How to Stream Longer than 30 minutes with Canon M50 with autofocus, NO capture card!!

[walstonbball]

Read a lot of forums and watched a lot of videos and I think I figured it out! 

I open EOS Utility, plug my M50 into my iMac with a micro USB (one made for data transfer, such as a phone cable), then open live view mode and move it into a different window by itself. 

Next, I open OBS and add a window capture and select the live view window. I crop it and I am good to go! 

Note: You have to make sure the M50 screen is out and flipped into selfie mode, this is what keeps the camera from freezing after 30 minutes. 

Now you have a streaming camera with continuous autofocus for longer than 30 minutes, oh and without a capture card! 

I hope this is able to help someone that ran into the same issues as me! 

[Ray-uk]

Then you sit back and wait for the sensor to overheat and burn out.

Much better to buy a proper video camera.

[Niall]

Hey Ray, 

How long do I have to sit back and wait for the sensor to overheat and burn out? Will that get me up to 60FPS?

I'm assuming you're on these forums to be a Valued Contributer like it says under your name and give help and advice to fellow Audio/Visual heads. 

If not then take your stupid sarcasm back to whatever high horse you came down on.

Unapologetically,

Someone who hasn't time for this.

[kvbarkley]

While the tone might have a touch of sarcasm, the advice does not. It is a known fact that still cameras are not designed to run the sensor indefinitely. In fact, in the Lens Rentals podasts they specifically warn against this, saying you should shoot for short periods - minutes - and let it rest for twice as long as you ran it to let it cool.

Remember, when taking a video with a still camera,most of the pixels are taking data that is simply thrown away since the video resolution is much smaller than the still resolution. Not an efficient use of the silicon.

[shadowsports]

Sorry Niall,

It's you who has unrealistic expectations, and your sensor will eventually overheat, possibly leaving you without a functioning camera.  Digital still cameras are not designed to record or be used as a live view web cam, etc for extended periods. 

Part of this is the european union and tarrifs and part of it is design related.   

Ray's advice is reasonable.  We're sorry it's not what you wanted to hear.   

[wq9nsc]

Ray IS one of the most valuable contributors here and his advice is spot on.

The M50 is a still camera with video capabilities and it does fine as long as used within those capabilities but it wasn't intended for the 100% duty cycle of sustained video which would have changed the design and required a far higher price point.

The heat problem isn't just the sensor but also the A/D converter and the supporting data pipeine and these parts increase the ambient temperature of all components in the camera.  The 1 series have a much more robust design with additional size to reject heat and a heat pipe design to move heat away from sensitive components but it still has video thermal limitations even at its size and price point.  And although it probably doesn't matter if one is using bright lighting for the video portion but sensor and A/D noise will increase as the temperature rises, an inescapable part of the thermal behavior of electronic components and one of the challenges for mirrorless designs in general when best low light performance is needed.

Rodger

[docusync]

@Ray-uk

LOL no......... You seem confuse long exposures with long sessions.

30 min is a standard limitation on all stills cameras to overcome the EU tax on video recorders introduced in 2006.

If you have an external recorder like Atomos Ninja - you can record as long as you want. Lots of people shoot video this way, and even more run studio sessions with the LV on for many hours non stop.

I stream from the EOS R (outdoors, ~80F+) to a remote computer (indoors) for a few hours with no issues.

During long shooting sessions the heat is produced by all parts of the camera (CPU, bus, etc.), not just the sensor. If it's not disspated _properly_ - the camera will overheat, and the protection mechanism will kick in and simply shut it down. I've seen it on the early Sony A7 models, but never on a Canon.

The long exposures indeed can lead to sensor overheating, extra noise (due to overheating), etc... That's why astrophotographers are using modified cameras with cooled sensors.

[Ray-uk]

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@docusync wrote:

@Ray-uk

LOL no......... You seem confuse long exposures with long sessions.

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If you are using the live view image from the camera for live streaming then this is exactly the the same as a long exposure, it still uses the sensor and the electronics in the same way, the only difference is that it doesn't use the shutter (either physical or electronic) to obtain a timed exposure.

[ebiggs1]

I don't video. I don't stream. I don't even use Liveview. And, I admit I largely repeat what others have told me, or I have read, about video on a DSLR.  It would be nice if some real evidence and data was available or a statement from Canon as to the harm or lack thereof from doing it.  I remember in some of my earlier manuals from Canon they advised against letting the camera overheat from long usage or high temperature.

"If the camera’s internal temperature increases due to prolonged Live View shooting or a high ambient temperature, a white s icon will appear. If you continue shooting while this icon is displayed, the image quality of still photos may deteriorate. You should stop the Live View shooting and allow the camera to cool down before shooting again. If the camera’s internal temperature further increases while the white s icon is displayed, a red E icon will start blinking. This blinking icon is a warning that the Live View shooting will soon be terminated automatically. If this happens, you will not be able to shoot again until the camera’s internal temperature decreases. Turn off the power and let the camera rest for a while.'

To me and analogy might be a person that buys a screwdriver to be used as a pry bar.  Now you certainly can use a screwdriver as a pry bar but how much better off are you to buy a real pry bar? Use the proper tool for the job.  Not always a good idea to bandaide a tool to do what it wasn't designed to do.

[John_SD]

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@ebiggs1 wrote:

Use the proper tool for the job.  Not always a good idea to bandaide a tool to do what it wasn't designed to do.

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Our self-described "filmmakers" and wannabe YouTube artistes can't really afford a proper video camera. Thus they are stuck with their overblown aspirations as they struggle to master the video capabilities of their T6, T5, or M50, often without bothering to download and use the full manual. I've frequently seen them get upset when offered real advice, so why bother?