Canon 1D MKIII FIX!!!

Osprey Whisperer · October 18, 2007

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=25251582

PrescottPhotog · October 18, 2007

Bird Man Photographer wrote:

Figured there were a few of you here that would be interested in the info. Good luck.

Thanks Mike.. I wonder how long the line will get. I'll check it out for sure.

Do you know what the $100.00 coupon he was talking about. I'm registered and never heard about that either and Canon sent me the last firmware update ? Thanks !!

Osprey Whisperer · October 18, 2007

PrescottPhotog wrote:

Thanks Mike.. I wonder how long the line will get. I'll check it out for sure.

Do you know what the $100.00 coupon he was talking about. !

Not a clue.

I'm still using a 20D. :cry

ziggy53 · October 18, 2007

Bird Man Photographer wrote:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=25251582

That looks encouraging!

Thanks Mike,

sirsloop · October 18, 2007

Too bad I work a mile from the Canon service center... my boss won't have to mail out the camera. They'll probably have it fixed same day...

raptorcaptor · October 18, 2007

Bird Man Photographer wrote:

Not a clue. I'm still using a 20D. :cry

When you register a new camera with Canon you get a $100 voucher towards service/repair on out of warranty service.

kdog · October 18, 2007

Check out Rob Galbraith's Q&A on the mirror fix as well.

It looks like Canon has corroborated Rob's findings, and found the root cause. Of course, the jury is still out until Rob gets an updated body and verifies the fix.

If it is truly fixed, this is going have serious implications for my bank account.

Harryb · October 18, 2007

That is great news. Rod Gralbraith has it on his site too.

I moved this thread to Cameras as its a better fit there.

jdryan3 · October 18, 2007

raptorcaptor wrote:

When you register a new camera with Canon you get a $100 voucher towards service/repair on out of warranty service.

Plus Green and White priority service address labels/stickers you put on the box when you send it in.

Osprey Whisperer · October 18, 2007

Harryb wrote:

That is great news. Rod Gralbraith has it on his site too.

I moved this thread to Cameras as its a better fit there.

I posted it up there also. Put in N&W knowing several folks there that have the MKIII and may (if like me) not check the "Camera" section out, often.

timnosenzo · October 18, 2007

This is great news for MKIII owners, nice to see Canon step up.

PrescottPhotog · October 18, 2007

Bird Man Photographer wrote:

http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1032&message=25251582

Hi Mike, Thanks for posting this so fast. I called in this morning after reading it and they were great. Said Canon just sent down the info to the service center.

They said it might be the end of the month because Canon is really gearing up their repair center with extra people to handle this issue so while they are gathering parts and people they took my info and gave me a case number so my FedEx ticket would be out soon. I also had him check the $100 certificate. I am registered and even got my 1.1.0 firmware notice from Canon but nobody ever said anything about this to me so he got that taken care of too.

For the others that called Canon it might help to keep this post informed on when the FedEx repair shipping slips start hitting the people that registered so everyone knows what is happening. There are 30-40,000 units out there so they are going to be busy. I have a serial number in the 51m's and my dealer said the ones on his shelf are in the 56's. He said he asked his Canon rep what serial number started shipping with the correct submirror installed (as it says on the DP Review post) and nobody seems to know including the Canon rep.

Just a thought so someone isn't waiting.. in case they get lost in the shuffle.

Zanotti · October 30, 2007

Canon halts shipments to dealers in the UK
http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=7-8740-9068-9134

Pezpix · November 1, 2007

Bump. The fix and affected cameras is here. Prepare to wait for LOOOOOOOONG service lines people. The serial number list is huge. The end of November is gonna be a very stressful time for my buds over at the CPS in Irvine.

http://www.northlight-images.co.uk/cameras/Canon_1D_Mark_III.html

November 1st An official announcement from Canon in Australia (no doubt others will shortly follow)
To owners of the EOS-1D Mark III:

We regret to inform that some units of the EOS-1D Mark III digital SLR camera (launched in May 2007) have been found to have an issue with the Auto Focus Mirror. This issue is limited to a specific range of units, and results in unstable focusing and AF tracking performance when using AI servo continuous shooting, particularly in high temperatures.

Please check the serial number as indicated below to confirm whether this issue is relevant to your camera. We are preparing to offer a free service from late November to customers with a! ffected cameras who are experiencing the issues described.

We will announce additional details on our website as soon as they become available.

We offer our most sincere apologies to all who have been inconvenienced by this issue.

How to identify affected products:

If the serial number on the bottom of the camera is between 501001 and 546561, it could be affected by the “AF mirror adjustment issue”

Contact Information

Contact Information for Inquiries:

For CPS members, please contact Canon Professional services on the number below:
Canon Australia
Canon Professional Services
1800 804 240

For other enquiries, please contact the numbers below:
Canon Australia
Customer Care
13 13 83 (local call)

Canon NewZealand
Customer Care
09 489 0470

It not a minor thing for a Japanese company to use a phrase like "We offer our most sincere apologies to all who have been inconvenienced by this issue."

sirsloop · November 2, 2007

I'll have to ask about this either today or early next week when I stop by at the Jamesburg office to pick up some stuff. They told me Monday that it wasnt a serial number issue and that if the body performs to expectations then leave it. I guess thats kinda whats in the release...

Moogle Pepper · November 2, 2007

USA statement:

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=PgComSmModDisplayAct&fcategoryid=139&modelid=14999&keycode=2112&id=39707

ian408 · November 3, 2007

The statement gives a range of serial numbers but also says if you're
happy with the focus, no need for you to send the camera in for the
repair.

I'm sending mine in.

Nimai · November 18, 2007

Does anyone know if it's "safe" to order a new 1DMkIII from, say B&H?

ian408 · November 18, 2007

Nimai wrote:

Does anyone know if it's "safe" to order a new 1DMkIII from, say B&H?

I would hope so.

Remember too that not all bodies have this problem and the only way to be
really sure would be to know that the serial number is outside of the range
Canon has specified for the recall.

KED · November 19, 2007

ian408 wrote:

I would hope so.

Remember too that not all bodies have this problem and the only way to be
really sure would be to know that the serial number is outside of the range
Canon has specified for the recall.

Here is cautionary tale: I ordered a Mk III from B&H as soon as they got stock again; they had had a long back order because Canon was reportedly fixing the problem at the factory. When mine arrived, before I even shot one exposure, I noticed that it was within the "recalled" serial range. I had no interest in taking a risk that it was a camera with the AF problem, so B&H swapped it out -- same day -- no questions asked. The "second" Mk III had a serial number well outside the "recall" range, therefore ostensibly immune to the identified AF problem. I shot soccer with it a few days later, got some miserably out of focus shots, sent them to Canon and they acknowledged that it was the camera, not the photographer (hey, ya never know!). They invited me to send it in for repair, but call me high maintenance, I think that when you spend that much for a camera body, you're entitled to get one that works, and after owning it for all of six days, I was holding out for a working version.

By this time I had thrown out all the original packaging, but B&H again stepped up and swapped out the body -- this time for one IN the recall range, but with a "blue sticker" on the box indicating that it had specifically been checked for the problem. I have not had a chance to try it out, but for the moment I feel better knowing that this specific body got specific attention for this problem.

So the good news: B&H provided unbelievable service as usual.

The bad news: By Canon's own admission (made only privately to me in the context of my bad images), the problem may not, in fact, be isolated to the identified serial number range.

Rob Galbreath is posting late this week on his results using a new body in which Canon says the problem has been fixed -- I await his report with very mixed feelings!

My advice: hold off until there is clear consensus that the problem is ancient history.

Nimai · November 20, 2007

Thanks for the story, KED-

I think that when you spend that much for a camera body, you hold on to the original packaging!

But that's me.

I'm waiting for Rob's report as well.

ian408 · November 20, 2007

There are days I want to pitch all the packaging

I bought my mkIII just after they let a few of the bodies go to
various dealers. I don't know that I have the problem but I intend
to ship the body back.

KED · November 21, 2007

ian408 wrote:

There are days I want to pitch all the packaging

I bought my mkIII just after they let a few of the bodies go to
various dealers. I don't know that I have the problem but I intend
to ship the body back.

If you have shot action sequences in AI Servo/burst mode with good results you are probably OK, but you should check out Rob Galbreath's incredibly detailed series of reports for a thorough description of the symptoms and the conditions under which they crop up (mainly in relatively high temps and bright sunlight, ironically, although my problem with body #2 occurred in very cool temps).

As for packaging, I view chucking it as a sign of my commitment to the hardware! Plus that beautiful box might as well be a big neon sign telling my wife that I haven't stopped feeding my habit!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Canon 1D MKIII FIX!!!

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