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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Overheating... still?

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redman2021

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I thought it was fixed. I shot in 100 degree weather i had to ice pack it and let it cool off for a while about 5 times during a shoot for 10-15 minutes each time. Producers were not happy. It made me look stupid... An other camera would have been fine. Is this going to be fixed?
What have been the extremes the camera can function in...really?
 
Did you just get the warning symbol or did the camera shut down?
The first warning comes on at 106ºF and the camera shuts down at 116º if I'm not mistaken. Make sure you keep her shaded in 100º+ weather and you should have ice packs standing by if you think it'll get past 106º.
 
Evin Grant said:
Did you just get the warning symbol or did the camera shut down?
The first warning comes on at 106ºF and the camera shuts down at 116º if I'm not mistaken. Make sure you keep her shaded in 100º+ weather and you should have ice packs standing by if you think it'll get past 106º.
Click to expand...
The warning came up. I didn't want to find out what happens if I ignore it. So i shut it down.. cooled it off and waited. I've have other cameras in extreme heat before... I thought it was comparable to other cameras?
I know now to have my AC always have packs standing by. Will it ever improve? or is that the nature of a computer with a lens?
 
I always keep the fan in "silent" mode. It goes nuts when it's not rolling but is dead quiet during rolling. This seems to give the best cooling with the least downsides in my experience.

Like any other camera, you should keep it shaded on hot days in the sun. Just like you'd do with a film camera. That said, last week I left a camera in direct sunlight on a 105˚ Soledad Canyon day from sunrise to sunset. It ran the whole time [AC power] and was only powered down and covered during lunch. The Scorpio head it was sitting on overheated and failed... the camera never even sniffled.

Talk to me about the fans on your camera. I was misfortunate enough to be on a shoot where the rental house knowingly provided us with a camera whose fans weren't operational. The camera gave the heat warning [it was roughly 95˚ out with NO fans working in the camera] but never shut down. A little ice later and the problem was solved - didn't lose one minute to the camera.

After a firm word with the rental house, they assured me the camera would go back for service before it went out on another job. I got a call the next day from a shoot that just happened to have the very same camera and was having the very same problems... the fans were still broken and the camera had never been serviced. Fun times.

So what settings was your camera set to? I assume you shaded it?
 
JK...sometimes shoots arnt that simple... Shade doesn't matter. When its hot... it's hot. Humidity/temp the RED hates.
I guess i'm learning how to deal with it. My shoot was in a old diner (shaded) but in a no air-conditioned small room. I guess i'd lke to know what others have experienced in extreme temperatures.
What if i anted to do a doc in Death Valley or the Glaciers in Antarctica?
Anyone have temp shut down problems?
What are the extremes it can handle or solutions to help it handle theses extreme temperatures.
 
Brook Willard said:
I always keep the fan in "silent" mode. It goes nuts when it's not rolling but is dead quiet during rolling. This seems to give the best cooling with the least downsides in my experience.

Like any other camera, you should keep it shaded on hot days in the sun. Just like you'd do with a film camera. That said, last week I left a camera in direct sunlight on a 105˚ Soledad Canyon day from sunrise to sunset. It ran the whole time [AC power] and was only powered down and covered during lunch. The Scorpio head it was sitting on overheated and failed... the camera never even sniffled.

Talk to me about the fans on your camera. I was misfortunate enough to be on a shoot where the rental house knowingly provided us with a camera whose fans weren't operational. The camera gave the heat warning [it was roughly 95˚ out with NO fans working in the camera] but never shut down. A little ice later and the problem was solved - didn't lose one minute to the camera.

After a firm word with the rental house, they assured me the camera would go back for service before it went out on another job. I got a call the next day from a shoot that just happened to have the very same camera and was having the very same problems... the fans were still broken and the camera had never been serviced. Fun times.

So what settings was your camera set to? I assume you shaded it?
Click to expand...
I couldn't keep the fan on while we were rolling because we ere in such a small space. But I wasn't rolling that long during takes to allow the fan to cool it off.
It was shaded as much as possible as if any other camera I would use.
 
i haven't had any temperature warning yet (knock on wood) and it's pretty hot and humid out here.

One thing you might want to try is to put an external fan on the body. I have noticed the body getting very hot, up to the point where you don't want to leave you hand on there for more than a few seconds but even a small usb powered fan pointed at the top of the body helps a lot. Even better would be a quiet 12 volt fan on a flexible arm - nice for the operator too ;-)
 
Redman,
It's pretty simple...
Go to the hardware store and buy a thermometer.
Place it next to the camera.
If the heat warning comes on check to see if the temp is at or over 106º.
If it's that hot keep an eye on it and have some cold packs standing by.
If that thermometer goes past 114º chances are you have bigger problems than your camera shutting down.

As to wether or not the camera is rugged?
The ONLY time I've seen a heat warning was inside an underwater housing, in the Persian Gulf where there was no air circulation at all. I've also had my Red in 0º temps in DC hanging off the side of a car so minus a few degrees for wind chill.
It can take it, but it's starting to sounds like you might not.
 
I have not had a problem with my own camera in 97 plus degree heat in door or out door.

The camera that is South East Asia is working fine under 90 degree plus and 90% humidity and so far no problem in doors and out doors.

I did work with a rental camera the other day in 94 degree heat in door and I got the warning. After 10 minutes that camera was very slow to response. I thought it hanged, but it was just slow. I took the internal temperature reading it was running at 114 degrees. I put a blower on it. We got through the day ok with a blower in between takes.

It seem to happen only to some rental house camera, but in most cases it's work great on auto fan. Most rentals house camera are not in good shape because of Idiot Operators who do not know how to take care of them.

Tek
 
can't u make a simple radiator type tubes with cold liquids around the camera to prevent it from heating and use a fan between shoots to totally cool it down without making any noise in the shoots?is that difficult?
 
The camera definitely needs better cooling! Fans are fine but when you are working with a (great) sound recordist who likes to collect wild sound when you're not rolling it kind of ruins it.

On a small run and gun style crew it is pretty much impossible to keep the camera shaded. It's just not practical.

I have found that draping a white cloth over the body helps - just don't block the air holes. For my Africa trip I'm considering covering the camera with white tape (if I can reduce myself to that level of ghetto-ness).
 
CrewPix.com said:
The camera definitely needs better cooling!

I have found that draping a white cloth over the body helps - just don't block the air holes. For my Africa trip I'm considering covering the camera with white tape (if I can reduce myself to that level of ghetto-ness).
Click to expand...

I've gotten the body hot warning on two shoots. One was interior 80 degree room with 15 minute takes with fan on silent mode. Another time was outdoors direct sun 95ish degrees. I switched the fan to "Hot" because it was MOS and that seemed to help.

Would ice packs be best placed on top of the camera body? Or would one of the sides or bottom be more effective? Certainly this ice pack consideration alters the way people might want to think about rigging their camera.

Also, is there any baseline way to test that our cameras are cooling properly?
 
How did you have the camera configured, as in breakout boxes, accessories attached to the camera, running other hardware from the camera's power supply? I am curious because I assume there is a certain amount of thermal conductivity with the camera's skin, and of course with the heat sink. I have seen many HD cameras fail from overheating because "add on" accessories block the transference of heat, and over drain the power source. How did you have the camera configured and was anything attached to it besides a drive, and or battery?
 
redsail said:
How did you have the camera configured, as in breakout boxes, accessories attached to the camera,
Click to expand...

In my case, my camera was configured with RED LCD and RED EVF and pretty much nothing else. It's about as stripped as I can get it normally. My RED cradle hangs off the back. So I'm probably a best case scenario for keeping the camera cool.
 
I assume Redman2021 was running a drive because he mentioned the 15 min takes. I wish there was a photo of the configuration he was running. Also, the time period the camera was running. I would love to know for my own knowledge. I have never had a problem, except the one time which was not the fault of the camera, with overheating. I live in Los Angeles and the soundman always turns off the AC no matter how hot it gets in the room. Don't you love soundmen (soundpersons)?
 
redsail said:
except the one time which was not the fault of the camera, with overheating. I live in Los Angeles and the soundman always turns off the AC no matter how hot it gets in the room. Don't you love soundmen (soundpersons)?
Click to expand...

That was my situation. I was actually in LA shooting and the room seemed warm - my guess is in the 80s. I do have the red drive running also. Maybe powering the lcd, evf and RED drive could contribute to camera temp.
 
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