Shutter count question

[Pozo]

Does anyone in the forum know how I can determine the shutter count I have logged on my T3i? The camera is still going strong without any problems at all (except for a few dead pixels that appear as tiny red spots in some images). I am mostly just curious about this. Is there any indication how many shutter releases the average T3i can be expected to fire? My T3i is my first dslr and it has served that role fabulously.

[Juanjo99]

"Nikon embeds shutter count data into every JPEG. They have implemented this feature on all their digital SLR cameras post 2005. To find out your cameras shutter count or total number of shutter releases, take a picture in JPEG quality (small basic settings). Save it to your computer, and upload it to this page by clicking the BROWSE button above. Once you have selected your JPEG image, enter the text in the image for authenticity, and click SUBMIT."

http://www.nikonshuttercount.com

http://www.ehow.com/how_12093211_out-shutter-count-nikon-d40x-camera.html

http://oneslidephotography.com/how-to-view-the-shutter-count-of-a-nikon-camera/

[RobertTheFat]

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@Juanjo99 wrote:

"Nikon embeds shutter count data into every JPEG. They have implemented this feature on all their digital SLR cameras post 2005. To find out your cameras shutter count or total number of shutter releases, take a picture in JPEG quality (small basic settings). Save it to your computer, and upload it to this page by clicking the BROWSE button above. Once you have selected your JPEG image, enter the text in the image for authenticity, and click SUBMIT."

http://www.nikonshuttercount.com

http://www.ehow.com/how_12093211_out-shutter-count-nikon-d40x-camera.html

http://oneslidephotography.com/how-to-view-the-shutter-count-of-a-nikon-camera/

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It's interesting that they embed the count in the picture (and don't actually tell you how they do it), rather than in the Exif data, which would have been the obvious choice. So I'm going to hazard a guess that what the manufacturers are worried about is that sellers of used equipment might forge the count to appear lower than it actually is, effectively making it meaningless. Doing what they do now lets them at least hope that when they do look at a count, it's actually valid.

[Juanjo99]

True!

[ebiggs1]

The point is not being able to get the count.  The issue has become switching to Nikon will increase his chances of improved CS which it is unlikely.  IMHO, of course, dealing with both companies.

" Bye bye Canon you have now lost a loyal customer for many years with several of your products."

[TCampbell]

While I don't have any data, based on the history of Nikon service complaints vs. Canon service complaints, I'd say that yes... it's unlikely you'd feel that Nikon provides better customer service.

On the shutter count with Canon... there is no Canon provided software nor any hidden button combination or menu that reveals the shutter count. Canon's diagnostic software (which Canon service centers have, but users do not have) provides them with the shutter count.

Anyway, numerous 3rd party utilities make fetching the shutter count really easy. Mine wasn't free. I paid all of $2 for it. I really don't care that I actually had to pay $2 because (a) my time is worth something to me (if I have to spend 5 minutes trying to find a way to get the shutter count for "free" I've already wasted more time than it's worth) and (b) it supported every Canon camera I care about. But... like the Canon diagnostic software, it uses APIs to fetch the data from the camera. You have to use software to fetch the data.

My personal opinion is that I should be able to find some sort of general information panel (like the one we have to look at what firmware version is in the camera) and it should tell me the shutter count. There's no reason to protect the information. Nikon does add it to the EXIF data of every shot their cameras take and I don't like either.

[markdeloura]

For those who come across this thread from a Google search despite it being a few years old...

I was able to get shutter count data from the APT program mentioned by Skirball. Downloaded the demo version, installed on Windows 10, connected my camera with a USB cable, turned on camera, and then started the software. Shutter count showed up in bottom left once camera was connected successfully (you might have to click "Connect" button).

If Canon software was running, it wouldn't work properly... so be sure to kill off EOS Utility if you have it installed, and also kill it in the Task Manager (hit Control-Shift-ESC and if it shows up in Background processes or Apps, right click and select "End task").

Thank you Skirball for the tip!