disappearing hot pixels

Floris van Eck · February 16th, 2008, 05:17 PM

Kevin, I don't think it is something that is created by the adapter. Probably enlarged. I did some test today and I found out that in the highest gain setting, at occasions I have like 15 hot pixels! It is worse when I put the camera in Auto mode, in Night scene mode and in External control mode. With 3db and 0db is it pretty much controlled.... only two clusters of hot pixels that turn on and off in random time intervals. I am pretty angry about this.

The stupid thing is that I haven't really noticed it but when I look back some footage I shot in the past I can see those hot pixels. My camera is now 16 months old so no warranty anymore. I only wished I had seen this earlier while my camera was still under warranty.

I am going to call Canon monday and see what they can do for me. I hope they can fix this. If it costs $240, shit happens, but I will have them fix it. But when I look at the 15 or so hot pixels I saw while testing this phenomena this afternoon I wonder if they shouldn't replace the whole CCD block. I see blue, red and green pixels... (mostly blue) so I guess all three CCDs are affected. It really frightens me.

I really hope they help me out with this otherwise this will be my last Canon camera. From what I read on these forums this is happening to a lot of people, or we are not a representative sample.

If anyone else has contact with Canon let me know what they say.

Floris van Eck · February 16th, 2008, 05:35 PM

I shot some test footage and upload it here:

http://www.ecknology.com/temp/hotpixels.mov

Really, how bad is this?

This was captured straight from camera to Final Cut without any processing. I shot some frames with the lens cap still on.

Harry Bromley-Davenport · February 16th, 2008, 08:51 PM

I had the same problems of multiple dead pixels. Sent it to Canon. Paid the dough. No more dead pixels now.

Incidentally there is some pretty good software out there for dead pixel removal.

Best

H

Kevin Martorana · February 16th, 2008, 10:34 PM

Floris...
I agree. And I'm in the same boat. Camera is 17 months old...and I'll have to pay to have it fixed. Guess the $240 is cheaper than a new camera....but...seems that they have (or should I say HAD) a problem with these blocks.

Well...not too many options...so you either deal with it...or get it fixed.

I would love to hear Canon's comments about it....on this forum....but that might be asking too much.

Floris van Eck · February 17th, 2008, 04:07 AM

Kevin, I completely agree with you. I paid like 8700 EURO for this camera so the 250 EURO to fix this is like a small fee on the whole sum. But still, if I read that on these forums like 7 to 8 people have experienced this, it sounds to me like a real problem. And I wonder: if I have Canon fix them, how much of a guarantee is that? Is it possible that two months later another pixels goes hot and I have to pay 250 EURO again? That's something I would like to know. Otherwise I might have them fix it and trade it in for something else.

I will Canon on monday and see how much they charge over here in Europe to fix this. First I am going to argue a bit and see if I can get them fix it for free because this is no normal behavior. The warranty card says 12 months warrantee but in Europe a company is obliged to fix it even out of warranty when behavior is not acceptable within the reasonable. I think that 10 hot pixels on my CCD block is not something I could have prevented. Neither do I believe that it should happen on a 9000 EURO camera after 16 months. So we'll see how this develops.

I will keep everyone updated here.

Harry, after you send it to Canon did all hot pixels disappear, even in the highest gain settings?

Henrik Joensen · February 17th, 2008, 08:37 AM

Floris, you should be able to get your guarantee cover that in Europe.

I just bought a A1 and I have a cluster of blue/greenish pixels 'dead' if you
like stuck on my footage below right hand side corner. I looks like a good chunck of pixels and I am puzzled about it. Been taking some footage with Steven Dempsey's Panalook and vivid_RBG custom preset's as well as Will Schryver's Rich_RGB and it appears on all settings as well as in the viewer and LCD screen. All was shot HDV at 25f.

Will try see if also apparant in SD and if can will upload a screen shot.

Bloody annoying as I just had the camera 1 week.

Seem I have the same problem as everyone else in this thread, if any one
has had the same 'pixelation problem' please do comment.

Henrik Joensen · February 17th, 2008, 08:51 AM

Just checked a SD test and the same pixelation is occuring on the footage
there also. Blue/Greenish spots in same positions. I somehow cant make
attachments (guess newbies not allowed) but it is very clear on the screen
shot taken from FCP.

I am wondering whether it could be a lens problem????? but I checked
it with/without the UV filter and cleaned the lens (althou not with any
chemical solutions just the dust clotch) several times now to no avail.
Will see if I can figure a way to attach the screen shots.

Any help will be much much appreciated.

Henrik Joensen · February 17th, 2008, 08:54 AM

Here is the screen shots both SD and HDV.

Help!!

Marty Hudzik · February 17th, 2008, 09:42 PM

Henrik,
I am sorry to say that the images you posted look nothing like the problem I am having and I don't think they are lit pixels, at least not the way we are thinking. Mine are little tiny "pin points" of light, like the way a star looks in the night sky, but brighter. I have never seen your problem before and highly recommend you get it looked at immediately. That is not normal.

On a diifernt note, has anyone ever sent there camera in to have the lit pixels remapped and had them "not" fix it right? Since the problem is intermittent, how do we know that Canon will even be able to find the offensive pixels while it is in the shop? I am not dogging Canon, but I have been a bench tech in the past and at times I could not reproduce a problem in the shop, that I believed the client was seeing 100%. It happens.

Thanks.

Marty Hudzik · February 17th, 2008, 09:43 PM

Floris,
Did you take your link down? I cannot seem to get to it.

Thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Floris van Eck

I shot some test footage and upload it here:

http://www.ecknology.com/temp/hotpixels.mov

Really, how bad is this?

This was captured straight from camera to Final Cut without any processing. I shot some frames with the lens cap still on.

Floris van Eck · February 18th, 2008, 01:38 AM

I fixed the link. I agree with you Marty, Henrik's problem is serious and he should take his camera to Canon immediately.

I am going to call Canon in an hour and see what they are going to do.

Floris van Eck · February 18th, 2008, 02:12 AM

I just got of the phone with Canon. The camera has 12 months of warranty but in the second year they do not charge you. I guess this has to do with the powerful European Union laws that do not accept 12 months of warranty on expensive electronic devices. So I am going to ship my camera to Canon and see what they are going to do about the problem.

I will keep everyone update on the progress. Probably takes a few weeks. Ouch. But I am more then happy that they are going to fix it.

Henrik Joensen · February 18th, 2008, 07:40 AM

Floris, as far as I remember the EU Law is actually 2 years of warranty
not the usual 1 years most shops advertise.

I spoke to Canon this morning who (and with due respect) told me to take
it to Mediamarkt. Almost all of the guys in MM knows less than the little
I do. However a helpful local canon dealer will send it to the Benelux
repair shop which is a technician outside of Canon in Holland. He thought
it would take several weeks to get back. Apparantly Canon do not have
their own technician and outsource their work.

Anyhow, I also now found 1 LIT pixel, looks like a shining star with a bit
of black around it but obviously the posted screen shots are quiet clear

Thanks for resting my mind that this is not normal.

Henrik Joensen · February 18th, 2008, 07:41 AM

Marty,

Can you post a screen shot for comparison?

Thanks.

Marty Hudzik · February 18th, 2008, 08:24 AM

I will have to grab my camera from home at lunch time and grab a few shots. However, I watched the footage I shot last week and can tell you that the 2 lit pixels look more like a tiny white spec of dust on the frame than "bright" spots I have seen in the past. Mind you, these are in the exact same spots as before so I am sure they are pixels and not dust. For some reason this time they look more "passive" and not so bright. I was at 0db gain so maybe that explains why they were less intense.

February 16th, 2008, 10:34 PM	#19
Kevin Martorana Major Player Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Lancaster, PA Posts: 250	Floris... I agree. And I'm in the same boat. Camera is 17 months old...and I'll have to pay to have it fixed. Guess the $240 is cheaper than a new camera....but...seems that they have (or should I say HAD) a problem with these blocks. Well...not too many options...so you either deal with it...or get it fixed. I would love to hear Canon's comments about it....on this forum....but that might be asking too much. __________________ Shooting Video since 1/2" EIAJ reel to reel and editing on 2" QUAD machines. http://www.takeoneprod.com

February 17th, 2008, 08:54 AM	#23
Henrik Joensen Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Antwerpen - Belgium Posts: 54	Here is the screen shots both SD and HDV. Help!! Attached Images

February 16th, 2008, 05:17 PM	#16
Floris van Eck Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 993	Kevin, I don't think it is something that is created by the adapter. Probably enlarged. I did some test today and I found out that in the highest gain setting, at occasions I have like 15 hot pixels! It is worse when I put the camera in Auto mode, in Night scene mode and in External control mode. With 3db and 0db is it pretty much controlled.... only two clusters of hot pixels that turn on and off in random time intervals. I am pretty angry about this. The stupid thing is that I haven't really noticed it but when I look back some footage I shot in the past I can see those hot pixels. My camera is now 16 months old so no warranty anymore. I only wished I had seen this earlier while my camera was still under warranty. I am going to call Canon monday and see what they can do for me. I hope they can fix this. If it costs $240, shit happens, but I will have them fix it. But when I look at the 15 or so hot pixels I saw while testing this phenomena this afternoon I wonder if they shouldn't replace the whole CCD block. I see blue, red and green pixels... (mostly blue) so I guess all three CCDs are affected. It really frightens me. I really hope they help me out with this otherwise this will be my last Canon camera. From what I read on these forums this is happening to a lot of people, or we are not a representative sample. If anyone else has contact with Canon let me know what they say.

February 16th, 2008, 05:35 PM	#17
Floris van Eck Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 993	I shot some test footage and upload it here: http://www.ecknology.com/temp/hotpixels.mov Really, how bad is this? This was captured straight from camera to Final Cut without any processing. I shot some frames with the lens cap still on.

February 16th, 2008, 08:51 PM	#18
Harry Bromley-Davenport Major Player Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: LA CA Posts: 317	I had the same problems of multiple dead pixels. Sent it to Canon. Paid the dough. No more dead pixels now. Incidentally there is some pretty good software out there for dead pixel removal. Best H

February 17th, 2008, 04:07 AM	#20
Floris van Eck Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 993	Kevin, I completely agree with you. I paid like 8700 EURO for this camera so the 250 EURO to fix this is like a small fee on the whole sum. But still, if I read that on these forums like 7 to 8 people have experienced this, it sounds to me like a real problem. And I wonder: if I have Canon fix them, how much of a guarantee is that? Is it possible that two months later another pixels goes hot and I have to pay 250 EURO again? That's something I would like to know. Otherwise I might have them fix it and trade it in for something else. I will Canon on monday and see how much they charge over here in Europe to fix this. First I am going to argue a bit and see if I can get them fix it for free because this is no normal behavior. The warranty card says 12 months warrantee but in Europe a company is obliged to fix it even out of warranty when behavior is not acceptable within the reasonable. I think that 10 hot pixels on my CCD block is not something I could have prevented. Neither do I believe that it should happen on a 9000 EURO camera after 16 months. So we'll see how this develops. I will keep everyone updated here. Harry, after you send it to Canon did all hot pixels disappear, even in the highest gain settings?

February 17th, 2008, 08:37 AM	#21
Henrik Joensen Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Antwerpen - Belgium Posts: 54	Floris, you should be able to get your guarantee cover that in Europe. I just bought a A1 and I have a cluster of blue/greenish pixels 'dead' if you like stuck on my footage below right hand side corner. I looks like a good chunck of pixels and I am puzzled about it. Been taking some footage with Steven Dempsey's Panalook and vivid_RBG custom preset's as well as Will Schryver's Rich_RGB and it appears on all settings as well as in the viewer and LCD screen. All was shot HDV at 25f. Will try see if also apparant in SD and if can will upload a screen shot. Bloody annoying as I just had the camera 1 week. Seem I have the same problem as everyone else in this thread, if any one has had the same 'pixelation problem' please do comment.

February 17th, 2008, 08:51 AM	#22
Henrik Joensen Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Antwerpen - Belgium Posts: 54	Just checked a SD test and the same pixelation is occuring on the footage there also. Blue/Greenish spots in same positions. I somehow cant make attachments (guess newbies not allowed) but it is very clear on the screen shot taken from FCP. I am wondering whether it could be a lens problem????? but I checked it with/without the UV filter and cleaned the lens (althou not with any chemical solutions just the dust clotch) several times now to no avail. Will see if I can figure a way to attach the screen shots. Any help will be much much appreciated.

February 17th, 2008, 09:42 PM	#24
Marty Hudzik Trustee Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canton, Ohio Posts: 1,771	Henrik, I am sorry to say that the images you posted look nothing like the problem I am having and I don't think they are lit pixels, at least not the way we are thinking. Mine are little tiny "pin points" of light, like the way a star looks in the night sky, but brighter. I have never seen your problem before and highly recommend you get it looked at immediately. That is not normal. On a diifernt note, has anyone ever sent there camera in to have the lit pixels remapped and had them "not" fix it right? Since the problem is intermittent, how do we know that Canon will even be able to find the offensive pixels while it is in the shop? I am not dogging Canon, but I have been a bench tech in the past and at times I could not reproduce a problem in the shop, that I believed the client was seeing 100%. It happens. Thanks.

February 18th, 2008, 01:38 AM	#26
Floris van Eck Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 993	I fixed the link. I agree with you Marty, Henrik's problem is serious and he should take his camera to Canon immediately. I am going to call Canon in an hour and see what they are going to do.

February 18th, 2008, 02:12 AM	#27
Floris van Eck Major Player Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Netherlands Posts: 993	I just got of the phone with Canon. The camera has 12 months of warranty but in the second year they do not charge you. I guess this has to do with the powerful European Union laws that do not accept 12 months of warranty on expensive electronic devices. So I am going to ship my camera to Canon and see what they are going to do about the problem. I will keep everyone update on the progress. Probably takes a few weeks. Ouch. But I am more then happy that they are going to fix it.

February 18th, 2008, 07:40 AM	#28
Henrik Joensen Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Antwerpen - Belgium Posts: 54	Floris, as far as I remember the EU Law is actually 2 years of warranty not the usual 1 years most shops advertise. I spoke to Canon this morning who (and with due respect) told me to take it to Mediamarkt. Almost all of the guys in MM knows less than the little I do. However a helpful local canon dealer will send it to the Benelux repair shop which is a technician outside of Canon in Holland. He thought it would take several weeks to get back. Apparantly Canon do not have their own technician and outsource their work. Anyhow, I also now found 1 LIT pixel, looks like a shining star with a bit of black around it but obviously the posted screen shots are quiet clear Thanks for resting my mind that this is not normal.

February 18th, 2008, 07:41 AM	#29
Henrik Joensen Regular Crew Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Antwerpen - Belgium Posts: 54	Marty, Can you post a screen shot for comparison? Thanks.

February 18th, 2008, 08:24 AM	#30
Marty Hudzik Trustee Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Canton, Ohio Posts: 1,771	I will have to grab my camera from home at lunch time and grab a few shots. However, I watched the footage I shot last week and can tell you that the 2 lit pixels look more like a tiny white spec of dust on the frame than "bright" spots I have seen in the past. Mind you, these are in the exact same spots as before so I am sure they are pixels and not dust. For some reason this time they look more "passive" and not so bright. I was at 0db gain so maybe that explains why they were less intense.