

[illesi]

Hi all! I would like to say thank you to the developers, I really appreciate it.
I made this video mostly with 50d:

[Tullen]

Hi everyone.
I wonder what the latest is regarding using 50d with a field monitor when recording raw.

1. Does it work with both hdmi and avi (if that's the name for analog)?
2. Does it show overlay?
3. Does it impact performance?
4. What is the output resolution? The same as you film, 1080p/I or something else?
5. Is there anything else important to know about field monitors and 50d?

If you use one, which one and how?

Thanks!

[robertgl]

Hi all! I would like to say thank you to the developers, I really appreciate it.
I made this video mostly with 50d:

Wow that's some awesome footage.. the inter-cutting is nice as well

[far.in.out]

Hi. I've got a problem. When I record MLV with FPS override set to 23.976 exact (Nightly.2014Aug02) I get these intervals between frames (ms):
35   35   35   50   43   52   18   47   40   53   35   52   35   53   35   35   40   45   35   42   38   60   35   45

This is according to a video where I recorded a high-precision stopwatch from my LCD screen (60Hz). Can anyone suggest a more accurate procedure?
What could I be doing wrong? Any comments on this?

[dmilligan]

There are too many free variables. You need a control. There's no way to tell if it's just the watch, the camera itself (boot without ML), or due to ML. You must design an experiment that eliminates all but one possibility.

[ayshih]

This is according to a video where I recorded a high-precision stopwatch from my LCD screen (60Hz). Can anyone suggest a more accurate procedure?

If I understand you right, you're running a stopwatch program on a computer with a typical 60 Hz display.  That means, from frame to frame on the display itself, you'd expect to see a ~17 ms time difference between frames.  Even if you were to then record the display at 1000 fps, you would still only see a new frame every 1/60 of a second, and that new frame would have a displayed time ~17 ms after the preceding frame.

So, it's not clear anything is wrong from your data.  The ~33-ms gaps are when the recording misses one frame of the display, and the ~50-ms gaps are when the recording misses two frames (23.976 fps is ~42 ms per frame, while two 60-Hz frames take only ~33 ms).  The other timing inaccuracies are likely due to inaccuracies in the display of the stopwatch.  Unless this stopwatch program was designed to have high accuracy (rather than just high precision), OS-level graphical calls probably have variability and delays that are contributing.

It's neat to try to test the accuracy of the FPS timer, but you need a better setup.  If there aren't (cheap) real-world high-precision stopwatches with displays that have high refresh rates, you could instead build one (e.g., a microcontroller plus LED digits).  Alternatively, you could try a kookier setup that makes use of a spinning laser or the trace of an analog oscilloscope.

[illesi]

Wow that's some awesome footage.. the inter-cutting is nice as well

Hey, thank you for your positive feedback!

[kyrobb]

Is it possible to make an H.264 playback module on the 50D? For certain projects, using 3X bitrate is just much more practical than raw. Not being able to play back is a killer though.

[Asiertxu]

THAT would be REALLY NICE!! an H264 playback module for the 50D!! 

Asier.

[Widget]

I picked up a 50D on a lark and I am extremely impressed with what the ML developers have accomplished. I'm shocked by how beautiful the RAW footage looks and that it records to reasonably priced CF cards. I don't know if I'll ever wind up using it in a professional context but I will say that if I had explored this option sooner I would have seriously reconsidered some other purchases I made earlier this year. Big thanks to a1ex and the team for their really, really hard work.

I have a question though; I know that the maximum width of the 50Ds RAW recording had to be decreased from 1584 to 1568 for ML codebase portability concerns, but will this restriction ever be lifted? I know it only amounts to a 2.3% difference when you're recording 16:9, but I was just curious if we'd ever be able to squeeze that last drop of performance out of this camera.

[ayshih]

I have a question though; I know that the maximum width of the 50Ds RAW recording had to be decreased from 1584 to 1568 for ML codebase portability concerns, but will this restriction ever be lifted?

Probably not, no.  It'll be hard to ever show conclusively that such resolution non-multiples that cause problems on some cameras do not cause any subtle problems on the 50D, and thus it's hard to justify the minor increase in area.

[Widget]

Probably not, no.  It'll be hard to ever show conclusively that such resolution non-multiples that cause problems on some cameras do not cause any subtle problems on the 50D, and thus it's hard to justify the minor increase in area.

Totally understand. I'd rather have a stable camera than an extra percent or two of image area.

Completely off topic; does anyone else wonder where Magic Lantern goes from here? What is left to improve on the 50D besides stability, power use, etc.? I'm not saying that every avenue has been exhausted but does anyone know what the devs are working on at this point?

[ayshih]

One recent new discovery is the capability for full-resolution silent pictures.  You may be interested in a post by a1ex in the nightly build thread that lists some of the works in progress.

[menoc]

Is it possible to make an H.264 playback module on the 50D? For certain projects, using 3X bitrate is just much more practical than raw. Not being able to play back is a killer though.

+1

That's a great idea, if it could be done . . . . Play back at 30fps or even 24fps on the 50D would be icing on an already very delicious cake!

[Widget]

Maybe it's supposed to work like this, but is there a reason why the quick wheel on the back of the 50D becomes unresponsive in menus after activating Live View?

[ayshih]

Hmm, my rear wheel works fine in menus, even when in LV.  Can you provide more specifics?  Which build are you running?  Are both Canon and ML menus affected?

[Renovatio]

Hi guys, finally gettin an used Canon 50d to try Raw Video in a budget solution (from ebay, from america! i'm in europe lol). Also ordered a Tamron 17-50vc to have some is/os/stabilization during that video. If it works properly of course...

Some general suggestions?

Also i haven't take the CF. Which one, the cheapest? Thanks really a lot. 

[dogmydog]

Hello,

I've been shooting raw with my Canon 50D since september 2013 and very happy with results.
On my last shoot, I had a pixel flickering on my shot.

I uploaded a small video file of the problem, along with the DNG and a still of the movie.
https://www.sendspace.com/file/niachs
Is it a problem with raw or on my camera's sensor?

Thanks!

[LEVISDAVIS]

The flickering pixel relates to the sensor. Raw is clear enough to show just how much one pixel can affect the overall image. A good practice before shooting is to conduct a deep sensor cleaning, about 30 seconds to a minute will aid in "flickering pixels." Some times a 5-minute deep clean is needed to eliminate hot pixels. Though, hot pixels / stuck pixels tend to come back. But you'll find that almost all CMOS sensors have issues with stuck / hot pixels in some way shape or form. If stuck with the footage, I would find an image processor that automatically removes flickering / hot pixels when debayering the Raw images. Adobe Camera Raw automatically removes stuck / flickering pixels when debayering.

...Hope this helps you hone in on quality, usability, and also somewhat of the sensor industry's norm.

[arhi]

I read these 12 pages after those 180 and I know I did not read every word of these 12 but I'm bit confused .. I installed ML on my 50D but I don't see RAW video anywhere? Do I need to get the latest nightly or? Any ideas if the RAW feature for 50D will go to stable release any time soon? How stable are the nightly's? I don't mind if camera crash from time to time but I'd hate to brick it (it's the only decent camera I have)

also some other questions ..

I remember in the 50D manual there was talk about "you cannot leave LV on for long because sensor will overheat" - I see temp during RAW recording (nightly) goes to 50C fast how safe is that?

what is the difference between modules that record MLC and RAW wrt 50D, I see that MLC adds some meta data and RAW is just raw but anything related to 50D I should know of? some use more ram then the other? some need more io then th eother?

and final question, can't find the "crop" option anywhere

[ayshih]

I installed ML on my 50D but I don't see RAW video anywhere? Do I need to get the latest nightly or?

You need to load either the mlv_rec or raw_rec module, and then enable one (not both) under the Movie tab.

Any ideas if the RAW feature for 50D will go to stable release any time soon? How stable are the nightly's? I don't mind if camera crash from time to time but I'd hate to brick it (it's the only decent camera I have)

There currently isn't a timeline for the next stable release.  The nightly builds are pretty stable, but there will occasionally be broken builds (hopefully fixed soon after).  I don't believe there's been an actual instance of ML bricking a camera in a permanent sense, but rarely a camera may end up in an odd state and need to be coaxed back to normal, which could mean days/weeks of downtime.

I remember in the 50D manual there was talk about "you cannot leave LV on for long because sensor will overheat" - I see temp during RAW recording (nightly) goes to 50C fast how safe is that?

I don't know if it's possible to quantify the safety.  At the warmer temperatures, you may see some variation or artifacts in the sensor output, and the 50D has a quirk where the FPS may lock to 22 fps.

what is the difference between modules that record MLC and RAW wrt 50D, I see that MLC adds some meta data and RAW is just raw but anything related to 50D I should know of? some use more ram then the other? some need more io then th eother?

Since the 50D can't do audio, the primary benefit of MLV is the useful metadata.  I recommend using MLV unless you find that it's not performing well enough for your needs.  If that's the case, then see if RAW makes a difference.

and final question, can't find the "crop" option anywhere

Press the 5x zoom button in LV mode.