Why can't this camera turn on

[J.D.]

I'm shooting pick up shots for my feature length movie and the red will not boot up. It was 12 degrees outside this morning and we tried for 20 minutes to boot the camera. This caused me to miss a time sensitive shot. I finally had to give up and get the shot with an HVX...

Red camera; beautiful images, low dependability.

[Roberto Lequeux]

Temperature just might have played a factor but I know little to nothing about the power up issues, only read a few threads... were you getting anything on the screen? Was the camera outside for a while before you tried to power up?

[Nick Gardner]

How were you powering the camera? Low temps are really hard on batteries.

Nick

[Jeff Kilgroe]

If it was 12 degrees, the batteries were most likely the issue. Li-ION cells start to freeze at about 18 degrees Fahrenheit, will freeze completely solid at 0 degrees. Keep the batts warm or bring alternative power (genny w/ power conditioner). Keep your gear covered / protected in the cold. Wind chill can play a factor. Any heat generated by the camera, batteries, etc.. can be drawn out of the system or dissipated more quickly with increased wind / airflow. Just as the wind chill can increase the rate at which water will freeze on a road. You're in Iowa, so you should know... Sun warms the road, snow melts, air is below freezing, but warm road keeps water from freezing... Then wind blows across road, accelerating heat loss, water freezes almost instantly.

I've operated my camera in temps down to -19F, -28C. Had to keep the battery being used inside my coat and warm, other batteries kept in a thermal bag with warmers, usually inside a heated vehicle, tent, indoor location, etc... At about 0F and below, you will start to have other issues like the LCD giving you problems - attatch a hand warmer to the back of the LCD if it starts to act up. Don't try and use the RED Drive at temps below freezing, definitely not below 15F! Same with the EVF... Don't ever fire up a RED Drive or EVF if they have been acclimated to freezing temps, until they have normalized to ideal operating temps.

Ironically, I had more cold weather issues with my HVX than with my RED. But if the HVX would start, the batts usually generated enough head during operation that they never froze. Not all Li-Ion cells are equal, nor will the freeze at the exact same temperatures or at the same rate. I always had problems with the onboard LCD giving up in cold temps, usually at -4F and below. I destroyed tape mechanisms on both a Canon XL-1 and and JVC HD-100 by operating in temps at -24F to -28F. When it hits -30F, I go home.

[mikeburton]

I feel spoiled reading Jeff's post. It was 80 degrees this weekend in LA :-)

[hunterrichards]

Thanks for the tips Jeff, but so you know; I was there and the batteries were not cold but instead room temperature, we only went out to get that single shot and they didn't have time to get cold (I tried booting up the camera for 10 minutes in the car and then for at least 10 more minutes outside). We have had boot hangs off and on inside and outside. I made a post about this a few days ago but J.D. got really frustrated today and wanted to post as well I guess.

The funny thing is I tried to boot the camera just now and it booted up fine. I have used many different Red's from the low-serial numbers to the current serial numbers and all of them, at least once have had boot-up hangs- it just seems this particular one is on a bad streak which is odd because it has been working fine on the same build and same batteries for months.

This may be the last time I suggest using a Red One- at least until the new Red cameras come out and then I will gladly give them a second chance.

[Ivan G]

We've been shooting in temps between 0º to 20º without any issues. Had a buddy make a plastic tailored cover that keeps almost all the snow out and blocks the wind. Although we've had issues with LCD giving off some weird thick banding I'm sure to due to the cold.

[Jeff Kilgroe]

Thanks for the tips Jeff, but so you know; I was there and the batteries were not cold but instead room temperature, we only went out to get that single shot and they didn't have time to get cold (I tried booting up the camera for 10 minutes in the car and then for at least 10 more minutes outside). We have had boot hangs off and on inside and outside. I made a post about this a few days ago but J.D. got really frustrated today and wanted to post as well I guess.

So you experience regular boot hangs with this camera? What does RED have to say about that? Sounds more like there's a power issue or other problem and the cold may have been just enough on top of that to initiate a complete failure. Or perhaps it was even coincidental.

How old are your battery plates? As in when were they shipped? If the camera suffers from regular boot hangs or such issues, I'd be sending it to RED for evaluation. I've seen a few threads here and there where people complain about boot hangs. It's not a normal thing. My camera has done it like twice, total, ever. Once with B17 and once before with a B16 beta after resetting the clock, which seemed to be a firmware bug.


I feel spoiled reading Jeff's post. It was 80 degrees this weekend in LA :-)

Hehe. Actually, it's been rather warm and mild this wnter here. I have to venture into the mountains to really find the cold and snow. We did have one blast of cold move through the Denver area a bit over a month ago. First chance I had to really get the camera into the cold.

Anyway, it's kinda cold and windy today. It was like 62 degrees on saturday -- heat wave!.

I do the extreme temps on the other end too. First shooting I ever did with my RED after getting it, I was outside at an air show for 2 days straight at 102 degrees. Did some 118 degree fun in AZ last August. AZ sounds pretty good right about now. I should just leave the camera and computer behind and go play some golf. :)

[hunterrichards]

Right now I'm using a friends camera in the 4000's, it has been working fine but just this week it has been acting up- Im guessing its partly due to colder temperatures but today was coldest and even at 12 degrees, thats not really that cold. I had a camera in the early 1200's that was a dud when delivered but Red fixed it and everything worked perfectly. Its just kinda frustrating when a camera wont turn on when you need it to and there is nothing you can do about it but use another camera, ya know?

[Roberto Lequeux]

Ivan, please post more grabs!

[Shawn Nelson]

This doesn't sound right. Is this a new camera? Was it in the habit of normally booting up for you and then something went wrong or has it been like this since the day you got it?

[Ivan G]

Ivan, please post more grabs!

I'll attach a few more in the morning.

[mjeppsen]

I've run into boot issues with the Red One on several occasions. Just freezes during boot, sometimes requires multiple resets before it "catches" and boots on up. Anecdotally speaking, it seems to boot less consistently in cold weather, but will do it from time to time on climate-controlled indoor shoots.

[Nathan Garofalos]

Saturday I was shooting in 12 degree weather, everything was fine, but the LCD went blank when the camera was on. Had to put it in my jacket on my skin to warm it up for a bit. After that no problems minus an internal recording fault to the drive...