topic Re: 50D firmware help in EOS DSLR & Mirrorless Cameras

EOS 50D Help needed with firmware update

bearsmom24 — Sat, 05 Jul 2025 18:22:02 GMT

Please dont blast me for a stupid question, but I am a new owner to a 50D. Prior owner said Compact Flash with UDMA 7 would not download from camera to pc and not to use. I have tried to research and maybe I need a firmware update? If so, I have no idea where to find what firmware version I have on camera currently, much less how to update. I am going to Yellowstone in a few weeks and dont want to mess up the camera before I go. If I need to steer clear of the UDMA cards, I will. What other benefits to a firmware update are there? Sorry to be so ignorant, please be nice. 🙂 Thank you!

Re: 50D firmware help

TTMartin — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:40:39 GMT

@bearsmom24 wrote:
Please dont blast me for a stupid question, but I am a new owner to a 50D. Prior owner said Compact Flash with UDMA 7 would not download from camera to pc and not to use. I have tried to research and maybe I need a firmware update? If so, I have no idea where to find what firmware version I have on camera currently, much less how to update. I am going to Yellowstone in a few weeks and dont want to mess up the camera before I go. If I need to steer clear of the UDMA cards, I will. What other benefits to a firmware update are there? Sorry to be so ignorant, please be nice. 🙂 Thank you!

The 50D was always compatible with UDMA cards. The firmware update is needed for it to transfer at UDMA 7 speeds. It will still word with UDMA 7 cards it just wont transfer the data as quickly as it could.

The firmware update is available here.

https://www.usa.canon.com/internet/portal/us/home/support/details/cameras/support-dslr/eos-50d?subtab=downloads-firmware#Z7_MQH8HIC0L88RB0AMD0F1Q42K25

Re: 50D firmware help

bearsmom24 — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:44:20 GMT

Is there any other reason for me to update the firmware in my camera or am I okay with factory firmware?

Re: 50D firmware help

TTMartin — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:45:13 GMT

Here is the firmware history for the 50D and what each version did.

Changes:

Firmware Version 1.0.9 incorporates the following changes.
1. Optimizes the camera’s performance when using certain UDMA 7-compatible CF cards released in February 2012 or later.
2. Corrects wording in the Dutch language menu screen

Firmware Version 1.0.9 is for cameras with firmware up to Version 1.0.8. If the camera's firmware is already Version 1.0.9, it is not necessary to update the firmware.

Q: What are some changes of Firmware Version 1.0.9?
A: The following changes have been incorporated.
1. Optimizes the camera’s performance when using certain UDMA 7-compatible CF cards released in February 2012 or later.
2. Corrects wording in the Dutch language menu screen

Q: Are the previous versions of firmware included in version 1.0.9?
A: Yes, the following improvements from the previous versions are included:.

(Previous) Version 1.0.8 improvements:

1. Improves writing/reading speeds when using UDMA 7-compatible CF cards.
The reading/writing speeds of UDMA 7-compatible CF cards are the same as UDMA 6 CF cards.
2. Fixes incorrect indications in the Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Arabic, Swedish, Spanish, Portuguese, Thai and Turkish menu screens.

(Previous) Version 1.0.7 improvements:

1. Corrects a phenomenon where captured images may tend to appear somewhat magenta depending on the shooting scene.
If the background has little or no contrast (such as the sky or white walls), and the white balance (WB) setting of the camera is not AWB (Auto White Balance), images may tend to appear somewhat magenta.
2. Fixes incorrect indications on the Arabic, Romanian, Spanish, and Ukrainian menu screens.

(Previous) Version 1.0.6 improvements:

1. Supports the AF assist beam feature of the new flash, Speedlite 270 EX, which was released in April 2009.
In low light situations, the AF assist beam fires during autofocusing. The conditions under which the AF assist beam to will fire have changed in Firmware Version 1.0.5 or later. If the firmware of the camera is version 1.0.3 or earlier, the AF assist beam may not fire even if these conditions are met.
2. Changes the error indications that are displayed on the camera.
In previous firmware, if an error is detected, Err 99 is displayed on the camera in most cases. Firmware Version 1.0.5 or later further specifies the error indications as follows.
Indications on the Camera's LCD monitor (XX are numbers listed on the right.) No. Error details
10 Malfunctions related to files have been detected.
20 Malfunctions related to the mechanical have been detected.
30 Malfunctions related to the shutter have been detected.
40 Malfunctions related to the power source have been detected.
50 Malfunctions related to the electric control have been detected.
70 Malfunctions related to images have been detected.
80 Malfunctions related to the electric control or images have been detected.
If malfunctions in the camera are detected, "Err XX" will be displayed. A two-digit number that corresponds to the malfunctions detected by the camera will be displayed in the "XX" section of the error number. Other than the error numbers listed above, there are other numbers such as "01". In that case, provide appropriate handling and servicing by following the details displayed on the LCD monitor of the camera.
If an error code appears frequently, the camera is malfunctioning; therefore, note down the error number and contact our service center.
3. Addresses the vertical banding noise phenomenon
If the recording format is set to sRAW1, vertical banding noise may become visible depending on the camera settings, subject, and background.This phenomenon is addressed by this firmware.
Notes:
When updating to Firmware Version 1.0.6, please also update the Digital Photo Professional, Picture Style Editor, ZoomBrowser EX, and ImageBrowser software to the following versions or later.For details, please refer to the Firmware Q&A section.
Digital Photo Professional : Version 3.5.2 (Windows/Macintosh)
Picture Style Editor : Version 1.4.2 (Windows/Macintosh)
ZoomBrowser EX : Version 6.2.1c (Windows)
ImageBrowser : Version 6.2.1c (Macintosh)

(Previous) Version 1.0.3 improvements:

1. Corrects a phenomenon in which an image becomes overexposed when C.Fn.II-3 Highlight tone priority is set to "1" together with other camera settings. (This correction has already been incorporated in the Version 1.0.2 and later firmware.)
2. Corrects a rare phenomenon in which "busy" blinks on the camera's display panel and the shutter cannot be released due to the timing of battery installation.
3. Corrects a rare phenomenon in which "Err 99" appears on the camera's display panel and LCD monitor and the shutter cannot be released due to the timing of pressing the shutter button.

Re: 50D firmware help

TTMartin — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:47:41 GMT

@bearsmom24 wrote:
Is there any other reason for me to update the firmware in my camera or am I okay with factory firmware?

I always update my cameras to the latest firmware.

I use the method where you copy the firmware to the CF card using a card reader and then update the camera using the camera's menu system.

Re: 50D firmware help

bearsmom24 — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:48:26 GMT

Thank you so very much. How can I tell which version of firmware is on my camera currently?

Re: 50D firmware help

TTMartin — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 01:55:08 GMT

You can get a PDF of the 50D manual here. I do recommend reading it.

http://gdlp01.c-wss.com/gds/1/0300001591/02/eos50d-h2-en.pdf

You can find the Firmware version and update the firmware under yellow wrench 3 in the menu.

Re: 50D firmware help

bearsmom24 — Tue, 25 Jul 2017 12:08:03 GMT

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!! 🙂

Re: 50D firmware help

mikelee33 — Tue, 30 Oct 2018 15:26:33 GMT

I can personally confirm that this is a real issue. I just yesterday (October 29, 2018) bought a new SanDisk 32GB Extreme card (UDMA 7 Enabled) from Best Buy and RAW files are not saved! There are only 0 byte placeholders where the CR2 files should exist on the card. Firmware 1.0.9 This is a bad issue which Canon needs to stay up on.

UPDATE:

My bad. It's Windows 10 that doesn't recognize the CR2 files on the card. After plugging a USB cable from the camera into a Windows 7 machine, and it immediately recognizing the CR2 files present on the card, I can now fault Microsoft for some lack of support for UDMA 7 (cards). Definitely some incompatibilities here, but not with the SanDisk UDMA 7 card and the EOS 50D.

Thanks go out to Pete in Canon customer support for suggesting I give this a try. Fantastic customer support!

Re: 50D firmware help

RobertTheFat — Wed, 31 Oct 2018 13:09:13 GMT

@mikelee33 wrote:
I can personally confirm that this is a real issue. I just yesterday (October 29, 2018) bought a new SanDisk 32GB Extreme card (UDMA 7 Enabled) from Best Buy and RAW files are not saved! There are only 0 byte placeholders where the CR2 files should exist on the card. Firmware 1.0.9 This is a bad issue which Canon needs to stay up on.

UPDATE:

My bad. It's Windows 10 that doesn't recognize the CR2 files on the card. After plugging a USB cable from the camera into a Windows 7 machine, and it immediately recognizing the CR2 files present on the card, I can now fault Microsoft for some lack of support for UDMA 7 (cards). Definitely some incompatibilities here, but not with the SanDisk UDMA 7 card and the EOS 50D.

Thanks go out to Pete in Canon customer support for suggesting I give this a try. Fantastic customer support!

Before I blamed it all on the OS, I'd try it again with a card reader instead of a direct connection to the camera.

Re: 50D firmware help

ebiggs1 — Wed, 31 Oct 2018 13:35:55 GMT

"It's Windows 10 that doesn't recognize the CR2 files on the card."

Win 10, latest update version, sees and displays all my cr2 files. Look elsewhere for your problem.

Re: 50D firmware help

mikelee33 — Mon, 12 Nov 2018 18:41:32 GMT

Bob and ebiggs1, et al. -

To clarify this situation further, it is indeed a Windows 10 and 50D issue. If you had a 50D with a UDMA 7 card containing CR2 files on it they would not be recognized by Windows 10 via a USB connection, in that they would be seen as zero byte files which can not be moved or copied (see screenshot for what should be IMG_0292.CR2). That Windows 7 does not exhibit this incompatibility indicates an introduced issue with Windows 10 (and maybe 8/8.1, I don't know).

This card/interface incompatibility should not be construed to reflect possible issues with other Canon models (ebiggs1), or card readers (Bob), as putting that UDMA card into a card reader presents no problems whatsoever. As I stated earlier "Definitely some incompatibilities here,", and that is indeed the issue being addressed. One wouldn't expect the requirement to use a card reader to read CR2 files, but that is the current scenario, as even EOS Utililty run in Windows 7 compatibility mode hangs and then does not transfer all the files on the card (it is hit-and-miss with both CR2 and JPG files).

In summary, with this model and Windows 10, CR2 files on a UDMA 7 card must be read from a card reader. Non-UDMA cards containing CR2 files present no USB transfer issues. It is indeed a peculiar issue, and I would not expect others who have not experienced it to understand that this problem could actually occur.

Mike

Re: 50D firmware help

ebiggs1 — Mon, 12 Nov 2018 20:09:32 GMT

What you are saying is you can't move the pictures from 50D to computer using the camera? If you use a card reader all is well.? I did not understand but I think I do now.

I can not duplicate your issue as I don't have nor have I ever had a 50D. I do have 1 series going back to the original 1D and 1D Mk II both require a card reader (Firewire) so that is what I use. Win 10 displays both properly. Sorry I can't help more.

Re: 50D firmware help

RobertTheFat — Wed, 14 Nov 2018 17:53:31 GMT

@ebiggs1 wrote:
What you are saying is you can't move the pictures from 50D to computer using the camera? If you use a card reader all is well.? I did not understand but I think I do now.
I can not duplicate your issue as I don't have nor have I ever had a 50D. I do have 1 series going back to the original 1D and 1D Mk II both require a card reader (Firewire) so that is what I use. Win 10 displays both properly. Sorry I can't help more.

I do have a 50D, so I tried some experiments the other night, using a 32GB Lexar Professional UDMA 7 CF card and an up-to-date installation of Windows 10 Professional. I wasn't able to reproduce your problem exactly, but I did have problems. For example, the camera would transmit one or two files (correctly), but then get stuck in "BUSY" mode. (I quit trying when I finally started having trouble clearing the BUSY.)

Upon reflection, I guess we shouldn't be surprised. The types and sizes of CF cards we use now didn't exist when the 50D was current, and many camera models have had trouble adapting to larger cards and more complex file systems.

The 50D was a fine camera in its day, a major improvement over the 40D. It's the only camera for which I ever put myself on the wait list before it even came out.

Re: 50D firmware help

ebiggs1 — Wed, 14 Nov 2018 18:20:38 GMT

"...using a 32GB Lexar Professional UDMA 7 CF..."

I only use 16GB CF/SD cards. Not a solution just my practice.