p.9 #1 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
RustyRus wrote:
I just had my camera out skiing all day- About 20 degrees.
Took 3300 pictures- Only lost one small bar of power-
In and out of a backpack, never in the warm. Brought a spare battery and never needed it. Maybe it wasn’t cold enough. I never let it sleep, on and off.
Yeah I was shooting it around that temperature today and didn't notice issues, it seems like it really starts once you get around or below 0F. At -20F it was just borderline unusable, I've never seen batteries drain that quickly.
p.9 #2 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I've been in Yellowstone the last week with temps as low as - 19F, so I'll add my experience.
First day - batteries fully charged sat overnight at 10F. Shot in Lamar Valley at -19F for an hour with no issues.
Second day - batteries at 3/4 charge sat overnight at 15F. In the morning turned the camera on and batteries were nearly dead. Put them in my pocket to warm for 45 min while driving and they recovered. Lamar Valley was -10F and had no issues.
Third day - Fully charged the batteries and stored inside overnight. No issues at -14F.
p.9 #3 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I updated the camera to FW 1.0.2 but haven't noticed any change in cold weather battery performance.
Yesterday I was out in roughly -15˚C a couple times. First was maybe 30-45 minutes for a quick walk in the nearby woods and all equipment had been inside overnight and therefore was 'warm' at the start of the walk. About an hour later I visited a second location for about an hour. The second location was more exposed to windchill and the LPE6P battery was down to 17% after about 45 minutes and about 110 photos (all in ES). I was carrying my spare LPE6NH batteries in a waist pack and when I swapped out the P for an NH, the camera displayed a blinking red-bordered battery icon, indicating there was insufficient power to operate the camera. To finish my shoot at the second location, I had to swap the P back in because it at least still turned on the camera, and plugged in my USB power brick to power the camera until the end. It was interesting to note that when I tried to power the camera via USB with the red blinking NH battery installed, the camera would not turn on. So the internal battery needs to have at least enough charge to do that if you want to power from USB. Moving forward, in cold weather I'll probably plug in USB power from the beginning.
After some hours and the batteries had time to warm up again, the P showed about 40% charge remaining while the NH that was unable to power the camera, was at 96%.
p.9 #5 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
rscheffler wrote:
I updated the camera to FW 1.0.2 but haven't noticed any change in cold weather battery performance.
Yesterday I was out in roughly -15˚C a couple times. First was maybe 30-45 minutes for a quick walk in the nearby woods and all equipment had been inside overnight and therefore was 'warm' at the start of the walk. About an hour later I visited a second location for about an hour. The second location was more exposed to windchill and the LPE6P battery was down to 17% after about 45 minutes and about 110 photos (all in ES). I was carrying my spare LPE6NH batteries in a waist pack and when I swapped out the P for an NH, the camera displayed a blinking red-bordered battery icon, indicating there was insufficient power to operate the camera. To finish my shoot at the second location, I had to swap the P back in because it at least still turned on the camera, and plugged in my USB power brick to power the camera until the end. It was interesting to note that when I tried to power the camera via USB with the red blinking NH battery installed, the camera would not turn on. So the internal battery needs to have at least enough charge to do that if you want to power from USB. Moving forward, in cold weather I'll probably plug in USB power from the beginning.
After some hours and the batteries had time to warm up again, the P showed about 40% charge remaining while the NH that was unable to power the camera, was at 96%....Show more →
I also downloaded the firmware since our last wave of cold weather and did not see an improvement while shooting in single digits to below zero F this week in Alaska. Fully charged batteries reading one bar in a matter of two hours. I do regain a bar if warmed but for a camera of this level feel it's something that must be addressed. Shooters can't be rolling the dice on inaccurate battery readings when it's crunch time on the mountain. Especially when the predecessor had zero problem in comparison. This is a basic function.
p.9 #6 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I’ve been averaging 1.5hr in -10c conditions. Some time a little bit more, other times it’s barely over 1 hr - particularly when it’s around -15C.
It’s pretty ridiculous that they come out with a new camera and battery and cold weather performance is much worse than the R5.
I’m wondering if the additional ventilation they built in to address the overheating issue for video shooters has resulted in the poor cold weather performance
I was at Abraham lake for a sunrise shoot last weekend and I pretty much called it a day once the battery died. It was too cold to take of my gloves to change batteries.
What I find wierd is that the week before I was doing a sunset shoot in Banff, the battery was at red after an 75 min, but I was pretty much done, so I kept shooting. Whn I finished. It was blinking red. Around 3.5hrs later after dinner, the battery was showing two bars, but then died after 5 min of me reviewing the photos.
p.9 #7 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
khurram1 wrote:
I’ve been averaging 1.5hr in -10c conditions. Some time a little bit more, other times it’s barely over 1 hr - particularly when it’s around -15C.
It’s pretty ridiculous that they come out with a new camera and battery and cold weather performance is much worse than the R5.
I’m wondering if the additional ventilation they built in to address the overheating issue for video shooters has resulted in the poor cold weather performance
I was at Abraham lake for a sunrise shoot last weekend and I pretty much called it a day once the battery died. It was too cold to take of my gloves to change batteries.
What I find wierd is that the week before I was doing a sunset shoot in Banff, the battery was at red after an 75 min, but I was pretty much done, so I kept shooting. Whn I finished. It was blinking red. Around 3.5hrs later after dinner, the battery was showing two bars, but then died after 5 min of me reviewing the photos....Show more →
I forget where I am with this in my comments here, but if I previously posted that I thought the issue was resolved it was premature. Over time I continue to see this battery drain happening a lot. Sometimes it seems just a bit worse than the R5 and other times I'm shocked at how fast batteries deplete. My evidence is mostly anecdotal as I'm out in the field concentrating on other things. What I can say for sure is that I've missed several opportunities due to dead batteries in conditions where the R5 was completely reliable. I have taken the time to do some controlled testing between the R5 and R5II using both LP-E6NH and LP-E6P albeit in limited fashion. I have noticed in those tests that the R5II fares much worse than the R5 with either battery installed. There are reports on different forums from users claiming there is an issue and others claiming normal operation vs the R5. There definitely is something going on, but what it is remains unclear.
p.9 #8 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
EB-1 wrote:
Are you still unable to get P series batteries there?
They're available. The guy I shoot the hockey tournaments for has four for his R5II, though they're possibly not widely available because the original battery order he placed with the store where he bought the camera was just filled, a couple months later. In the meantime he had bought a few at another shop.
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NormQ wrote:
There are reports on different forums from users claiming there is an issue and others claiming normal operation vs the R5. There definitely is something going on, but what it is remains unclear.
This is interesting to read. I have not looked elsewhere for more info, but chatting today with the guy for whom I shoot the hockey tournaments, he stated that he's able to get roughly 2,000 shots per P battery in the BG-R20 grip at an average tournament. Most are not bone-chillingly cold like the one I shot a couple weeks ago, so perhaps don't quite impact battery performance like being outside in very cold weather for a couple hours.
That said, the tournament I shot today was slower paced and between games the camera was frequently able to warm up in the foyer of the arena. I still shot most of the day powered via USB, but for the last four games I used in-camera battery power. It was a P and NH in a BG-R10 grip. Battery status at the end was P at ~25% and 618 frames and the NH at ~50% and 153 frames. It's curious to see that the camera used the P battery significantly more than the NH. With my R6II and this BG-R10 grip, it usually drains each battery at about the same rate and shutter count, though that's with two NH batteries. Perhaps factors include mixing a P and NH, that the P was new and the NH was ~2 years old, and it was in the BG-R10?
I should clarify my previous post about the P battery dropping to 17% in 110 frames - that was without a vertical grip attached.
p.9 #9 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
rscheffler wrote:
They're available. The guy I shoot the hockey tournaments for has four for his R5II, though they're possibly not widely available because the original battery order he placed with the store where he bought the camera was just filled, a couple months later. In the meantime he had bought a few at another shop.
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This is interesting to read. I have not looked elsewhere for more info, but chatting today with the guy for whom I shoot the hockey tournaments, he stated that he's able to get roughly 2,000 shots per P battery in the BG-R20 grip at an average tournament. Most are not bone-chillingly cold like the one I shot a couple weeks ago, so perhaps don't quite impact battery performance like being outside in very cold weather for a couple hours.
That said, the tournament I shot today was slower paced and between games the camera was frequently able to warm up in the foyer of the arena. I still shot most of the day powered via USB, but for the last four games I used in-camera battery power. It was a P and NH in a BG-R10 grip. Battery status at the end was P at ~25% and 618 frames and the NH at ~50% and 153 frames. It's curious to see that the camera used the P battery significantly more than the NH. With my R6II and this BG-R10 grip, it usually drains each battery at about the same rate and shutter count, though that's with two NH batteries. Perhaps factors include mixing a P and NH, that the P was new and the NH was ~2 years old, and it was in the BG-R10?
I should clarify my previous post about the P battery dropping to 17% in 110 frames - that was without a vertical grip attached.
I think one of the reasons this is so difficult to pin down is that everyone has different use cases and different criteria for measuring battery life. For instance, you are describing shot count. I’m spending long periods hiking with sometimes long periods between raising the camera to my eye. I had read elsewhere that one user was noticing big differences when his hand was on the grip constantly vs just transporting the camera on a sling, whether it was sunny out and the camera body was absorbing rays, etc. When I started paying attention to this, I started noticing differences too. Some days at -10C I get acceptable battery life. Other days not. It seems that a lot more than ambient temperature needs to be considered. The -10C my camera experiences might be a lot different than yours or even from one outing to the next. What I can say without a doubt is that there is a big difference between the R5 and the R5II. I never worried about reliability or missed opportunities because of dead batteries with the R5 like I'm now experiencing with the R5II. One would think that the successor should have about equal performance in something as critical as battery life. Then again, we all screamed for more bells and whistles. Maybe this is the price.
p.9 #10 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I would be interested to know what settings you have for the menu item 'Auto Power Off Temperature'? High or Standard?
The internal temperature of der R5II drops faster than that from the R5 (Exiftool reads it in the raws). The last internal temperature I can read in the photos is 5°C before the battery shows empty. I think it is an internal sensor and maybe the 'Auto Power Temperature' menu has an influence also downwards.
When I keep the internal temperature above 10°C with use of the viewfinder or taking pictures, then the R5II lasts 1.5h an 500 pictures in cold weather (-6°C, ca 20F) otherwise on the tripod its 30mins with 2 pictures.
p.9 #11 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
isenegger wrote:
I would be interested to know what settings you have for the menu item 'Auto Power Off Temperature'? High or Standard?
The internal temperature of der R5II drops faster than that from the R5 (Exiftool reads it in the raws). The last internal temperature I can read in the photos is 5°C before the battery shows empty. I think it is an internal sensor and maybe the 'Auto Power Temperature' menu has an influence also downwards.
When I keep the internal temperature above 10°C with use of the viewfinder or taking pictures, then the R5II lasts 1.5h an 500 pictures in cold weather (-6°C, ca 20F) otherwise on the tripod its 30mins with 2 pictures.
Mine is set to standard. I have never changed or experimented with this setting, however. Edit: then again in thinking about this I don't believe it would have any impact. This is a setting for upper threshold.
p.9 #12 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
isenegger wrote:
I would be interested to know what settings you have for the menu item 'Auto Power Off Temperature'? High or Standard?
The internal temperature of der R5II drops faster than that from the R5 (Exiftool reads it in the raws). The last internal temperature I can read in the photos is 5°C before the battery shows empty. I think it is an internal sensor and maybe the 'Auto Power Temperature' menu has an influence also downwards.
When I keep the internal temperature above 10°C with use of the viewfinder or taking pictures, then the R5II lasts 1.5h an 500 pictures in cold weather (-6°C, ca 20F) otherwise on the tripod its 30mins with 2 pictures.
p.9 #14 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I really think this might be the case, the fact that the R5 Mark II is the only camera they currently have in their main (non-cinema) lineup that includes cooling vents seems like a huge red flag to me. I’d be curious if anyone’s attempted a side-by-side comparison between the R5 and R5C that also has cooling vents to see if similar issues occur. Using this camera in -20F in Minnesota was basically a non-starter for me and I just switched to the R1 for the rest of the trip after experiencing these issues on the first morning I was there. Pretty ludicrous and unacceptable for a $4300 camera IMO.
khurram1 wrote:
I’m wondering if the additional ventilation they built in to address the overheating issue for video shooters has resulted in the poor cold weather performance
p.9 #16 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
Tony5787 wrote:
I really think this might be the case, the fact that the R5 Mark II is the only camera they currently have in their main (non-cinema) lineup that includes cooling vents seems like a huge red flag to me. I’d be curious if anyone’s attempted a side-by-side comparison between the R5 and R5C that also has cooling vents to see if similar issues occur. Using this camera in -20F in Minnesota was basically a non-starter for me and I just switched to the R1 for the rest of the trip after experiencing these issues on the first morning I was there. Pretty ludicrous and unacceptable for a $4300 camera IMO.
I hadn't considered the vents. If it turns out to be the case it adds to what I've been saying for years. As a stills only shooter I'm a bit tired of paying the price for video features I never use. I haven't been following the thread that closely, but if you haven't reported this to Canon I think you should.
p.9 #17 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
RustyRus wrote:
Maybe this camera is really only meant for 32-104 degrees-
I shot a slow-paced 2-hour indoor event today and this is where the batteries were towards the end. IMO this is considerably worse battery life than I would expect. Maybe it's this specific camera?
p.9 #18 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
NormQ wrote:
I hadn't considered the vents. If it turns out to be the case it adds to what I've been saying for years. As a stills only shooter I'm a bit tired of paying the price for video features I never use. I haven't been following the thread that closely, but if you haven't reported this to Canon I think you should.
Just pause and think a minute about what is the difference in tech if the camera is shooting 30 fps RAW in pre-capture until you release the shutter or video recording 8K RAW at 30 fps.... is basically doing the same other than the file format. both will generate a huge amount of heat, both needs LCD, EVF, really fast card, same AF, both needs really fast readout, etc. Commercially it makes zero, really zero sense to do a R5 II still only, as the difference would be only the firmware. Video guy like me helps paying the development of this camera and lenses.
I now have 2 R5 II but before I had a R5 and R5c, the R5c uses battery like crazy (R5 II can stay on with LCD active for more than 2h where the R5c would do barely 1h) but I never noticed any big difference in cold weather, I have shoot at -25 C in Lapland with the R5c.
I have shoot so far with the R5 II ski, bob, rally on ice and a lot of Ice hockey and I did not notice any major drop but I 'm using it continuously so that maybe the reason, I will go to Alaska for filming ski and there is 10 min filming and 30+ min rest and so on I 'm curious to see if it will give me issues or not. I don't use any grip.
I doubt that are the vents, but you could test it with a bit of tape in cold weather and see if there is any difference.
p.9 #19 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
action99 wrote:
Just pause and think a minute about what is the difference in tech if the camera is shooting 30 fps RAW in pre-capture until you release the shutter or video recording 8K RAW at 30 fps.... is basically doing the same other than the file format. both will generate a huge amount of heat, both needs LCD, EVF, really fast card, same AF, both needs really fast readout, etc. Commercially it makes zero, really zero sense to do a R5 II still only, as the difference would be only the firmware. Video guy like me helps paying the development of this camera and lenses.
I now have 2 R5 II but before I had a R5 and R5c, the R5c uses battery like crazy (R5 II can stay on with LCD active for more than 2h where the R5c would do barely 1h) but I never noticed any big difference in cold weather, I have shoot at -25 C in Lapland with the R5c.
I have shoot so far with the R5 II ski, bob, rally on ice and a lot of Ice hockey and I did not notice any major drop but I 'm using it continuously so that maybe the reason, I will go to Alaska for filming ski and there is 10 min filming and 30+ min rest and so on I 'm curious to see if it will give me issues or not. I don't use any grip.
I doubt that are the vents, but you could test it with a bit of tape in cold weather and see if there is any difference. ...Show more →
I do not see a case where I would engage pre-capture to the extent or duration that a video shooter would be recording, but I get what you are saying. I suppose like many things it is user specific. I understand the need for appeal to a broad base of users which is a difficult balance. I think continuous use may be a factor. Using the battery causes it to heat up, so it creates somewhat of a self sustaining condition. Maybe letting the battery idle brings it to a point of no return. The vents may or may not be part of the issue, but I will try the experiment when time allows. There are more and more reports of this. Hopefully someone else will pick up on this thread and experiment a little also. The only thing I can say is that for myself like many users this is a real issue. I'd love a solution even if it is tape.
p.9 #20 · Canon R5 Mk II - battery issue in cold weather
I recent went out for owls in 16 degree weather and did 3342 images with precapture engaged. Only 1 battery and did not have the grip on. I feel that is pretty good myself.
