camera freezing in low light

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April

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When I use my Canon 18-55 lens in low light or indoors - even if I have the flash on, in manual or auto mode the shutter operates but then the camera freezes. I have to remove the battery to be able to do anything - the image hasn't been captured either on the card. Does anyone have any idea why this is? It's fine when shooting outdoors in daylight but as I am about to try some moonlight shooting I wonder if there is anything obvious I am doing wrong. I have tried all manual and auto setting and the problems still occurs but only with this lens
 
what is the shutter speed when this happens ?

in low light the shutter speed can be several seconds depending on appature settings if you are using AV or one of the program/auto modes
such a long shutter speed could make you think the camera has locked up but in reality it's a case of waiting for the exposure to end
 
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As Mark has asked, what were the shutter speeds? Did you have "Long Exposure Noise Reduction" turned on? If you did have LENR on, you should either wait for the same length of time as the original exposure (LENR usually works by the camera taking a second shot but not opening the shutter, that gives a photo that only contains the noise which is then subtracted from the original photo to reduce the noise's impact but obviouslt takes time) or turn LENR off (see your manual for how to do so).
 
Shooting from AV mode at F4 for a close up with flash on in daylight but indoors I wouldn't expect the exposure to last as long as 5 minutes - after this time I gave up and removed battery. Cannot honestly remember all the shutter speeds as it has happened on so many occassions, even when making adjustments to settings and when using full auto mode. If I switched the lens and retained settings the second lens worked fine so I am flummoxed - I even tried changing the battery
 
if it's only happening with the one lens then that would suggest a faulty lens or a communication error
you could try carefully cleaning the lens electrical contacts to see if that cures it

some people suggest holding the lens upside down ( contacts pointing to the floor ) and using a pencil eraser to clean the contacts being careful not to get any of the eraser dust into the lens
i prefer to use switch cleaner ( servisol super 10 ) sprayed onto a cloth and giving them a quick wipe rather than risking eraser dust
 
With regard to my camera freezing I have just accidentally come across something else that is happening so hopefully someone can tell me if it is a camera or lens problem. In the past because I was using a tripod I never noticed what has just happened when hand held. As the shutter opens and closes I can feel something jolt inside the camera and while looking thro' the viewfinder something half comes across. Not understanding the mechansim, would this be the mirror?
 
The viewfinder should black out completely as the mirror rises to reveal the sensor.


Take the lens of and look into the camera when taking a picture, the mirror should flip up flat to the focus screen to reveal the shutter curtain and then the sensor.
 
Do as Tom says but make sure you have the camera set to a shutter speed of 1/2 a second or more - any faster and your eyes won't register the mirror up/shutter blind open bit, just a blur!
 
When you say 'freezing' what exactly happens? Do you get an error message on the LCD display? Does the light come on to say it's writing to the memory card and then just stay on as if it's stuck?

Does the shutter button half depress but then not hunt for focus and just kind of jam there no matter how hard you press?
 
by freezing I mean that the lcd is blank - does not show any image, despite camera being turned on non of the functions are operable ie it wont take another shot, cannot access menu, cannot view images on card etc it wont even switch off!!. There is no message, cannot use shutter button at all
 
It's unlikely, but it could be something as simple as the long exposure noise reduction mode. This takes a blank frame photo for the same duration as the original exposure, locking up the camera in the process, although I've not heard of being unable to turn the camera off.

Try taking a photo when its darker and make a note of the shutter speed its used. Wait for double that length and see if the camera comes back to life.
 
ok, taken a shot f4.5, low lit room at 4" - shutter opened and closed (heard it). Waited 10 mins and nothing, green light on to show power on and that's it. Wont switch off, can't use any buttons
 
Definitely that lens then, time for an upgrade!
 
April said:
ok, taken a shot f4.5, low lit room at 4" - shutter opened and closed (heard it). Waited 10 mins and nothing, green light on to show power on and that's it. Wont switch off, can't use any buttons
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Have you tried factory reset see if that solves the prob, seems like camera not lens or external flash
 
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Post #14 answers that.

April, if the lens was new at Christmas, take it back to the seller. This close to the purchase date, they should simply replace it for you. (unless it came from Jessops of course...)
 
Spoken to Canon who think it is a problem with the IS. To confirm this I have tried the lens on a neighbours camera. I found that if the battery was fully charged it would take the shot but if below half full it wouldn't - even tho the other lens would. From this I can only summise that the 18-55 lens takes a lot less power to operate than the 17-85 in lwo light conditions
 
April said:
Spoken to Canon who think it is a problem with the IS. To confirm this I have tried the lens on a neighbours camera. I found that if the battery was fully charged it would take the shot but if below half full it wouldn't - even tho the other lens would. From this I can only summise that the 18-55 lens takes a lot less power to operate than the 17-85 in lwo light conditions
Click to expand...

Its still not right though. All functions should work with all lenses regardless of the battery state.
 
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