Err 01 Communication between the lens and camera is faulty between Canon M50 and EFM-18-150mm

[Steven_Jus]

Hi All,

I have the Canon EF-M 18-150mm lens for 9 months. It was working perfectly until this morning when I tried to take a photo of my walk. The error is "Err 01 Communication between the lens and camera is faulty". I tried removing the lens from my M50 and remounting it. The error went away but came back shortly after taking a few shots.

The camera is unable to use autofocus and the shutter button doesn't respond after I encounter this error. Anybody encountered it before. Any idea is it a simple to resolve issue or do I need to send it for repair? Thanks.

 

[mcsk]

Try cleaning the contacts - a swab or cloth with a bit of alcohol would be best. If that doesn't fix it, it may be an electronics failure in the lens.

 

[Steven_Jus]

Okay thanks. I did more testing. I was having the same error when i switched on the camera with EF-M 18-150mm after reaching home. I unmounted the Canon EF-M 18-150mm lens from the camera body and used a blower to blow the contact point between the camera body and lens. To ensure that it is not the camera body problem, i mounted my EF-M 11-22mm lens to the M50 body and took a couple of shots with no issues.

I proceeded to unmount the EF-M 11-22mm lens and mounted back the EF-M 18-150mm. The camera is now working fine now and I tested that it work in Auto, Manual, AV, TV mode. I can perform auto focus, manual focus, change the aperture now.

Maybe a lose connection between the connection pins of the lens and camera body as a result of screwing in an CPL filter into the lens in the morning? This is the first time I add a CPL filter to the 18-150mm lens.

 

[mcsk]

That typically shouldn't cause a problem, but it could if there's a bit of play in the mount. Though I would have expected the first remount to fix it if that was the case. Typically my first thought for intermittent communication issues would be a bit of dirt or oil. (Even a tiny, invisible bit of skin oil from touching it can disrupt the electrical connection if it's in the wrong place - that's why I'd wipe it with alcohol if unmounting/remounting didn't do the trick.) Intermittent issues that come back after cleaning may indicate something like a flex cable in the lens beginning to fail. Especially if it pops up seemingly at random and not immediately after you mounted the lens.

 

[Steven_Jus]

That typically shouldn't cause a problem, but it could if there's a bit of play in the mount. Though I would have expected the first remount to fix it if that was the case. Typically my first thought for intermittent communication issues would be a bit of dirt or oil. (Even a tiny, invisible bit of skin oil from touching it can disrupt the electrical connection if it's in the wrong place - that's why I'd wipe it with alcohol if unmounting/remounting didn't do the trick.) Intermittent issues that come back after cleaning may indicate something like a flex cable in the lens beginning to fail. Especially if it pops up seemingly at random and not immediately after you mounted the lens.

Noted. I also find it weird, and hopefully the problem is really a case of lose connection and not failure of internal ribbon or flex cable. The first remount was done outdoor quickly as i feared of dropping the lens into the river beside me.

Is there any specified type of Alcohol to use for cleaning?

I will observe it this few day. If necessary I will bring it down to the service center far away from my area to have a check.

 

[mcsk]

For stuff like this I just use normal isopropyl rubbing alcohol that you'd get at a pharmacy. Higher % is better, but as long as it doesn't have any additives like hand sanitizer that would leave a residue it's fine. You can get the super pure stuff that's marketed for cleaning electronics, but for this application it doesn't really matter.

 

[Dareshooter]

Okay thanks. I did more testing. I was having the same error when i switched on the camera with EF-M 18-150mm after reaching home. I unmounted the Canon EF-M 18-150mm lens from the camera body and used a blower to blow the contact point between the camera body and lens. To ensure that it is not the camera body problem, i mounted my EF-M 11-22mm lens to the M50 body and took a couple of shots with no issues.

I proceeded to unmount the EF-M 11-22mm lens and mounted back the EF-M 18-150mm. The camera is now working fine now and I tested that it work in Auto, Manual, AV, TV mode. I can perform auto focus, manual focus, change the aperture now.

Maybe a lose connection between the connection pins of the lens and camera body as a result of screwing in an CPL filter into the lens in the morning? This is the first time I add a CPL filter to the 18-150mm lens.

Good the hear that all is well though I doubt if the CPL had any bearing on the issue. FWIW I once had a little blip after mounting one of my lenses,can't recall which one. Unmounted it , then remounted haven't had any issue since so I'm guessing that I hadn't clicked the lens all the way home.

 

[Steven_Jus]

Hi, I tried again this morning. Out of the 100shots I took, I saw that this error appears twice especially at 50mm focal length. Hence, I tried to take more photo with the 18-150mm at the focal length of 50mm but is not able to replicate the error. Seems like the problem is still there?

 

[Dareshooter]

That's not good,sorry hear that the problem has intermittently returned.

 

[mcsk]

If the problem is returning, especially seemingly at random and not correlated to something like mounting the lens, then is unfortunately probably a problem with the lens itself. Happening at or around a certain focal length could just be coincidence, or could indicate a cable or connection in a stressed position at that focal length, interrupting communication. Either way, it will likely need to be repaired.

 

[YehudaKatz]

Hi All,

I have the Canon EF-M 18-150mm lens for 9 months. It was working perfectly until this morning when I tried to take a photo of my walk. The error is "Err 01 Communication between the lens and camera is faulty". I tried removing the lens from my M50 and remounting it. The error went away but came back shortly after taking a few shots.

The camera is unable to use autofocus and the shutter button doesn't respond after I encounter this error. Anybody encountered it before. Any idea is it a simple to resolve issue or do I need to send it for repair? Thanks.