Have you been encountering a standard error with your Canon 5D – namely, it switching off unprompted? It turns out this is a pretty common issue that a lot of Canon users are facing. However, the question now is how can this error be fixed?
When your Canon 5D camera keeps switching off, a few problems could be causing it – either the battery level or a power-saving mode. You can switch off power saving mode or recharge or replace your battery. This will help avoid the issue of the Canon 5D camera switching off by itself happening again.
So, to learn more about maintaining and adequately taking care of your Canon 5D camera, keep reading this article! We’ll tell you all you need to know about maintaining a healthy battery and managing the camera’s power-saving mode.
Why Does My Canon 5D Keep Switching Off?
So, you must be wondering – why does my Canon 5D keep switching off? Is the entire camera facing damage of some sort? Worst of all, you might think it is time to replace the camera. This is a massive undertaking as a Canon camera can be a considerable investment for many photographers. Fortunately, that is an extreme you don’t have to consider yet. Instead, try fixing the following issues before you look into a replacement.
Check Battery Levels
As all photographers might know, there is no part of the photography gear that handles as much of a burden as the battery. This is why it is so common for photographers to see wear and tear in a battery faster than anything else that they have.
Canon created a new item to their menu to tackle this, called the Battery Info section. This is an essential part of the new menu, which allows people to examine how much battery is left, the short-term and long-term life of the battery, and even more information.
The Benefit Of The Battery Info Screen
When you open up the Battery Info option in the menu, you can see three items:
- Remaining capacity: one of the first items you will see is the battery’s remaining capacity. This is detected using a sensor inside the circuit that lets you detect the percentage of charge remaining by each percent. In some cameras, there are also graphical representations of the remaining battery.
- Shutter count: This item in the menu is the number of times you have used the shutter for photography within this charge. You can use this information to check how many still images you can capture in a single battery charge.
- Recharge performance: This is one of the most crucial pieces of information you can get from this menu. This part of the menu helps you see the battery’s condition and expected battery life.
You can use this information to see how well your battery is performing. If your battery level is low, you should charge the camera. However, if your recharge performance level shows that the battery is damaged, you will have to replace it with a new Canon battery.
Switch Off Power Saving
Now that you are aware of the battery status of your camera, you can look at the next possible option. In the case that your camera battery is still working well, you will need to check and see that the Power Saving Mode is not on.
Every Canon camera comes with a mode to help you conserve energy. So, when you aren’t using the camera for a certain amount of time, the camera’s monitor and the power itself might switch off. This is an automatic setting, and it has these settings by default. When you are shooting, the indicator on your Canon 5D will switch to green after one minute, and after another minute, the power switches off.
You can switch the camera back on by pressing any other button than the power button when the indicator is green. However, after that, you can switch the camera on as usual.
When you have the camera connected to a printer or a computer, the camera will power off after five minutes. This happens only when you do not use the camera for these five minutes. You can switch the camera back on using the power button.
How To Switch Off Power Saving Mode
You can prevent the camera from switching off entirely when you follow the given steps below:
- Switch on your Canon 6D camera using the power button.
- Select the Menu button.
- Select the Setup tab on the menu.
- Navigate to Power Saving.
- From here, you will see the option ‘Auto Power Down.’
- You can switch this off by setting the option to Off.
- Press the Menu button again to back and resume using the camera.
Maintenance Tips For Your Canon 5D Camera
If you want to be able to keep using your Canon 5D camera and not see issues like this pop-up, we recommend that you invest time in maintaining it. Here are some of the recommendations we see that will help you elongate your Canon camera’s life.
One of the most sensitive and fragile camera components is the sensor. You can accidentally trap dust in the camera sensor when you change lenses. It would help if you always kept the sensors healthy and safe, mainly to keep them away from dust.
Experts recommend that you have a professional clean your sensors now and then to avoid messing them up with a DIY clean. This can help maintain affordability in the long run as sensors are hardly inexpensive. You can also help keep your sensors safe by storing your camera in a clean and safe place. A great way to do this is to vacuum your camera bags often.
Conclusion
Having your Canon 6D camera shutting off unexpectedly can be pretty jarring. However, if these two fixes take care of your problem, it was likely just a one-off fluke. If this issue keeps happening, we recommend that you reach out to a Canon service center or customer support agent for assistance.