T3i Full Hd recording limits

[DominicCrozet]

Hi Canon,

Just recently bought the T3i and am mainly interested in using it for videography. However, the recording length shuts down after 12 mins and then restarts again. I have heard this could be to do with the SD card. The SD card that I use is SanDisk class 10, 64gb Ultra, 30Mb/s. I have been told that this time could improve if I had a more expensive SD card; i.e. an Extreme Pro. But then again I read that 12 mintues auto shutdown is normal so therefore, an Extreme Pro won't make the difference. The 12 mins stresses me because I film weddings. (However, I do have a full hd camcorder as well which eliviates the pressure some what.) but would feel more comfortable with say 20 mins auto shutdown at full hd. Perhaps I need a different camera but I don't want to spend £200 more than I paid for the T3i. The other alternative is a software called Magic Lantern (ML). But what I have heard is that ML could improve this limit but would decrease the quality of the video. Not good. Does anyone know how much it would increase the video? To summarise, which DSLR is out there with 20 mins + and how much? Is ML a good option? Do SD cards have any bearing on the length?

Thanks in advance

Dominic      

[ebiggs1]

The 5D Mk III can use exFAT.  So it can go beyond the 4GB limit of FAT32.  There would be some other problems making files much larger that 4GB anyway.

It sounds like what you want is a true video camera.  You are talking about DSLR cameras that shoot video.  They are not video cameras that shoot stills.

[MikeSowsun]

All of Canon's newest cameras will allow you to keep recording video even if you reach 4GB. They do not "Shutdown".  

The SL1, T4i, T5i, 6D, 70D, 5D Mk III, and 1Dx  will continue recording but split the video into separate 4GB files.

exFAT is only used with CF cards that are 128GB and larger.  The SL1 also uses exFAT so I assume all these newer cameras do as well.

This is what it says in the SL1 manual............

[ebiggs1]

The video limit on all modern DSLR cameras is 29:59 or 4GB,  whichever comes first.  This actually makes the 29:59 spec a useless one.  4GB is the limit.

A work-around is to use exFAT file system rather than FAT32, which allows files to exceed 4GB. The problem is that some cameras do not support this file format.  You will need to check on this as I think the T3i does not.

[DominicCrozet]

Thanks for the info. Much appreciated. Will check to see if it takes exFAT.

Kind regards

Dominic

[ebiggs1]

T3i does NOT.

[DominicCrozet]

Thanks for letting me know

[MikeSowsun]

According to Page 46 of the User's manual, your T3i does incorporate exFAT technology. The T2i and T3 also have it. 

But..... exFat allows you to use SD cards larger than 128G. It will not let you record video files larger than 4GB because the camera is not set up that way. Even the 5D Mk III and 1Dx can not record video files larger than 4GB.   

[MikeSowsun]

If you are comfortable using "Magic Lantern" firmware on your T3i, you could also try a newer offshoot called "Tragic Lantern".  Magic Lantern will not let you exceed the 4GB limit, but Tragic Lantern will.

More info here:  Tragic Lantern for T3i

And here:  Lengthen video recording time