How to Disable Red LED on 5D Mark II - HELP!

[Rubio]

No text

 

[Andre Affleck]

You obviously have to send it in, but if you are curious about the source, I would first eliminate the LED indicator by shooting an exposure in a pure dark environment like in a black bag, laying in a dark closet at night. If you are getting a red streak it must be from the LED.

If not then, use a strong but localized light source like a white LED flashlight and hunt for the light leak. Even if the LED indicator is off during exposure, the small red plastic lens could be letting red light in. Point your flashlight at the red indicator during an exposure. Then at various other locations like sides of the lens, body, dials, CF door etc.

It is interesting that the other poster said he gets the same thing with both 5D and 5DMII, but only with the 24-105. That's why a strong light source directed at the barrel seams may uncover an unsuspecting light path.

What about an exposure with no lens, but with the bayonet dust cap on?

 

[agavephoto]

i have taken numerous shots with no lens and the viewfinder cap on as part of my astrophotography dark frame sets . . . and i never get a red streaks like that. an hour long shot with the 5D2 and the 24-105L at 35mm did not show a red streak.

 

[BusyBeingBorn]

Is it the same with different types of lenses?

When I see your example its shape makes me think "Lens Flare", but it must be of an unusual kind (reflection of something in the camera back onto the sensor) since it appears with lens cap on.

--
'He not busy being born, is busy dying' Bob Dylan

 

[BusyBeingBorn]

Maybe it would be worthwhile to cover the lensbarrel with a dark cloth, to see if the leak is in the lens (It could be a small hole leaking light onto one of the elements)?

Is it the same with different types of lenses?

When I see your example its shape makes me think "Lens Flare", but it
must be of an unusual kind (reflection of something in the camera
back onto the sensor) since it appears with lens cap on.

--
'He not busy being born, is busy dying' Bob Dylan

--
'He not busy being born, is busy dying' Bob Dylan

 

[agavephoto]

The OP may comment about his findings, but I only see this flare with my 24-105 set at 24mm on either my 5D or 5D2. The 24-105 does not show this flare at any other focal lengths under the same conditions (same imaging night(s). None of the following lenses I have tried show this flare ever: 17-40, 70-200 f/4 (non IS), 100 macro, 8mm peleng, sigma 50 1.4, and various telescopes.

 

[BusyBeingBorn]

Thanks - I suspect there is a small hole/ (or 'transparent' part) in the lens, which leaks light. The shape suggests some kind of flare.

The flare is asymmetrical, only in the left side of the image, I guess it could suggest the leak is near one of the switches on the left side of the lens (but that is only a wild guess).

--
'He not busy being born, is busy dying' Bob Dylan

 

[agavephoto]

I am at first skeptical of a light leak there, since there were no red lights around my camera (while there sometimes are red lights around due to my red flashlights, I have yet to see any images affected by this) . . . but more importantly: this flare shows up identically placed, even when I have tested with strict control of any lights . . . that is, I have tested my lens in an area where I can guarantee no lights of any type and I still get the same flare.

 

[Matthew Field]

to be the focus confirmation LED?

After all that one is inside the body somewhere near the focusing screen. Maybe that LED is badly seated and/or coming on when it isn't supposed to. I don't even know where its located, but it seems a more likely candidate than the rear facing one on the back?

Matt

 

[orbitalpunk]

ball sack!

 

[BillCat]

I just tried 14mins f/4 and 34mins f/8 and don't have a problem. 5D2 and 35 2.0 ISO 100. It could be that it is too bright in the big city to see any red LEDs. This is in my backyard. Long exp. noise reduction on. I tried playing with levels in Lightroom and didn't see anything red forming. I'm planning a trip to the Arizona desert and would like to have the camera working well, but I don't usually take 30 min exposures. That's one hour a picture with that dark frame subtraction.





--
-Bill

 

[agavephoto]

From my experience, this would imply that the focus confirmation light is coming on when it should never, ever, be on: during and exposure, and when autofocus is off, AND ONLY at one lens setting on one lens, and that this error were somehow happening in the exact same fashion on two cameras designed years apart . . . I don't see this as the likely culprit. I could always be wrong, but for my money, this isn't the issue.

 

[rrcphoto]

From my experience, this would imply that the focus confirmation
light is coming on when it should never, ever, be on: during and
exposure, and when autofocus is off, AND ONLY at one lens setting on
one lens, and that this error were somehow happening in the exact
same fashion on two cameras designed years apart . . . I don't see
this as the likely culprit. I could always be wrong, but for my
money, this isn't the issue.

I'd say this is a houston we have a problem with the camera issue.

what you may want to try is a few things.

take a long exposure inside with the lens cap on

try to cover the viewfinder with the cappy thingy that is on the strap. does it still occur?

take the #$( &#$ lens off the camera, put on the camera body cap and try again .. does it still occur?

if it occurs in all three cases, then I would assume that something is missing or wrong with the mirror box assembly with your 5DII and sending it into canon or taking it back to the vendor may be the only solution for this.

 

[Scott Larson]

I disagree. When it generates the dark frame all that happens is the
mirror flips back down. That doesnt impact light coming from the
viewfinder or other internal areas within the camera.

It doesn't close the shutter? Why not?

 

[Its RKM]

to be the focus confirmation LED?

After all that one is inside the body somewhere near the focusing
screen.

If it was the focus confirmation LED then you would still be able to see it through the viewfinder, even though the mirror was up. I don't think that's the problem.
--
Its RKM

 

[Its RKM]

an example with the 5D (original) with the 24-105 @ 24mm, 400 second
exposure at ISO 800. the red streak on the left side of the is
image, and is always in the same relative place with the 5D and 5D2
but ONLY when i use the 24-105L at 24mm.

Interesting. I notice that the EXIF data on the OP's example image
was shot under similar conditions:
ISO800
24mm
f/4
902seconds.

Was the OP image shot with a 24-105L4 lens at 24mm?

Strange that this ghost red image should only appear at 24mm though -
does it appear constant at all apertures?

Forgive the bad manners of replying to my own post, but it seemed the most appropriate place to add this update.

I have just confirmed Agavephoto's results with the 24-105L, showing this red bloom at the bottom of the frame with long exposures - only when the lens is at 24mm.

Furthermore, is certainly does change in intensity as the lens is stopped down, suggesting that this is light originating inside the camera or the rear of the lens and reflecting off some part of the lens in front of the iris.

I just ran a series of exposures in a completely dark room with the lens cap on, the viewfinder blocked out and the camera face down to stop the 24-105L from shifting from the 24mm setting. So no chance of any light getting onto the sensor that isn't generated by the camera/lens itself.

ISO800, 15minute exposures, from f/4 to f/22 in one stop intervals, with long exposure noise reduction on. ie. each shot takes half an hour to capture.

At f/4 the average background across the frame is quite dark, and the red flash at the bottom of the frame is very pronounced. As the lens is stopped down the average background becomes more red, and the red flash at the bottom of the frame becomes reduces. It is almost as if the red light is illuminating the iris blades and causing a diffuse red glow across the entire frame, but the light that gets through the iris is creating a sharp reflection. As you stoip the lens down you get less of the sharp reflection and more of the diffuse glow. Weird!

As with Agavephoto, my 24-105L is not one of the recalled batch and should be OK. I have certainly never noticed any flare problems with it, but I have never used it at this focal length for exposures of this length before - in fact, I have never used this lens for long exposures in all the time I have had it, although I have often done so with the 16-35L and the 100-400L without any sign of such issues.

I am now running further tests to establish that the background glow increasing as the lens stops down is repeatable and reproducible. Then I will try to post some examples.
--
Its RKM

 

[Andre Affleck]

So the light is emanating form the camera itself. Can you confirm whether it is the CF LED or not? Does it illuminate when an exposure is being taken? Perhaps they are using optical sensors (infrared) somewhere within the mechanisms for position indicators (similar to old film cameras) and the IR leakage, after reflecting off the back element, begins to register on the sensor after long periods of time.

I just ran a series of exposures in a completely dark room with the
lens cap on, the viewfinder blocked out and the camera face down to
stop the 24-105L from shifting from the 24mm setting. So no chance
of any light getting onto the sensor that isn't generated by the
camera/lens itself.
Its RKM

 

[Andre Affleck]

After reading your post again, it seems that the light is coming from the lens, so perhaps the lens uses infrared proximity sensors to provide position feedback for the IS servo loop.

I just ran a series of exposures in a completely dark room with the
lens cap on, the viewfinder blocked out and the camera face down to
stop the 24-105L from shifting from the 24mm setting. So no chance
of any light getting onto the sensor that isn't generated by the
camera/lens itself.
Its RKM

 

[rrcphoto]

After reading your post again, it seems that the light is coming from
the lens, so perhaps the lens uses infrared proximity sensors to
provide position feedback for the IS servo loop.

hmm.

try turning IS off and AF onto manual and see if it changes.

weird .. perhaps there is a debugging led in the lens itself.

it could still be the camera body though - consider that the rear element on a 24-105 moves as you zoom, it could be at the 24mm position, it's strangely catching IR / visible light from within the camera somewhere and reflecting it off the elements - it would also explain why it changes stopped down.

a gutsy test would be to take some electrical tape and form a "shield" around the rear element viewport and see if the phemonena changes.

 

[BusyBeingBorn]

It could be Infrared or white light shining through a transparent (but maybe opaque to the eye) part.

If you have tested with the lens covered I guess we can rule a leak out there.

It would be really nice to know if the problem is lens type specific.

I am at first skeptical of a light leak there, since there were no
red lights around my camera (while there sometimes are red lights
around due to my red flashlights, I have yet to see any images
affected by this) . . . but more importantly: this flare shows up
identically placed, even when I have tested with strict control of
any lights . . . that is, I have tested my lens in an area where I
can guarantee no lights of any type and I still get the same flare.

--
'He not busy being born, is busy dying' Bob Dylan