5D problem

Anyone seen this happen before? I charged the battery till no flashing. Took pictures saturday and after about 20 pictures the battery is flashing, then camera shuts off. I pull the battery put it back in and it says full again. A few shots more and the battery starts flashing then it shuts off again.....

Did you buy it used? Get a new battery, if so. Someone screwed the life out of it.

How cold was it?

sounds like a faulty battery cell get it replaced

Steve Beck,
Try this, charge the battery till no flashing then take the battery out of the charger. Then put the battery back in the charger till no flashing (might have to do it a third time). See if that helps Of course in the meanwhile get yourself a new battery.

It ocassionally happens to my 5D as well. I have a grip it didn't happen before I put the grip on. It is a rare event. Has happened to both sterlingtek and canon batteries. By rare maybe three times in a bit over a year and not always after a short time (like 20 photos) the time that happened it was with the Canon cell that had not been used for some time but was charged up. The other two times (sterlingtek cells) it was after about 100 or so shots.

After I pulled the cells and shoved then back in though it did not do it again though. So what can I say, similar but different experience. I am at firmware 1.1.0. I am not sure if that is the latest but I think so.

is it a canon battery?

Like others have said, it's probably the battery going south. A near-dead battery can still put out a respectable voltage at no load, but once it's put under load and needs to put out any significant amount of current, the voltage can drop like a rock. Pulling the battery removes the load, and, sometimes, a battery's voltage can recover enough that it shows full once reinserted.

Lithium ion batteries typically last only 2-3 years. Their longevity strongly depends on how they are stored. Storing them at full charge for an extended period of time is extremely bad. At room temperature, up to 20% of the total capacity is permanently lost after 1 year when stored at full charge versus 4% lost if stored at 40% charge.

Could be the charger as well. I have some battery/charger combinations that just won't work. Put a different battery in the charger, or the battery in a different charger and no problem charging. I've got 2 styles of Canon chargers and a 3rd party one. If none of them will charge the battery, I figure it's gone.

Steve Beck wrote in post #2616991
Anyone seen this happen before? I charged the battery till no flashing. Took pictures saturday and after about 20 pictures the battery is flashing, then camera shuts off. I pull the battery put it back in and it says full again. A few shots more and the battery starts flashing then it shuts off again.....

You need to read the manual!!! You're supposed to keep the battery in the charger ONE HOUR after it stops flashing...NOT just after it stops flashing.

What page of the manual says to leave it in the charger one hour after it starts blinking? I have never heard that, but would be interested in knowing if it's true.

Page 23 of the 5D manual, staring near the middle of the page....the 5D takes the same battery as the 20D/30D....

A good tip : Use the re-chargeable battery RIGHT AFTER you charge them do not let them sit on your charger for awhile

Steiglitz wrote in post #2621156
You need to read the manual!!! You're supposed to keep the battery in the charger ONE HOUR after it stops flashing...NOT just after it stops flashing.

I believe that the actual battery instructions say that you can use it after the flashing stops, but leave it in for 1 full hour after for a full charge.

If he is taking it out after the flashing stops, it should be at 90%. There's no way that 90% of battery life lasts for 20 shots!!!

pbwing wrote in post #2622265
I believe that the actual battery instructions say that you can use it after the flashing stops, but leave it in for 1 full hour after for a full charge.

If he is taking it out after the flashing stops, it should be at 90%. There's no way that 90% of battery life lasts for 20 shots!!!

Agreed. There's no way the battery should die given the condition of the charge unless it's an old battery. LiON batteries do have a life beyond which they won't work.