115,000 Shutter Actuations Finally Killed It

**DRabbit** · 03-24-2014, 07:51 PM

If any of you have been following my K3 problems, you'll already know I've, conversely, had a great experience with the K5-II. It has been super solid... not a single error or problem in all the time-lapse shooting (or any shooting) I've been doing.

Well today, I finally killed it. I was up over 110,000 shutter actuations... probably closer to 115,000... and it just died completely. Won't focus, won't take a photo, and only powers up with a sad little repetitive sound when you try to do anything.

Not at all unexpected since I'm pretty sure it's only rated up to 100,000 shutter actuations... and it have served me VERY well. I felt a little sad when in failed to work no more.

Hopefully the two K5-IIs bodies I just bought will serve me just as well...

calculator01 · 03-24-2014, 08:02 PM

In a weird way, congratulations. I dream of killing a DSLR through high shutter count. Sucks it died, but you got a ton of usage out of it, and that's what matters.

Best of luck with the new ones!

**interested_observer** · 03-24-2014, 08:19 PM

Did you acquire a Pentax extended warranty with it? You should be within 3 years of purchase.

**DRabbit** · 03-24-2014, 09:18 PM

Originally posted by interested_observer

Did you acquire a Pentax extended warranty with it? You should be within 3 years of purchase.

I have bought the extended warranty on the two new K5-IIs bodies I picked up... but the K5-II was actually a loaner from Pentax because of all the issues I've had.

**bkpix** · 03-24-2014, 09:47 PM - **2 Likes**

OK, there's a perverse form of justice that Pentax owns the K-5II...

danny09 · 03-24-2014, 10:05 PM

Amy
I highly recommend getting a weather sealed shutter less camera for your profession. These DSLRs, not matter from Nikon,Canon or anyone, are not gonna last very long for you.

Giklab · 03-24-2014, 10:26 PM

Oh, but the K-3 is rated to 150 000...

**DRabbit** · 03-24-2014, 10:27 PM

Danny...

I don't know enough about "shutterless cameras" to comment, other than to say that most point-and-shoot cameras (cheaper shutterless cameras) would present their own set of problems, and I'm sure, would not prove as solidly reliable. Battery life would be dismal (I don't often have access to AC power). Higher ISO performance would be poor. Just to name a few.

And spending thousands on custom, industrial, shutterless cameras isn't going to make much sense either.

Chances are, I'm going to kill the shutters in about 4 months. If I have the extended warranty, that should cover it. From what I understand, even if I don't have the warranty, $300ish should replace the shutter. It's just the cost for what I'm doing, and I've accepted it (for now).

If you (or anyone) has a better suggestion, I'm definitely open to it.

---------- Post added 03-25-14 at 12:28 AM ----------

Originally posted by Giklab

Oh, but the K-3 is rated to 150 000...

Yeah, but with the K3 I couldn't get anywhere near that without other issues... like constant lockups. LOL

**geomez** · 03-25-2014, 12:13 AM

Originally posted by DRabbit

but the K5-II was actually a loaner from Pentax because of all the issues I've had.

hilarious!

adwb · 03-25-2014, 01:40 AM

Amy, I can't even begin to imagine what you photograph to mange that number of shutter actuations in that timespan but even more where do you find the time to edit them all?

**interested_observer** · 03-25-2014, 01:48 AM

I hope that they give you another loaner for the loaner. If they are not able to find a solution quickly, you can then kill another loaner.

**DRabbit** · 03-25-2014, 07:31 AM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by geomez

hilarious!

It is kinda funny - LOL - but I will say, it's certainly proved to me that the K5-II is one reliable camera!

Originally posted by adwb

Amy, I can't even begin to imagine what you photograph to mange that number of shutter actuations in that timespan but even more where do you find the time to edit them all?

I'm shooting time-lapse professionally. Yesterday, I was at a job site for 7 hours and probably took about 8,500 shots. I'll process them today to convert them to video and make any color corrections after it's converted. I do not go through each photo and make corrections. As you can imagine, it's important to get the exposure right when I'm shooting.

Here's an example I shot about 2 weeks ago:

You Tube

Originally posted by interested_observer

I hope that they give you another loaner for the loaner. If they are not able to find a solution quickly, you can then kill another loaner.

Yeah, I'm not counting on another loaner. The loaner was in place because of all the problem I had locally with my retailer due to a repair debacle with my original K5. They had screwed me up big-time back in August, and Pentax stepped in to help smooth things over... that was even before I bought the K3 and started having all the issues with it. Then, when the K3 adventure began, Pentax told me to hold onto it until the issue was resolved - but for me, that happened last week when I returned the 2nd K3 and got two K5-IIs bodies instead. I was likely going to have to send the loaner back within the next week or so anyway. That's assuming I have no issues with the K5-IIs bodies of course, but based on the solid performance of the K5-II, I don't expect to.

**niceshot** · 03-26-2014, 07:47 PM

IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses . Otherwise I hope you are getting paid well and then it is just an Expense you have to pay.

Steve.Ledger · 03-26-2014, 07:50 PM

Originally posted by niceshot

IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses .

K-01 is 'mirrorless' - it still has a mechanical shutter.

**DRabbit** · 03-26-2014, 07:53 PM

Originally posted by niceshot

IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses . Otherwise I hope you are getting paid well and then it is just an Expense you have to pay.

The K-01 isn't shutterless. Mirrorless does not equal shutterless. I actually have a K-01 already. It was a cheap backup body to buy, and I actually like it for some of my static, wide-angle, tripod shots.

I can't speak to it specifically since I don't know that much about shutterless cameras, but what I do know is that the ones that seem more affordable (ie. point-and-shoot cameras) present their own set of problems, like bad high ISO performance or terrible battery life. Plus shutterless doesn't necessarily mean more durable. Other reliability issues could crop up.

From what I figure, the shutter probably costs about $300 to replace (if not covered under warranty). The camera body is $799. In a year's time, if I have to replace the shutter three times, that's a total investment of $1699. For a working photographer, I don't think that's unreasonable at all. And that's only if it's not covered under warranty.

03-24-2014, 07:51 PM	#1
DRabbit Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 593	115,000 Shutter Actuations Finally Killed It If any of you have been following my K3 problems, you'll already know I've, conversely, had a great experience with the K5-II. It has been super solid... not a single error or problem in all the time-lapse shooting (or any shooting) I've been doing. Well today, I finally killed it. I was up over 110,000 shutter actuations... probably closer to 115,000... and it just died completely. Won't focus, won't take a photo, and only powers up with a sad little repetitive sound when you try to do anything. Not at all unexpected since I'm pretty sure it's only rated up to 100,000 shutter actuations... and it have served me VERY well. I felt a little sad when in failed to work no more. Hopefully the two K5-IIs bodies I just bought will serve me just as well...

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03-24-2014, 08:02 PM	#2
calculator01 Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Edmonton, Alberta Photos: Albums Posts: 817	In a weird way, congratulations. I dream of killing a DSLR through high shutter count. Sucks it died, but you got a ton of usage out of it, and that's what matters. Best of luck with the new ones!

03-24-2014, 08:19 PM	#3
interested_observer Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tumbleweed, Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,707	Did you acquire a Pentax extended warranty with it? You should be within 3 years of purchase.

03-24-2014, 09:18 PM	#4
DRabbit Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 593 Original Poster	Originally posted by interested_observer Did you acquire a Pentax extended warranty with it? You should be within 3 years of purchase. I have bought the extended warranty on the two new K5-IIs bodies I picked up... but the K5-II was actually a loaner from Pentax because of all the issues I've had.

03-24-2014, 09:47 PM - 2 Likes	#5
bkpix Site Supporter Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Creswell, Oregon Photos: Albums Posts: 570	OK, there's a perverse form of justice that Pentax owns the K-5II...

03-24-2014, 10:05 PM	#6
danny09 Veteran Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: SF Bay Area Posts: 417	Amy I highly recommend getting a weather sealed shutter less camera for your profession. These DSLRs, not matter from Nikon,Canon or anyone, are not gonna last very long for you.

03-24-2014, 10:26 PM	#7
Giklab Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Slovenia Photos: Gallery Posts: 2,182	Oh, but the K-3 is rated to 150 000...

03-24-2014, 10:27 PM	#8
DRabbit Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 593 Original Poster	Danny... I don't know enough about "shutterless cameras" to comment, other than to say that most point-and-shoot cameras (cheaper shutterless cameras) would present their own set of problems, and I'm sure, would not prove as solidly reliable. Battery life would be dismal (I don't often have access to AC power). Higher ISO performance would be poor. Just to name a few. And spending thousands on custom, industrial, shutterless cameras isn't going to make much sense either. Chances are, I'm going to kill the shutters in about 4 months. If I have the extended warranty, that should cover it. From what I understand, even if I don't have the warranty, $300ish should replace the shutter. It's just the cost for what I'm doing, and I've accepted it (for now). If you (or anyone) has a better suggestion, I'm definitely open to it. ---------- Post added 03-25-14 at 12:28 AM ---------- Originally posted by Giklab Oh, but the K-3 is rated to 150 000... Yeah, but with the K3 I couldn't get anywhere near that without other issues... like constant lockups. LOL

03-25-2014, 12:13 AM	#9
geomez Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Roanoke, Virginia, USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,760	Originally posted by DRabbit but the K5-II was actually a loaner from Pentax because of all the issues I've had. hilarious!

03-25-2014, 01:40 AM	#10
adwb Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Bristol UK Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,636	Amy, I can't even begin to imagine what you photograph to mange that number of shutter actuations in that timespan but even more where do you find the time to edit them all?

03-25-2014, 01:48 AM	#11
interested_observer Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Tumbleweed, Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 5,707	I hope that they give you another loaner for the loaner. If they are not able to find a solution quickly, you can then kill another loaner.

03-26-2014, 07:47 PM	#13
niceshot Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,565	IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses . Otherwise I hope you are getting paid well and then it is just an Expense you have to pay.

03-26-2014, 07:50 PM	#14
Steve.Ledger Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Far North Qld Posts: 3,301	Originally posted by niceshot IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses . K-01 is 'mirrorless' - it still has a mechanical shutter.

03-26-2014, 07:53 PM	#15
DRabbit Site Supporter Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Long Island, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 593 Original Poster	Originally posted by niceshot IT Seems the man who told you to go shutter less is correct . how about the ko1. it is SLR like and will use all of your lenses . Otherwise I hope you are getting paid well and then it is just an Expense you have to pay. The K-01 isn't shutterless. Mirrorless does not equal shutterless. I actually have a K-01 already. It was a cheap backup body to buy, and I actually like it for some of my static, wide-angle, tripod shots. I can't speak to it specifically since I don't know that much about shutterless cameras, but what I do know is that the ones that seem more affordable (ie. point-and-shoot cameras) present their own set of problems, like bad high ISO performance or terrible battery life. Plus shutterless doesn't necessarily mean more durable. Other reliability issues could crop up. From what I figure, the shutter probably costs about $300 to replace (if not covered under warranty). The camera body is $799. In a year's time, if I have to replace the shutter three times, that's a total investment of $1699. For a working photographer, I don't think that's unreasonable at all. And that's only if it's not covered under warranty.