Canon 5D Mark iii stopped recording video!

[ScottESwartz]

I was shooting on my new Canon 5d Mark iii yesterday, recording to a 16SD card and using a RODE shotgun mic for sound when a weird image appeared on my live view.  Towards the right of the screen these blocks started piling up.  When there were 4 blocks, my video stopped recording!  I'm talking maybe 10 or 15 second videos here.  My SD was less than half full at the time, and when I hit record again I only got about 10 to 15 seconds more of video recording.  What the heck was going on!?  Please help!

I've drawn a picture of what the blocks lookied like to further illustrate my point.  Thank you!

[Tim]

Hello ScottESwartz,

What you are seeing with this indicator is the amount of data being recorded to the buffer.  Even though you are using a 16GB memory card, if it is a slow card, this indicator will fill quickly and stop.  It makes it seem as though the card you're using doesn't have the speed to keep up with the recording level you have set.  You could test this by selecting a smaller movie recording size and compression method within the Menu.  For example, you may try 640 / 30 frames / IPB and see if this indicator either doesn't appear or fills more slowly.  This tells you that the card isn't simply fast enough to handle large recordings with ease, hence the quick fill up. 

Another method would be to use a much faster class of card, for shooting full HD video use the highest class of card you can afford.  This would be Class 10 with a high write speed.  This ensures that the buffer in the camera writes to the card quickly, allowing for longer record times. 

[ScottESwartz]

Thanks Tim!

Unfortunately I was already using a Class 10 card because I was assured that this would not happen.  Does that mean that even though the buffer indicator was coming up that it still could have been the camera overheating?  I had been shooting in the sun near the beach for several hours.  Or is it possible that I have a defective class 10 sd card?  Thanks again!

Scott

[MikeSowsun]

It may be defective or it may not be an authentic Class 10 card. There are many "fake" memory cards being produced for quick profits. 

[Poucedeleon]

I just ran into this problem and had no ideal what was causing it until I read your post. I was recording to a Eye-Fi class 10 card in camera and my Atomos Ninja externally. After reading your post I removed the Eye-Fi card and now it is recording fine. The card is not counterfeit, it just does not have enough throughput. My other (SanDisk Extreme) class10 cards work fine.

[TCampbell]

Unfortunately the "Class 10" claim and logo on the card -- which is supposed to mean that card is capable of writing at a sustained speed of at least 10 megabytes per second -- doesn't necessarily mean that the specific card actually can write at that speed.

It may be a bad card... or an unscrupulous manufacturer.

[marcosphoto]

Consider also that this appears to be a relatively common failure with the Mk3 as I've read in either Cinema5D or Planet 5D - cannot recall now.  I've seen much conversation about this topic and from what I remember, the Mk3 does have an actual failure on earlier models which require replacement of the main board of the body to rectify.  If you have warrenty and confirm that a better data card does not rectify the condition - I'd get it in right away for repair.  (I think Canon is aware of a design flaw with regards to this). 

I'm a little worried because I have one of the first examples of this body as well but because I don't really get into video I have not really tested mine to see if my body has the same issues  😞

[gibpap]

We just completed a four day shoot that involved a series of takes of 8 minutes each or more. I shoot mostly with a Mark III and high speed cards, 24fps. The overheat problem seems to be exacerbated (in theory anyway) when shooting full raw in Technicolor Cinestyle.  I'm not sure of course, but when shooting in less data intensive formats, the camera seems to be far less prone to an overheat after the 2nd or third extended take.

I've discovered it takes at least 5 full minutes of cool-off to get things rolling again. I'd change cards too. One of my brandf new 32 cards froze almost immediately last week. I think the qwuality control on those things is marginal at best. Hope this helps.

[Darren]

My Mark III has the dreaded Movie Recording has Automatically Stopped. I reformatted 64 mg class 10 card with the same results. Then I used a different 64mg class 10 card with the same results. It can only record for average of 6 seconds before dialog box says movie recording automatically stopped. I was able to shoot movies just fine until today.  I'm really frustrated. I don't know what else to try. I tried letting it cool off and still have same issue. Any ideas out there?

[Mykolas]

Hi Darren!

Welcome and thank you for posting.

As mentioned earlier in this thread, not all SD cards are the same and just because it is a Class 10 rated card does not mean it can sustain the higher write speeds over a long enough time to record HD video.  Some cards only record at high speeds in short bursts.

What specific brand and write speed rating are the cards you are using?

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