Does your 550D overheat?

Daniel Epstein · April 23rd, 2010, 07:00 AM

Has someone tested how long on average the time is from warning of overheating till the camera stops functioning correctly if you try to continue?

Colin Rowe · April 23rd, 2010, 11:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Mastrogiacomo

Has anyone experienced any overheating and shut down with the Canon 550D?

The longest I have run the 550D has been 7 minutes indoors with no problems.

Thanks for any information.

Everyones 7D, 550D will overheat at sometime or another, The average shutdown time is about 5 minutes. For any long shooting sessions you will be much better off with a dedicated camcorder. These DSLRs generate a lot of heat, they are simply not designed for extended shooting. Having said that, I use my 550D as B cam to an EX1, and its a perfect tool for grabbing cutaways and infills. I know a lot of guys use there DSLRs as A cams on day long shoots, and get away with it. But they will overheat at some time. As long as we are aware of that and use the cameras within their limitations, its no problem. Now if only they could address the awful aliasing and moire problems !!!!

John Mastrogiacomo · April 23rd, 2010, 12:53 PM

At NAB, one of the Canon reps told me the cameras generate more heat when they use an external monitor.
He said the CPU has to work harder to push the information out.

Sean Philips · April 23rd, 2010, 01:56 PM

Eric..I had the XHA1 as my wide centre shot (will also keep it 1080 and crop/pan as the final product will only be DVD quality) and an HF100 as a side cutaway shot. I moved around with the T2i to get as many different detail shots as possible. I used a 17-55 and a 50/1.8. I had it on a tripod for front of house shots and then hand-held backstage for more documentary style clips. I also had an assistant with a 5D using an 85 and a 200 for closeup face expressions. (It was a dance production). I have 9 different streams to put together from the 3 performances. It's going to be spectacular, but not really worth what little I am being paid!

I have to say I LOVE the T2i. Its so light that I was able to shoot for almost an hour straight completely hand-held. The image quality with the 50mm prime fully open is stunning. The focus was difficult on the moving subjects, so I used the auto focus (half pressing the shutter release) on the floor at the dancer's feet and then re-framed....that way it focused much faster and more accurately.

As I mentioned, I had no overheating issues at all even after shooting over an hour hand-held on the second night. Yes, it got hot in my hand but the warning never came up.

Joel Peregrine · April 23rd, 2010, 05:48 PM

Hi Daniel,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daniel Epstein

Has someone tested how long on average the time is from warning of overheating till the camera stops functioning correctly if you try to continue?

Its all very anecdotal at this point. A few days ago I decided to run all my batteries (15) and cards (12 x 16gb) through three bodies all day long while I was editing just to make sure I didn't have any lemons. When they stopped recording I hit the button to start them up again. When the card filled up I formatted the card and started over. When the batteries ran out in the grips I replaced them. I went for literally eight hours and only once, with one of the cameras, did I have the overheating warning pop up. I was as surprised as anyone to see that they didn't overheat. I plan on running the same test again next week.

Roger Shealy · April 23rd, 2010, 06:27 PM

Ran my T2i recording a recital tonight @ 1080-30P. Ran it almost non-stop for about 75 minutes, perhaps with one 3 minute rest and may 2 or 3 one minute rests. The red thermometer popped up about 2 minutes before finishing the last piece, which I was able to finish without the camera shutting down. I'm downloading the card now, hopefully it all came out.

Michael Ojjeh · April 23rd, 2010, 06:47 PM

well I just got my T2i this week and I did a test shoot right out the box see my post http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/canon-eo...-good-bad.html , from all the posts that I have been reading it seems like it overheat more shooting 60fps then 24 or 30 fps, of course more frame to process at 60, on my test shoot I use 60 fps and it overheated too many times, I have not tried 30fps yet.
Also people experiencing less overheating when using the battery grip, I don't know why that is the processor still work as hard !!

Overall I still think for the price of this camera and the quality of the image it can give you, the benefits outweighs all the problems that it has.

Monday Isa · May 1st, 2010, 11:16 PM

88 degree day in Maryland. The over heat lamp came on quite a bit throughout the day. I would have to shut the cam off for 1 minute and resume filming. Little frustrating.

Bryan McCullough · May 2nd, 2010, 08:17 AM

Was this with or without the battery grip?

Monday Isa · May 2nd, 2010, 02:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bryan McCullough

Was this with or without the battery grip?

It was without the battery grip. I'm waiting on a 3rd party battery grip to be released.

Bryan McCullough · May 2nd, 2010, 03:08 PM

Yeah, I was waiting on one as well but had a shoot come up that made it worth the $170 to deflect possible overheating issues.

Bryan McCullough · June 3rd, 2010, 12:19 PM

Shot for two hours yesterday in 95 degree heat, direct sunlight.

Got the temp icon about 30 min in and started to switch on and off between shots. The icon kept returning, but the camera never shut down.

As another data point, not sure if it has anything to do with anything, I've only ever seen the temp icon while shooting 1080 30p. I shoot 1080 24p 90% of the time and have never seen it in that format.

Jonathan Bufkin · June 3rd, 2010, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Monday Isa

It was without the battery grip. I'm waiting on a 3rd party battery grip to be released.

Link Delight just released the grip a couple of weeks ago. I have mine but I haven't used it yet. This is my 3rd grip from them and I have been more than satisfied with the other two (5d and T1i grips).

Monday Isa · June 3rd, 2010, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonathan Bufkin

Link Delight just released the grip a couple of weeks ago. I have mine but I haven't used it yet. This is my 3rd grip from them and I have been more than satisfied with the other two (5d and T1i grips).

I purchased one approx 3 weeks ago. I've been using it now for 2 weeks and love the prolonged battery life by using 2 batteries instead of one.

Jonathan Bufkin · June 3rd, 2010, 04:53 PM

Is the heat issue non-existent with the grip?

April 23rd, 2010, 01:56 PM	#34
Sean Philips New Boot Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba Posts: 7	theatre shoot Eric..I had the XHA1 as my wide centre shot (will also keep it 1080 and crop/pan as the final product will only be DVD quality) and an HF100 as a side cutaway shot. I moved around with the T2i to get as many different detail shots as possible. I used a 17-55 and a 50/1.8. I had it on a tripod for front of house shots and then hand-held backstage for more documentary style clips. I also had an assistant with a 5D using an 85 and a 200 for closeup face expressions. (It was a dance production). I have 9 different streams to put together from the 3 performances. It's going to be spectacular, but not really worth what little I am being paid! I have to say I LOVE the T2i. Its so light that I was able to shoot for almost an hour straight completely hand-held. The image quality with the 50mm prime fully open is stunning. The focus was difficult on the moving subjects, so I used the auto focus (half pressing the shutter release) on the floor at the dancer's feet and then re-framed....that way it focused much faster and more accurately. As I mentioned, I had no overheating issues at all even after shooting over an hour hand-held on the second night. Yes, it got hot in my hand but the warning never came up.

April 23rd, 2010, 06:27 PM	#36
Roger Shealy Major Player Join Date: May 2007 Location: Fayetteville, GA Posts: 772	Ran my T2i recording a recital tonight @ 1080-30P. Ran it almost non-stop for about 75 minutes, perhaps with one 3 minute rest and may 2 or 3 one minute rests. The red thermometer popped up about 2 minutes before finishing the last piece, which I was able to finish without the camera shutting down. I'm downloading the card now, hopefully it all came out. Last edited by Roger Shealy; April 23rd, 2010 at 08:48 PM.

April 23rd, 2010, 06:47 PM	#37
Michael Ojjeh Major Player Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 338	well I just got my T2i this week and I did a test shoot right out the box see my post http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/canon-eo...-good-bad.html , from all the posts that I have been reading it seems like it overheat more shooting 60fps then 24 or 30 fps, of course more frame to process at 60, on my test shoot I use 60 fps and it overheated too many times, I have not tried 30fps yet. Also people experiencing less overheating when using the battery grip, I don't know why that is the processor still work as hard !! Overall I still think for the price of this camera and the quality of the image it can give you, the benefits outweighs all the problems that it has. __________________ Dragonfly Production http://www.dragonflyproduction.net/ http://www.vimeo.com/user432181

June 3rd, 2010, 04:53 PM	#45
Jonathan Bufkin Major Player Join Date: May 2006 Location: Nashville, TN Posts: 253	Is the heat issue non-existent with the grip? __________________ Jon Bufkin focalpointcinematic.com

April 23rd, 2010, 07:00 AM	#31
Daniel Epstein Trustee Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New York, NY Posts: 1,267	Has someone tested how long on average the time is from warning of overheating till the camera stops functioning correctly if you try to continue?

April 23rd, 2010, 12:53 PM	#33
John Mastrogiacomo Regular Crew Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Las Vegas, NV Posts: 85	At NAB, one of the Canon reps told me the cameras generate more heat when they use an external monitor. He said the CPU has to work harder to push the information out.

May 1st, 2010, 11:16 PM	#38
Monday Isa Major Player Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: College Park, Maryland Posts: 913	88 degree day in Maryland. The over heat lamp came on quite a bit throughout the day. I would have to shut the cam off for 1 minute and resume filming. Little frustrating.

May 2nd, 2010, 08:17 AM	#39
Bryan McCullough Major Player Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Richardson, TX Posts: 842	Was this with or without the battery grip?

May 2nd, 2010, 03:08 PM	#41
Bryan McCullough Major Player Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Richardson, TX Posts: 842	Yeah, I was waiting on one as well but had a shoot come up that made it worth the $170 to deflect possible overheating issues.

June 3rd, 2010, 12:19 PM	#42
Bryan McCullough Major Player Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Richardson, TX Posts: 842	Shot for two hours yesterday in 95 degree heat, direct sunlight. Got the temp icon about 30 min in and started to switch on and off between shots. The icon kept returning, but the camera never shut down. As another data point, not sure if it has anything to do with anything, I've only ever seen the temp icon while shooting 1080 30p. I shoot 1080 24p 90% of the time and have never seen it in that format.