I finally dunked my tripod with camera and all at the blue hole today. I am not sure how it happened really. It seemed sturdy but when I got up to move a branch down it went. I caught it just in time to watch it submerge. The LCD screen was still showing info as I yanked it off the tripod and got the battery out as quick as possible. The camera is weathersealed so maybe that will help. Funny thing is that the lens is not weathersealed and it appears to be really dry and looks great. I took the bottom cover off and cracked the top cover and it is hanging out on a fan right now so maybe it will make it. I'll know after a couple days of drying.
Posted by drew resnik on January 23, 2010 at 4:01 PM
Fingers crossed for ya!
Posted by Isaac Szabo on January 23, 2010 at 4:31 PM
Matt, I've dealt with cameras that stopped working due to getting wet/submerged several times, and I have always got them working again. The first time it happened to me was exactly what you described: I had my D70 on a tripod in a stream, and it fell over. The camera was submerged for only a second before I grabbed it.
It sounds like you're doing exactly the right things: removing the battery right away and opening the camera up to let it dry out. Did you see any moisture in the camera when you opened it up? If so, I would recommend opening your camera up as much as you are comfortable with to let it dry out as well as possible. Also, it could help to use heat to help drive off the moisture. Maybe put the camera on top of a heater vent, in front of a space heater, etc. - just don't let the camera get too hot.
With your camera being weather-sealed and only being submerged for a second, I would be surprised if much water got into the camera - but it is good your being so cautious. I'm fairly confident that your camera will work just fine after it has dried out a day or two.
there was a little water inside but not just soaking wet.I have it opened up pretty far. Any more and I would have to start unhooking wires and decharging the flash capacitor and I really don't want to mess with all that. I think enough air is getting through. I do have a small space heater with a thermostat set to 72 degrees right next to the fan. It is adding just a little warmth the the air. The shutter was just a little moist when I took the lens off. I am hoping the sensor stayed dry and no water drops dried on it. A sensor cleaning would be cheaper than a new camera though.
Hardest thing right now is resisting the temptation to stick the battery in and see what happens.
Posted by Scott Bean on January 23, 2010 at 5:28 PM
Matt,
I dunked a 20D with a battery grip and lens in almost the exact situation as happened to you. I had been shooting at Pillsbury for awhile and everything seemed nice and solid, I turned to the bank to get another lens and the tripod tipped over. The 20D is not water sealed at all and even though it was under water only a second or two, it was flooded with water, behind the lens, in the battery compartment, everywhere. I made the mistake of not instantly turning it off and I fiddled with it in the field for a few minutes. I had to send it back to Canon and basically have all the electronic guts replaced. So don't give into the temptation to put the battery back in until you are sure it is good and dry!!
I stuck the battery in and this is what happened, http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2716/4298289537_452b73d7f7_o.jpg A nicely exposed, perfectly focused, clean looking image from the camera. Woohooo. It is still going to be drying all night just in case but the fact that it still works and looks like it doesn't need to be sent off to Pentax is just amazing to me. I am pretty excited.
Posted by Isaac Szabo on January 23, 2010 at 7:02 PM
That's great news, Matt. I guess it didn't take you too long to give in to that temptation.
I knew someone would say that. I inspected it pretty thoroughly and felt confident that it was dry. It will need a good sensor cleaning though, I found a few spots on it.
Posted by Aaron Szabo on January 23, 2010 at 8:12 PM
I'm glad your camera is not screwed! That would have been sad considering how your last SLR was stolen...
Isaac and I were doing some underwater photography in Florida 6 months ago or so and his underwater housing had a slow leak and ended up having 1 inch of "salt" water sloshing around inside of the housing for quite a while. It was making weird grinding sounds and was flickering the LCD. He opened it up and cleaned most of the corrosion that happened almost instantly, but the LCD never worked again. But the handy man replaced the LCD with a new one and it worked fine ever since...
Oh, If anyone ever needs a camera converted to a real Infrared camera, get ahold of Isaac because he does this all the time.
Funny thing Aaron, last year I bought a new computer and a week later my camera was stolen. This year Rachel and I bought a new laptop and a week later my camera does a Michael Phelps impersonation. Seems like a need to stay away from computers. You know with a little knowledge tearing into a DSLR isn't as hard as people think. Although an old mechanical one like a K1000 can be scary to open up. Lots of gears and springs and pieces of string to make everything work. From what I have heard about Isaac he sounds a little like a mad camera scientist. $200 sounds like a pretty good deal for an IR conversion. I'd love to run across a few extra bucks and an old Pentax DSLR for him.
Zach yea it was a real bummer I was actually pretty pissed off all day, I tried my best not to ruin a good time for everyone else though. I think you may be surprised how dry it actually is. My big fan plus the little heater really made quick work of everything.
Posted by Scott Bean on January 23, 2010 at 10:23 PM
Matt,
That's great that your camera is working!
I think my bill for repairs on my 20D was around $600...that was for replacing all the guts of the camera, a battery grip, and cleaning and repairing a lens. This was right after the 20D came out so the repair was less than half of a new camera and grip.
If you ever visit Pillsbury Crossing you can still hear the echo's of my cry of "Noooooooooooooooo" as I watched my tripod tip over that day.
I didn't scream out loud but a different word went through my head, I believe it started with an S. It makes me feel better that I am not alone in this.
Posted by Scott Bean on January 24, 2010 at 12:12 PM
Well the first word I screamed was "no" as I watched the tripod tip over. Many other 4 letter words followed. I'm sure if you listen carefully at Pillsbury you can still hear there echo as well!
Posted by Mike Hall on January 24, 2010 at 2:07 PM
I always figured that you would fall in with the camera while wading (running), not take the plunge from a tripod. Watching you splash thru streams is fun as long you don't wonder off into my frame! Can't wait till the spring gathering to watch your endeless energy splashing thru the streams.
Glad the camera/lens survived!
Posted by Darren Huski on January 24, 2010 at 5:09 PM
Glad there was a good ending to that!!
Posted by John Moore on January 25, 2010 at 9:01 PM
Discussion
16 replieshttp://farm3.static.flickr.com/2780/4298670976_b437ea6ef4_b.jpg
I finally dunked my tripod with camera and all at the blue hole today. I am not sure how it happened really. It seemed sturdy but when I got up to move a branch down it went. I caught it just in time to watch it submerge. The LCD screen was still showing info as I yanked it off the tripod and got the battery out as quick as possible. The camera is weathersealed so maybe that will help. Funny thing is that the lens is not weathersealed and it appears to be really dry and looks great. I took the bottom cover off and cracked the top cover and it is hanging out on a fan right now so maybe it will make it. I'll know after a couple days of drying.
It sounds like you're doing exactly the right things: removing the battery right away and opening the camera up to let it dry out. Did you see any moisture in the camera when you opened it up? If so, I would recommend opening your camera up as much as you are comfortable with to let it dry out as well as possible. Also, it could help to use heat to help drive off the moisture. Maybe put the camera on top of a heater vent, in front of a space heater, etc. - just don't let the camera get too hot.
With your camera being weather-sealed and only being submerged for a second, I would be surprised if much water got into the camera - but it is good your being so cautious. I'm fairly confident that your camera will work just fine after it has dried out a day or two.
Hardest thing right now is resisting the temptation to stick the battery in and see what happens.
I dunked a 20D with a battery grip and lens in almost the exact situation as happened to you. I had been shooting at Pillsbury for awhile and everything seemed nice and solid, I turned to the bank to get another lens and the tripod tipped over. The 20D is not water sealed at all and even though it was under water only a second or two, it was flooded with water, behind the lens, in the battery compartment, everywhere. I made the mistake of not instantly turning it off and I fiddled with it in the field for a few minutes. I had to send it back to Canon and basically have all the electronic guts replaced. So don't give into the temptation to put the battery back in until you are sure it is good and dry!!
Hope it turns out okay.
Scott
Isaac and I were doing some underwater photography in Florida 6 months ago or so and his underwater housing had a slow leak and ended up having 1 inch of "salt" water sloshing around inside of the housing for quite a while. It was making weird grinding sounds and was flickering the LCD. He opened it up and cleaned most of the corrosion that happened almost instantly, but the LCD never worked again. But the handy man replaced the LCD with a new one and it worked fine ever since...
Oh, If anyone ever needs a camera converted to a real Infrared camera, get ahold of Isaac because he does this all the time.
Here's his eBay conversion service page: http://cgi.ebay.com/Infrared-IR-Conversion-Service-for-Digital-Cameras_W0QQitemZ190352097629QQcmdZViewItemQQptZDigital_Cameras?hash=item2c51de815d#ht_3509wt_1027
Zach yea it was a real bummer I was actually pretty pissed off all day, I tried my best not to ruin a good time for everyone else though. I think you may be surprised how dry it actually is. My big fan plus the little heater really made quick work of everything.
That's great that your camera is working!
I think my bill for repairs on my 20D was around $600...that was for replacing all the guts of the camera, a battery grip, and cleaning and repairing a lens. This was right after the 20D came out so the repair was less than half of a new camera and grip.
If you ever visit Pillsbury Crossing you can still hear the echo's of my cry of "Noooooooooooooooo" as I watched my tripod tip over that day.
Glad the camera/lens survived!