Coldest operating temperature for Epic

[Alexey Milokost]

Hi everyone,
Please share your experiences:
1. At what coldest temperatures your Epic was successfully operating?
2. Did you have to do a black shading?
3. If not, did it affect the picture?
4. Did you let the camera warm up before hitting record?

 

[Ketch Rossi]

We have done the stupidest things with Epic at times, like taking the camera from a heated pool,
inside a Prototype Under Water Housing with a super HOT Epic to otside in the snow at below 10 Celsius!!

It was to cool down the camera cause it was so hot we could not get the SSD in our hands, then we realize what we did
camera never stopped working, there was no Black Shading then, didn't see any issues on the image.

Since then and now with available Black Shading, we do so when camera goes in to major differences in cold/hot,
when we arrive we wait about an half hour and let the camera adjust to the temperature, then do the Black Shading.

We have been shooting from Desert Hot to Snow Cold, no problems, LOVE OUR EPIC CAMERAS... So insanely ROBUST!!

 

[Ron Reddick]

My Red 1 and Epic both survived Afghanistan, summer R1 in Kandahar at 48C, Dubai a few times much hotter, and the Epic this winter on the Salang pass at -15 F no problems

Ron

 

[axel ebermann]

Be aware though that in ultra low temperatures batteries tend to die very quickly
and the grease in the lenses can get so stiff or even freeze that it is very difficult
to work efficiently.

If I know I am going to be shooting north of the polar circle I always make sure
to use a portabrace polar bear case.

http://www.google.com/products/cata...T6LaPMLn0QGl9YzsCA&ved=0CFwQ8wIwAg#ps-sellers

Also keeps my fingers warm

 

[Lauri Kettunen]

I haven't use a cover on R1 or Epic in cold unless it's snowing. There are no other moving parts in Epic than the fan, and if it's cold, the fan doesn't run or runs with very low revs.

As virtually all the power taken from the camera is eventually converted to heat, this keeps the camera body away from freezing. The only really critical parts are the LCD/EVF and the Li-batteries. For this reason keep the battery under my jacket and have a cover on the LCD. The power of the LCD is, I think, around 5W, so it keeps itself warm enough when covered.

In cold there is less thermal noise, and accordingly, as all those who shoot northern lights and the starry sky in the winter time must have noticed, images taken in cold tend to have less noise.

Epic is not bad at all in cold. In cold the power consumption works in favour of the cameraman as it keeps the camera pleasantly warm while still remains cool enough not requiring the fan to run (almost at all -haven't checked whether its completely stopped or runs very slowly). If the batteries are kept warm, in cold they tend to last longer as less power is transformed to Ohmic heat losses.

Be aware, a bag may cause overheating if not used properly as it blocks the natural ventilation.

 

[Charlie_Grinnell]

Shot the last couple days at Winter X Games in Aspen, Colorado in -25 Degrees Celsius, worked great.

 

[Mark Whatmore]

We're shooting at -27 in Norway, filming preparations for an Ice Music festival. Lost picture on the LCD briefly (recovered with a restart), cables hardened and lense movements sticky, but otherwise the camera is performing superbly. No noticeable reduction in battery life and no need for specific black shading (running at normal speed).

 

[Ken Corben]

EPICs in Antarctica

EPICs in Antarctica

1. At what coldest temperatures your Epic was successfully operating?

During 4 weeks of production on Wild Antarctica 3D with three EPIC-X bodies shooting both underwater and topside ,
the temperatures ranged from 0 deg C to -10 deg C plus wind chill factors.
We did not experience any issues.


2. Did you have to do a black shading?

I'm not sure if one "has to black shade", however, our daily protocol was to perform this simple calibration once daily on all cameras prior to shooting. Ever shoot a phantom?

3. If not, did it affect the picture?

Guess we'll never know since our results are spectacular


4. Did you let the camera warm up before hitting record?

Yes, just like an athlete warms up before they work out.
May not be required but made common sense given the brutal cold we were working in, the cost of production and the inability to re-shoot any of the remote locations.

During the shoot, all EPICs were booted first thing in the AM and allowed to "warm up" before black shading.
This time was used to build and tune the 3D beam splitter for the day.
The cameras were ALWAYS kept in outside temps to prevent condensation that will result from moving in and out of warm and cold.

The name of this camera nails it...EPIC

 

[Joel Arvidsson]

What gloves do you use when shooting in really cold temparatures? I like the one that let you use the touchscreen but they are not so warm. So "finger" gloves over the touch gloves is the best so far. Sorry for hijacking.