camera won't recognize my 11-22mm.

Yesterday I put my 11-22mm on my m5, turned it on and just got a gray screen with the lcd and the evf.  So I tried it on my m3 with the same result.  The lens seems to seat just fine, no different than in the past.  All my other lenses work fine on both cameras.

I tried cleaning the contacts on the lens but to no avail.

Anyone else have this happen with any of the m lenses?  If so, is there a solution that doesn't entail sending it to Canon?

Thanks in advance,

alan brown wrote:

Yesterday I put my 11-22mm on my m5, turned it on and just got a gray screen with the lcd and the evf. So I tried it on my m3 with the same result. The lens seems to seat just fine, no different than in the past. All my other lenses work fine on both cameras.

I tried cleaning the contacts on the lens but to no avail.

Anyone else have this happen with any of the m lenses? If so, is there a solution that doesn't entail sending it to Canon?

Thanks in advance,

An interesting situation.
I can't say I've heard of this before because you should be getting optical data from your camera regardless of whether the lens is functioning or not - especially in Manual Focus Mode. You may need to select the feature in the camera Menu that allows for manual shutter release.
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It sounds like one of the lens contacts might be dirty (or one on your camera body). You might need to gently clean the connection points with something appropriate that won't leave fragments of dust on your sensor. Bluetack or even tape might be the solution if you don't have any Isopropyl alcohol on hand. I see that you have checked the contacts already so that's something we can perhaps ignore for the moment.
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Hard Reset
It's possible you may need to reset your camera. You can reset your camera to default factory settings and you ought to at least try this before sending it to Canon because this is what they will do first thing when it arrives.
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Lens or Sensor?
Since this lens reproduced the same problem with two cameras, it's likey an issue with one of the connections on the lens. There's a very minor possibility that the lens data is missing from the processor inside the lens. But since you say you got a gray screen this lens on both the EVF plus the LCD, I might suggest switching to Manual focus and then back again. Because a grey screen suggests and interruption between the sensor and the camera's image processor. Still, you did say you tried it on two cameras and you got a gray screen. But here's the thing... in Manual Release Mode, the lens can be anything at all... from a cardboard toilet paper tube to a telescope mount with a T-Ring for Canon cameras.... you SHOULD definitely get an image showing up.
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The 11-22mm lens always present an alert on your EOS M camera LCD to tell you to disengage the lens-lock and extend the lens to be able to use it. So there's a transfer of information when this happens just to let your camera know which lens is mounted and that the lens needs to be extended before the shutter release will be enabled. So in some ways, there's definitely a difference between this lens and many others. I don't get those warning with other lenses. Has the lens been exposed to powerful magnetic fields?
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So with these possibilities in mind, I'd be checking to see if the lens cap is still on the lens. And no, I'm not being cheeky. This defect makes no sense to me otherwise. I'll be curious to see what you discover to be the cause. Do a Hard reset. Check the MF option. Then contact Canon and email them to ask for advice... they will respond within 1 or 2 days. If no solution works, send your lens in for assessment. Can't say I've heard of this problem before.

As Marco already said; I’ve never heard of this kind of problem. Since I own a 11-22 lens as well I am very curious what’s going on with your lens. Let’s hope there is a simple solution for this problem.

alan brown wrote:

Thanks for all the advice. I've checked the more obvious things such as lens cap, etc. I've cleaned the contacts on the lens. I haven't done a hard reset yet. As I have played with it I have noticed that with the camera turned on and showing a dark gray screen, if I begin to take the lens off-say about 1/4 inch turn-I now have an image showing on the lcd. However it won't focus or do anything else. It's frozen. If I turn the lens to fully mount on the camera, the image disappears. Manual focus or autofocus does not have an impact.

I then put the 22mm on the camera and everything worked perfectly. So I'm pretty sure that the 11-22mm is the problem.

Please feel free to make further suggestions. I guess I'm have to do the reset but, of course, hate to lose my settings.

I'm going to make a stupid suggestion so feel free to berate me

Are you holding the lever and moving the zoom to 11mm?  You should at least see a message on your screen if you aren't doing that.

alan brown wrote:

Well, I reset the camera but it still doesn't work with the 11-22mm. In fact, now I can't get an image at all when I start to take the lens off.

This type of lens has a set of flat gold-plated tabs instead of pins. So there's no moving parts on the connections. I'd suggest that one of the following is true: Either the connectors on the camera aren't making contact with this lens... or there's a dry-solder (or broken connection) inside the lens, behind the gold contact tabs.
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Was the lens purchased new?
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Did the lens come from a reputable source?
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For how long did the lens perform before this problem arose?
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Is there any chance the lens was exposed to water or dense steam?
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It has to be the lens, based on your personal tests. But it's a problem I have never encountered before. It's possible to fool a camera into using certain lenses by placing tape over one of the contacts. Unless you have owned this lens from new, check that there's no tape over the contacts (assuming someone else wasn't using it without your knowledge. So a hard reset now results in no image at all, whereas a partial turn of the lens (while attached to the camera) gave you an image. This still sounds like an issue with the contacts. Possibly an alignment issue. And since you found this happened on two different cameras, it's certainly the lens that is the problem.
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This must be driving you nuts.
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alan brown wrote:

Marco Nero wrote:

alan brown wrote:

Well, I reset the camera but it still doesn't work with the 11-22mm. In fact, now I can't get an image at all when I start to take the lens off.

This type of lens has a set of flat gold-plated tabs instead of pins. So there's no moving parts on the connections. I'd suggest that one of the following is true: Either the connectors on the camera aren't making contact with this lens... or there's a dry-solder (or broken connection) inside the lens, behind the gold contact tabs.
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Was the lens purchased new?
.
Did the lens come from a reputable source?
.
For how long did the lens perform before this problem arose?
.
Is there any chance the lens was exposed to water or dense steam?
.

It has to be the lens, based on your personal tests. But it's a problem I have never encountered before. It's possible to fool a camera into using certain lenses by placing tape over one of the contacts. Unless you have owned this lens from new, check that there's no tape over the contacts (assuming someone else wasn't using it without your knowledge. So a hard reset now results in no image at all, whereas a partial turn of the lens (while attached to the camera) gave you an image. This still sounds like an issue with the contacts. Possibly an alignment issue. And since you found this happened on two different cameras, it's certainly the lens that is the problem.
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This must be driving you nuts.
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Yup, driving me nuts. Lens has been very well taken care of. It has never seen rain or moisture. Almost mint. I'm sure you are correct that the contacts on the lens are the issue. Or perhaps I should say just on the other side of the contacts. I have run out of things to try...

Thanks again for all the help. What's Canon's number?:-(

This is how the Nikon 1 lens problems started.