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Posts Tagged ‘Third’

Photographer David Burnett on shooting his third impeachment: ‘I felt that historic pang’

16 Nov
© 2019 David Burnett/Contact Press Images

It’s not every day that you see someone using a 4 x 5 film camera on TV, and certainly not during the coverage of one of this years’ most-watched events: the opening on Wednesday of the public phase of the house impeachment enquiry into President Donald Trump. But as diplomat William Taylor and State Department official George Kent took their seats, our eye was caught by one figure among the crowd of photographers jostling for a shot, and his camera.

After some quick Twitter research, we identified him as David Burnett, multi award-winning photographer, and veteran of three impeachment hearings. His camera? A custom-made ‘Aero Liberator’. We caught up with David on his drive back to New York after the hearings to learn more about his work, his approach to photography, and that camera.

The following interview has been lightly edited for clarity and flow.

When did you start shooting large format film?

I’ve been shooting with my Speed Graphic for 15, 16 years. I started in 2003-4 doing politics, then I did the Olympics, and some presidential stuff – John Kerry and George Bush. I won a bunch of World Press Photo prizes in 2004-5, ‘Best Sports Story’ with the pictures taken with my Speed Graphic. Along the way I met this guy called John Minnicks, who I happily describe as a mad scientist, who takes a camera and then makes it into something else. John made me this camera, which he calls the ‘Aero Liberator’.

He figured out a way to make it using a Graflex Super D, which is a sweet little camera, and just such a beautiful little thing. So he puts the Aero Ektar lens on it. I’m sort of responsible for the re-birth of that lens in the past 15 years, because for my Speed Graphic, I was getting tired of shooting slow lenses. So I looked around, and I found this F2.5 lens, from a WWII reconnaissance camera.

There must be easier ways of working, as a photojournalist….

If you’re shooting with film holders, you have created for yourself a major impediment. Nobody did that to you, you did it to yourself. And in a way, you could say to yourself ‘well that was kind of a dumb move, why can’t you just shoot cool digital cameras like everybody else?’ And I’ve got Sony a7s and a9s and I love those cameras. But one frame, having the wherewithal and the guts to slow down and figure out when that one frame is supposed to be shot, that’s the real deal.

WW1 re-enactors at the 2019 Veteran’s Day Parade, New York City.
© 2019 David Burnett/Contact Press Images

So the other day, I walked up and down 5th Avenue during the Veterans Day parade, I shot 18 frames. I’ve been shooting this stuff for 15 years now. You could ask why would you tie one hand behind your back by working like that? When you force yourself to step up to that challenge, and you get a picture – and you don’t always get a picture! I may not have anything from today, in which case my so-called ‘heroic’ actions will have been for naught! But it’s worth a try.

I’ve been doing this a long time, and I love being fired up enough to still want to do something a little different, and a little challenging.

Did you know that you were featured in the live stream from the hearing?

I had no idea that I was on-camera. We’d all just gotten into the room to figure out where we were going to be. I was just standing there with my camera, and I’d brought along my little Sony a6500, which today I was using with an old 1940s Kodak Cine lens, a 50mm F1.6 Anastigmat. It’s very fun! It rekindles the fun, and makes it challenging.

David Burnett at the opening of the house impeachment hearings on Tuesday November 12th, with his custom ‘Aero Liberator’ 4 x 5 film camera. (NBC News)

Your first color assignment was covering Apollo 11, and that was 50 years ago…

I know, that was a long time ago!

What keeps you doing it?

I don’t know if you’ve seen the wonderful movie that Stephen Wilkes did about Jay Maisel? It’s called ‘Jay, Myself’. There’s a wonderful moment in there when Jay says ‘I love photographs, but I really love photographing’. You have to decide which is your dominant personal motivation. And watching the movie I was thinking ‘well, I know which one I would choose – I wonder if I chose the right one?’

There are many times when you don’t get the picture, but the act of being there and trying to get it is not a bad thing.

I love photographing. I’d prefer to be paid for it, but there are times when it’s pretty clear I’m not going to be paid for it and if I want to go shoot something, I’ll go shoot it. There are many times when you don’t get the picture that you want, but the act of being there and trying to get it is not a bad thing. Just be happy to share and discover.

Were you on assignment today?

No, that was just me. I was at the Nixon hearings, and Clinton, and I felt that historic pang.

So this is your third impeachment?

I will be my third, yeah! But it’s not really about politics for me. I’ve been going to the white house for 52 years. The only thing I care about is how I feel when I walk through the North West gate. It’s always special. I’ve been there for Nixon, Johnson, both Bushes – everybody. For me it’s about the institution, and how it still works. That’s the cool thing. That’s really what draws me to politics. Eventually you’ll find yourself in a place where for 200 years people have been doing the same thing.

It’s a great tradition to be able to walk into that place with a camera and try not to get to beat by everyone around you. And that happens a lot! Turns out there are a lot of really great photographers, men and women, that work there.

President Lyndon B. Johnson at a joint session.
© 2019 David Burnett/Contact Press Images

Watching you in the footage today, I’m interested to know about your process.

With this camera, it’s a mirror reflex so you look down into it from overhead. I kind of eyeball it, roughly, then I’m just looking at Ambassador Taylor to see if I can identify a moment which might be more interesting than half a second ago, or half a second from now. A thing like this, where you don’t have long, and then you have to back away, I try to get my focus where I think he’s going to be, but I don’t always shoot right away. You’ve got one shot, and by the time you’re ready for the next one that’s maybe 20 or 30 seconds. I can do it pretty quickly, I’m not bad with it, but there’s a lot to do on those cameras.

The ‘Speed‘ Graphic? I mean – compared to what? Well, compared to what came before it, it was pretty good.

Natalie Coughlin, Olympic Gold Medalist.
© 2019 David Burnett/Contact Press Images

What kind of reaction does the old film equipment get?

When you bring out a camera like that, people tend to give you a second of hesitation, before they say ‘no’. It puts you in a slightly different place as a photographer, as a journalist and an artist. Compared to if you were showing up with the usual three or four digital cameras and all that stuff. ‘OK, this is a little different’. And it’s much appreciated, by me. As long as you don’t drop it, or do something stupid, it definitely gives you a little bit of an edge.

I was the only guy at the Olympics to get a letter saying ‘he’s authorized to carry a tripod’.

It’s hilarious – I used to carry my Speed Graphic around at the Olympics. I was the only guy at the last three Olympics to get a letter from the Olympics chief saying ‘he’s authorized to carry a tripod’. It’s been great, I made a few really good pictures, and maybe you could have made the same picture with a digital camera, but when you see all the flaws that can happen [with large format film] it has more of an honesty about it. There are 100 things that could go wrong, and any one of them can really screw you up.

If it turns out that you didn’t get any shots from today, how would you feel?

Well, I looked at my digital pictures already, and honestly, I’m going to look at the papers tonight and tomorrow and see who made a great picture. There was some real talent in that room. I mean real talent. Doug Mills, Damon Winter – those guys, it’s hard to do better than either of them. Scott Applewhite from AP was there, there were some really good people in the room.

So if I don’t get anything, I won’t feel like a total schmo but I’ll be a little disappointed. But I made a couple of good pictures at the veterans parade on Monday and that kicked me in the ass to decide to go give it a try.

How long before you’ll know?

Well it’s Wednesday night now, so maybe Friday afternoon if I’m lucky. I’ll let you know!

Visit David Burnett’s website to see more of his work

Learn more about the Aero Liberator by John Minnicks

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Adobe informs users that using old versions of CC apps could lead to lawsuits from third parties

15 May

Last week, Adobe informed Creative Cloud subscribers that programs older than the two most recent version releases would no longer be available to download. Now, Adobe has sent out an email warning subscribers that continuing to use older software could put them at risk of getting sued by third parties.

Below is a transcription of the text sent to a number of Creative Cloud subscribers:

Dear Valued Creative Cloud Customer,

We have an update to share with you regarding Creative Cloud version download availability. For customers who have not yet updated to the latest version of Creative Cloud, please note that you are no longer licensed to use certain older versions of the applications or deploy packages containing these older versions. We ask that your organization discontinues all usage of the unauthorized products listed in the table below, and instead update to the authorized versions provided. You will continue to receive all the value that Creative Cloud has to offer, but with more advanced features, capabilities and security. Please be aware that if you continue to use or deploy the older, unauthorized versions of Creative Cloud, you will not have third-party claim coverage pursuant to your contract with Adobe. Should you continue to use or deploy these unauthorized versions, you may be at risk of potential claims of infringement by third parties.

Here’s what to do next:

• If your users have self-service access to Creative Cloud via the CC Desktop App, you should encourage them to upgrade their software.
• If you package and deploy products to your users, then you should go to the Adobe Admin Console and create new packages from the versions available
• If you are still licensing with a serial number, you should continue to create packages using Creative Cloud Packager
• Finally, we advise that you un-install unauthorized versions and delete pre-existing packages to prevent future accidental deployments.

Adobe’s Customer Support organization is available to answer any questions about upgrading your Creative Cloud software. Please contact them directly should you have any questions. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause and thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Sincerely,
The Adobe Team

Below is a list of the unauthorized versions of software addressed in the message:

Photoshop: CC 18.1.6 and prior, CC 17, CC 16, CC 15, CC 14, 13
InDesign: CC 9, 8
Premiere Pro: CC 11, CC 10, CC 9, CC 8, CC 7, 6
Media Encoder: CC 11, CC 10, CC 9, CC 8, CC 7, 6
After Effects: CC 14, CC 13, CC 12, CC 11
Animate: CC 16, CC 15, CC 14, CC 13, 12
Audition: CC 6, CC 5, CC 4
Lightroom Classic: CC 6, CC 5, CC 4
Bridge: CC 7, CC 6
Prelude: CC 6, CC 5, CC4, CC 3, CC 2, 1
SpeedGrade (has been discontinued): CC 9, CC 8, CC 7, 6
Captivate: Captivate 2017 (10.0.0)

Based on the information provided in the email, as well as previous complaints filed by third parties, it sounds as though the licensing agreement Adobe had for technologies inside select Creative Cloud programs has run out with whatever entities it was licensing it from.

It’s unknown at this time what specific technologies were licensed and who they were licensed from, but as Apple Insider has noted, Dolby may very well be one of the companies, as it sued Adobe last year for copyright infringement. Specifically, Dolby’s complaint claimed Adobe was under-reporting how many Creative Cloud subscribers it had, which affected revenue from the licensing fee it negotiated and agreed upon with Adobe for its audio encoders and other software technologies.

DPReview contacted Adobe for comment on the message that was sent out as well as more details on the matter and below is the response we received:

Adobe recently discontinued certain older versions of Creative Cloud applications. Customers using those versions have been notified that they are no longer licensed to use them and were provided guidance on how to upgrade to the latest authorized versions. Unfortunately, customers who continue to use or deploy older, unauthorized versions of Creative Cloud may face potential claims of infringement by third parties.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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GoPro licensing deal will let third parties use the company’s camera tech

24 Mar
Photo by Dose Media

GoPro has announced a new deal with manufacturing services company Jabil. The multi-year agreement, officially announced Thursday, will involve GoPro licensing its intellectual property and reference design to Jabil, which will use it to incorporate GoPro sensor modules and camera lenses into third-party products.

According to the GoPro announcement, the company will reserve approval over any third-party services and products in which its technology is used. The agreement includes an equipment license, ultimately covering “a range of products and services each company offers,” among them being “certain digital imaging and consumer products,” says GoPro.

This isn’t the first time Jabil and GoPro have worked together. Jabil Optics’ vice president Irv Stein calls this new deal “a natural extension” of the companies’ involvement with each other, explaining that the GoPro tech will likely be used in “enterprise” segment:

This agreement is a natural extension of our long-standing relationship with GoPro and our commitment to developing innovative technologies. Early market feedback indicates strong demand in the enterprise action camera segment for applications in smart homes, military, fire, police, rescue, and security.

Additional details about the agreement, including financial numbers, weren’t disclosed. However, the expanded partnership comes at a time when GoPro faces ongoing financial troubles that have resulted in multiple layoffs over past months. Licensing its goods may help GoPro survive its turbulent action camera sales.

Press Release

GoPro and Jabil Announce Global Technology and Equipment License

San Mateo, CA and St. Petersburg, FL, March 22, 2018 – GoPro, Inc. and Jabil Inc. today announced a global, multi-year technology and equipment license. With this agreement, Jabil will leverage GoPro’s cutting-edge reference design and IP to produce camera lens and sensor modules for incorporation into GoPro-approved third-party products and solutions. This agreement builds on GoPro and Jabil’s longstanding relationship.

“This collaborative approach with Jabil will enable innovative, GoPro enabled products and services from some of the most exciting hardware and software companies out there,” said Sandor Barna, GoPro’s chief technology officer. “Imagine a world where video conferencing, robotics, and even self-driving cars are powered by GoPro’s camera lenses and image sensors. Together, GoPro and Jabil can make this a reality.”

This agreement covers a range of products and services each company offers, including certain digital imaging and consumer products. GoPro and Jabil have a history of collaborating to bring high-quality, cutting-edge products to consumers, including GoPro’s line of HERO cameras, starting with HERO4.

“This agreement is a natural extension of our long-standing relationship with GoPro and our commitment to developing innovative technologies,” said Irv Stein, Jabil’s vice president of Jabil Optics. “Early market feedback indicates strong demand in the enterprise action camera segment for applications in smart homes, military, fire, police, rescue, and security.”

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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The Galaxy S9 Plus’ camera is its third most expensive component

20 Mar

Last week the team at iFixit undertook a teardown of the brand new Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus to examine and evaluate the device’s repairability. Now analysts TechInsights have done the same thing, but with a focus on components and costs.

When taking the device apart the team found Samsung’s Fast 2L3 third-generation 12MP, 1.4 µm pixel-pitch Dual Pixel ISOCELL sensor in the main camera and a 12MP, 1.0 µm pixel-pitch Samsung S5K3M3SM in the tele-camera, the same as in the Galaxy Note 8 dual-camera module.

TechInsights also provides cost estimates for all components and at $ 48 the Samsung’s camera setup is the third largest cost block on the device. Only the display at $ 72.50 and the main chipset at $ 68 have a higher impact on the overall figure. Final assembly and testing is estimated as $ 12.50, and the overall manufacturing cost of the device is $ 379.

Given in the US the S9 Plus currently retails at $ 840 unlocked, this should leave a decent margin for covering overheads and, crucially, making a profit. For more technical details and up-close images of most components have a look at the full report on TechInsights.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Sony still third globally but bullish about 2017 prospects

27 May
High value models such as the a7R II have boosted Sony’s income, despite falling unit sales.

Sony is the world’s leading mirrorless camera brand but remains third for ILCs overall, it said in a presentation to investors.

The company says the move to higher value products allowed Digital Imaging’s operating income to maintain essentially flat, despite declining sales. It attributes these declines to a combination of a shrinking market and missed sales opportunities due to the Kumamoto earthquakes. Also counting against its 2016 numbers were adverse foreign exchange movements. The figures also looked bad compared with 2015, as the group had received a one-off insurance payment that year, following flooding in Thailand.

The company suggested its 2014 strategy of strengthening its ILC and lens ranges is bearing fruit. It also predicts a compound annual growth rate of 27% in sales of ILC bodies and a similar figure in lenses, for 2017. It says it expects the group as a whole (which includes broadcast and medical businesses) to see sales grow by around 10% and its operating income to rise by 12.7%. Part of this will be driven by the move to higher margin products and some by the ability to respond to pent-up demand, following the Kumamoto earthquakes.

The company says it currently has 14% of the ILC and lens markets, putting it in 3rd place, globally (the recent press release about being 2nd in the US market is as much to do with bouncing back after Kumamoto and second-placed Nikon not having released any high-end cameras recently, as anything else). It also says it has 23% of the compact market, putting it in 2nd place or 1st if you only consider the more valuable large sensor and long-zoom compacts.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Meyer Optik launches Kickstarter campaign to fund third Trioplan lens – the 35+

10 Mar

German lens manufacturer Meyer Optik Gorlitz intends to produce the ‘last chapter’ of its ‘Trioplan Trilogy’ if it gets enough funding from its latest Kickstarter campaign to build the Trioplan 35+. The new lens will sit alongside the company’s 100mm F2.8 and 50mm F2.9 Trioplan ‘Soap Bubble’ lenses and will have a maximum aperture of F2.8.

As with the 100mm and 50mm models, the 35mm lens will be based on a historic optical design but will use modern coated glass from Schott and Ohara. This time though, the construction will shift away from the traditional three-elements-in-three-groups of the standard Cooke triplet and will have an additional pair of elements at the front to adapt the design for full frame sensors. The original Trioplan 1.8in lens this one is based on was designed for 8mm film and was telephoto for the format, according to the company, so some changes had to be made to alter it to be a moderate wide for 35mm-style sensors. The extra two elements account for the + in the 35+ name.

The new lens will focus to 0.3m and its 12-bladed iris will provide a minimum aperture of F22. Meyer says it intends to make the lens in a range of mounts:

  • Canon EF
  • Nikon F
  • Sony E
  • FujiX
  • Micro Four Thirds
  • M42
  • Pentax-K
  • Leica M (rangefinder not supported/focusing via live view)
  • Leica L , suitable for SL & T mirrorless cameras (strictly manual, rangefinder not supported/focusing via live view) 

The ‘soap bubble’ name comes from a characteristic of the design that renders out-of-focus highlights in dramatic style when the lens is used wide open.
At the time of writing the campaign had already passed its goal three times over, but lenses could still be ordered for $ 649 against an expected full retail price of $ 1599. For more information visit the Meyer Optik Gorlitz website or the company’s Kickstarter page.

Technical data:
Focal length: 35 mm
Aperture: 1:2,8, – 1:22
Angle: +/- 31,5°
Focussing Distance: Infinity to 0,3 m
Clip on diameter: 41 mm
Filter Diameter: M 39 x 0,75
Size: Ø 61,5 mm x 50 mm
Weight: ca. 220g
Aperture blades: 12

Manufacturer’s information:

The Trioplan 35mm is now on Kickstarter

Our new Kickstarter just launched and the mystery lens that you´ve been waiting for is the Trioplan 35mm f2.8, or as we´ve dubbed it, the Trioplan 35+.

The Trioplan 35+ is the final piece of our Trioplan Trilogy, which includes the Trioplan 100mm f2.8 and the 50mm f2.9.

Kickstarter backers will be the first in line to get this incredible addition to the Meyer-Optik lineup of hand-crafted, manual focus art lenses. The Trioplan 35+ is expected to be available at the retail price of $ 1,599 later this year but Kickstarter backers can secure the lens for a much lower investment. What backers will get is a groundbreaking lens.

Previously, it was thought too difficult to achieve the soap bubble effect in a wide angle lens. But Meyer-Optik engineers designed the new lens according to the historic Cook Triplet design but added two elements to boost the lens. The extra two lens elements is why Meyer-Optik decided to add the “+” to the name of the lens.

The Trioplan 35+ will be unrivaled in its ability to capture the spirit and emotion of the moment. Photography is not just about squeezing the most pixels into a square inch – it´s about creating art.

The Trioplan 35+ is a full-frame lens and will be available in all major mounts. Early backers will profit from a Super Early Bird pricing.

Don´t miss your chance to be one of the first in line to get this new Trioplan lens, which will join the Trioplan 100mm f2.8 and Trioplan 50mm f2.9 in the Meyer-Optik lineup of premier, hand-crafted art lenses. Of course Kickstarter backers will benefit from a groundbreaking price.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Canon granted third most US patents in 2016

17 Jan

Apple, Google and Intel are considered some of the world’s most innovative companies, but you might be surprised to learn that in 2016 camera maker Canon was granted more United States patents than all those technology giants. With a total of 3,665 patents, Canon placed itself third on the annual IFI Claims ranking, just behind IBM and Samsung. Google, Intel, LG, and Microsoft occupied positions five through eight and, with just over 2,000 patents Apple is 11th. Ricoh ranked 21st and Fujifilm 48th.

‘The first critical element towards developing remarkable solutions that move the needle for consumers and business industries alike is research and development,” said Seymour Liebman, executive vice president, chief administrative officer and general counsel, Canon U.S.A. Inc. “This strong showing of patents granted year after year allow us to build intelligent products and solutions for the future, turning great ideas into reality.’

2016 is also the the 31st consecutive year that Canon is among the top five U.S. patent holders and for the 12th year in a row it is ranking first among Japanese companies for U.S. patents granted. The Canon patents likely include technologies from the company’s printing, medical and other non-camera divisions but those are still impressive numbers, showing that the Japanese company remains one of the drivers of innovation in the industry.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Magnum signed square print sale returns for third year

08 Jun

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Signed or estate stamped prints for $ 100 from over 60 Magnum photographers and artists will be available for a limited time, from 9am EST on Monday 6 June until 11pm Friday 10 June 2016, here: shop.magnumphotos.com

Magnum’s Square Print sale is back, offering up museum-quality signed prints for just $ 100 each. Upwards of 70 prints are on sale from photographers like Martin Parr, Alex Webb, Rene Burri, Eve Arnold, Tim Heatherington and many more. Each photographer contributed an image that plays on a theme of ‘The More or Less Decisive Moment(s)’. 

The 6×6″ prints are available for five days only, starting now through 11pm ET on Friday, June 10 at shop.magnumphotos.com.

Press release:

THE MAGNUM SQUARE PRINT SALE, June 6 – 10, 2016 THE (MORE OR LESS) DECISIVE MOMENTS

Signed and estate stamped, museum quality, 6×6” prints for $ 100. For 5 days only.

Magnum Photos co-founder Henri Cartier-Bresson is synonymous with the idea of ‘the decisive moment’, a critical idea in the theory and history of photography. In this Square Print Project the agency looks back at the impact and legacy of Cartier-Bresson, his influence on contemporary photography and the ways in which the decisive moment is manifest in the work of Magnum photographers today.

For five days only, prints by Magnum photographers which respond to the meaning of the decisive moment, will be available to buy as signed, museum quality, 6×6” square prints, exceptionally priced at just $ 100. Including both classic and contemporary photography, over 60 works by Martin Parr, Alex Webb, René Burri, Elliott Erwitt, Tim Hetherington, Newsha Tavakolian, Peter van Agtmael, Eve Arnold and many more Magnum photographers will be available for a limited time only.

ABOUT THE DECISIVE MOMENT

The notion of the decisive moment was coined by Cartier-Bresson’s English language publisher Simon & Schuster in 1952, translating the French title of the book, Images à la Sauvette. Cartier-Bresson annotated Martin Parr’s personal copy to read ‘The More or Less Decisive Moment(s)’, hinting at the plurality and ambiguity of its meaning.

Every photographer within Magnum Photos has been invited to select an image from their archive and to reflect upon how the photographic concept of the decisive moment influences their practice. Accompanied by personal written responses, these images and texts create a collective portrait of the critical thinking that defines the agency.

The works included in the Square Print sale are intended to spark debate around the meaning of the decisive moment. What goes through a photographer’s mind when capturing a shot? What are the moral or ethical implications in the quest to find the decisive moment? What part does the unconscious play? Is the realisation of a decisive moment always in the present, or can that come later? Is there even such a thing as the decisive moment?

The Magnum Square Print Sale will take place at the Magnum Photos Online Shop: shop.magnumphotos.com.

It will be open from Monday, June 6th, 2016, at 9AM EST until Friday, June 10th, 2016, at 6PM EST.

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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ZEISS announces Otus 1.4/28, third lens for Otus series

14 Oct

German optical manufacturer Zeiss has announced it is to introduce a wide angle to its Otus family of lenses designed for full frame SLR cameras. The Zeiss Otus 1.4/28 is a 28mm lens with a maximum aperture of f/1.4, and will be available with ZE and ZF.2 mounts for Canon EOS and Nikon F cameras. Read more

Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)

 
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Discussion – Camera Firmware Update Causes Third Party Batteries to Fail

04 Aug

Recently we ran an article on – Updating your Camera’s Firmware – What is it and Why it’s Important. Funny thing is, I had never updated mine on any camera up to that point. As I edited and read the article I figured, yeah I guess I should do that. So I went ahead and updated the firmware on my Canon 5D Mark III.

Battery Failure

What happened is that my Canon batteries continued to work just fine. I went away to Oregon for 3.5 weeks and took three batteries with me – should be plenty right? Wrong! One ran down so I went to switch and got an error message on the screen that looks like this (excuse the iPhone photo, it’s hard to take a photo OF your camera).

battery-error

Okay so now what? I was afraid to just choose “OK” not knowing if doing so would then somehow damage my camera. I wasn’t prepared to take that risk. So I chose “Cancel” which basically caused the battery to be ignored and therefore the camera to have no power.

LP-E6 battery alternative

So I was left with one other third party battery, and one Canon battery for my trip. I hadn’t tested them before I left home (I use them all the time but lesson learned, don’t do what I did – test all gear before you go away anywhere) and apparently the Canon battery is completely dead. Not even the charger recognizes it. Nothing – nada – el zippo!

I had one battery left for the duration of my trip, one off-market one that didn’t produce the error. Luckily I have a handy charger that is portable (can charge batteries without being plugged in long as you charge it up first) and we weren’t out and about for long enough for me to fully drain it on any given day.

Cause and points for discussion

I did some digging on the internet and found that this is a common issue and that Canon has built that into the firmware update – aha! I knew the cause now – but what is the logic here? Apparently Canon wants you to only use their batteries and limit or eliminate the off-market ones.

It raises these questions for discussion

So tell me – what do you think about this?  Have you been affected by this firmware update too? I’m personally not crazy about being forced to use a given product, or the fact it killed my existing battery. Or did it really? What if I choose “OK” and it’s just fine but Canon just wants to freak me out, to which end they succeeded!

Why would one off-market brand get singled out and not work, when the other did just fine? Did the firmware update somehow affect my Canon battery too? It was fine last time I used it. Makes me wonder.

Do you use third party batteries? If you don’t, do you even care one way or the other?

But also let’s think about this, where does it end? What about filters, lenses, flashes? Will that mean that soon we may not be able to buy a Sigma or Tamron lens to fit? Or use a Hoya filter or a Metz flash?

How do you feel about this new policy? Tell me in the comments below. Let’s talk about this!

 

Disclaimer: this site does not advocate the use of third party of off-market batteries or products, do so at your own risk. 

The post Discussion – Camera Firmware Update Causes Third Party Batteries to Fail by Darlene Hildebrandt appeared first on Digital Photography School.


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