[MasMax]

Before continuing with my post I want to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and may this New Year be filled with happiness, health, and success.

Las night I took my k3 with the DA 55-300 lens to my roof to take some pics of the full moon, after mounting the camera to my tripod, turning off shake reduction and setting the shutter use the remote (with 3 sec delay) the camera started to behave strangely.

While setting up in manual mode the K3 suddenly started to go in and out of live view continuously all by itself. I did try turning the camera on and off a few times and this did not help, it would only stay in normal view for a few seconds then it would go back to switching between live view and normal. The camera would only stay on each mode for 2 or 3 second before switching.

This is the first time I have attempted to use the K3 on this type of a shot, but I have used the K3 extensively in the past few months in normal shooting scenarios and never had any problems.

Since I had the battery grip installed and mounted on the tripod, I did not try removing the battery to see if that would help.

Also, I did try taking some shots and when the shutter would fire it made a distinct sound not the normal shutter sound that the K3 makes, it reminded me of the sound that those old cube disposable flashes use to make.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regards,

George

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Last edited by MasMax; 12-26-2015 at 04:49 AM. Reason: Forgot to add the weird sound of the shutter

[Claudiu]

Before continuing with my post I want to wish everyone a very merry Christmas and may this New Year be filled with happiness, health, and success.

Las night I took my k3 with the DA 55-300 lens to my roof to take some pics of the full moon, after mounting the camera to my tripod, turning off shake reduction and setting the shutter use the remote (with 3 sec delay) the camera started to behave strangely.

While setting up in manual mode the K3 suddenly started to go in and out of live view continuously all by itself. I did try turning the camera on and off a few times and this did not help, it would only stay in normal view for a few seconds then it would go back to switching between live view and normal. The camera would only stay on each mode for 2 or 3 second before switching.

This is the first time I have attempted to use the K3 on this type of a shot, but I have used the K3 extensively in the past few months in normal shooting scenarios and never had any problems.

Since I had the battery grip installed and mounted on the tripod, I did not try removing the battery to see if that would help.

Also, I did try taking some shots and when the shutter would fire it made a distinct sound not the normal shutter sound that the K3 makes, it reminded me of the sound that those old cube disposable flashes use to make.

Any help would be appreciated.

Regards,

George

Bonnes fetes to all !

Try to see if it's the camera or the lens (try the same combination - camera with grip on the tripod but with other lens); if it's the same, try it in the autofocus mode, after that try without grip; check
the lens contact, check the battery, try without delay etc.

[hcc]

I am sorry for the issue. I never had this problem. But I had a few issues and the simplest/best solution was a hard reset:

Take off the battery, leave it outside the camera (you can recharge it) for all the night to discharge the internal battery(ies). Replace the fully charge battery.

You may need to re-enter your settings.

A hard reset work with many cameras (K-7, K-01, K-3).

Hope that the trick will help.

[JohnX]

Could be slow shutter speed noise reduction. Check Rec. Mode 3 in the menu.

'Long' exposures also record sensor noise.

Any exposure over 1 sec will be followed by another exposure of the same duration but with the shutter closed. The second shot records the internal sensor noise that occurs with 'long' exposures. The second frame (dark frame) is 'subtracted' from the first frame to reduce noise in the first frame .

[MasMax]

Bonnes fetes to all !

Try to see if it's the camera or the lens (try the same combination - camera with grip on the tripod but with other lens); if it's the same, try it in the autofocus mode, after that try without grip; check
the lens contact, check the battery, try without delay etc.

Thank you Claudiu, will do it this afternoon when I get home to see if I can re-create the problem and If I can will start changing things as you mentioned.

Will post again with the results.

---------- Post added 12-26-15 at 06:08 AM ----------

I am sorry for the issue. I never had this problem. But I had a few issues and the simplest/best solution was a hard reset:

Take off the battery, leave it outside the camera (you can recharge it) for all the night to discharge the internal battery(ies). Replace the fully charge battery.

You may need to re-enter your settings.

A hard reset work with many cameras (K-7, K-01, K-3).

Hope that the trick will help.

Thank you for your input hcc, I totally agree with you on the reset and that will most likely what I will do if I can't solve the problem this afternoon.

---------- Post added 12-26-15 at 06:19 AM ----------

Could be slow shutter speed noise reduction. Check Rec. Mode 3 in the menu.

'Long' exposures also record sensor noise.

Any exposure over 1 sec will be followed by another exposure of the same duration but with the shutter closed. The second shot records the internal sensor noise that occurs with 'long' exposures. The second frame (dark frame) is 'subtracted' from the first frame to reduce noise in the first frame .

Hey John, thanks for the insight. If I remember correctly I do have the slow speed noise reduction activated will try deactivating when I get home; perhaps that is cause of the weird sound that the shutter was making when I fired the shot, sounded like when a light bulb burns out and makes some sort of low muffled explosive sound.

Still, the live view and normal view mode switching really has me puzzled.

[derekkite]

Live view 3 second delay with remote will do the following on an ir trigger:

Go out of live view.
Delay, beep and flash red light on the back if set up that way.
Expose. Different sound than normal shutter exposure.
Slide out shutter assy and restart live view.

If the exposure is long it will also do a closed shutter exposure of the same length. I think it applies to longer exposures, usually moon shots aren't that long.

I sounds like it was working normally but getting an unexpected ir or trigger signal.

What are you using as a trigger? I'd look at that as a source of the problem. Newer phones have an ir transmitter and make a handy, always charged and easily found camera trigger.

Kite's rule of night shooting: setup and test your procedures somewhere illuminated before trying it in the dark.

[MasMax]

Live view 3 second delay with remote will do the following on an ir trigger:

Go out of live view.
Delay, beep and flash red light on the back if set up that way.
Expose. Different sound than normal shutter exposure.
Slide out shutter assy and restart live view.

If the exposure is long it will also do a closed shutter exposure of the same length. I think it applies to longer exposures, usually moon shots aren't that long.

I sounds like it was working normally but getting an unexpected ir or trigger signal.

What are you using as a trigger? I'd look at that as a source of the problem. Newer phones have an ir transmitter and make a handy, always charged and easily found camera trigger.

Kite's rule of night shooting: setup and test your procedures somewhere illuminated before trying it in the dark.

Thank you for your reply Derekkite, but originally I was never in live mode and the camera started switching back and forth into live mode by itself. I was using the Pentax remote as a trigger and I really never got a chance to correctly set up the exposure since having the camera switching back and forth prevented me from setting it up.

Also, I tested remote with time delay, remote without time delay and normal shutter and was still getting the switching into live mode and out of live mode.

BTW, I did have the rear IR sensor blinking continously.

Hopefully it's some sort of problem with my setup but if all else fails I will try a camera reset.

Kite's rule is totally correct and I can attest to that , hopefully when I get home I'll be able to check everything once again.

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Last edited by MasMax; 12-26-2015 at 09:41 AM.

[r0ckstarr]

By any chance, were you using 2 different brands of battery? Such as a Pentax battery and a 3rd party battery?

[MasMax]

By any chance, were you using 2 different brands of battery? Such as a Pentax battery and a 3rd party battery?

Actually was only using one battery, inside the camera, and it was the Pentax battery that came with my camera. I use the grip mostly for the ergonomics, I have big hands and with the grip the camera feels a lot more comfortable and secure in my hands.

[JohnX]

One other thought. Check the controls on the grip to ensure they're not accidently between settings.

[promacjoe]

The first thing you should check, is the battery grip power switch, Make sure it is turned off. For me, this switch being knocked on accidentally has caused more problems than anything else. So, if I have a problem with my K-3, I always check to make sure it is turned off first. that normally cures my problem.

[MasMax]

One other thought. Check the controls on the grip to ensure they're not accidently between settings.

The first thing you should check, is the battery grip power switch, Make sure it is turned off. For me, this switch being knocked on accidentally has caused more problems than anything else. So, if I have a problem with my K-3, I always check to make sure it is turned off first. that normally cures my problem.

John and promacjoe, I just finished trying to replicate the problem at home. I must have taken about 50 pictures at different shutter speeds, went up to 20 secs, using the remote with the battery grip installed and on the tripod and had no problems at all; even switched from the DA 55-300 to the 18-135 and still could not replicate the problem I had the night before.

Then I decided to move the tripod so I could take some pics of my dogs resting near the Christmas tree and suddenly I got the problem I had last night. The camera was again switching from live-view to normal view continuously, even tried to make some adjustments but was not able to get into the menus correctly since the live view screen would override the menu screen each time.

I removed the battery grip and when I turned the camera on it kept on doing the random switching, cleaned the contacts of the lens and no dice, each time I turned on the camera it would continue with the problem; replaced the lens with another one and the problem continued. Took out the battery and put it back in and the problem continued. Fired off some shots and the camera would make this loud muffled sound, actually it sounded more like an electrical problem than a mechanical one.

Finally I took out another spare battery that I had, the original battery that came with the camera, and replaced the battery that I was using, also original Pentax D-LI90E battery that I bought back in November, and the camera started to function normally again.

Took a few shots and all was working as it should be, then I switched to the battery that I was using before and the camera continued working correctly.

Unfortunately I had to go out with the family thus I could not continue with my testing but somehow I believe this is more an electrical problem because of the sound that the camera makes each time I take a picture when the ramdom live-view switching is happening.

Tomorrow I will continue to do more test, will use the original battery that came with the camera to see if I get the same error and also will turn off the slow shutter speed noise reduction, currently is on auto, to see what happens.

If all else fails, then I would do a hard reset and if that doesn't work I'll see about downgrading the firmware, from 1.21 to 1.11.

[bertwert]

for all the night to discharge the internal battery(ies).

The only internal battery is for the clock, and that lasts a long time (6 months maybe?).

Maybe this has something to do with it, in the mean time I need to see if I can find the link to the v1.11 firmware so I can download it and have it ready just in case.

Get the latest firmware 1.21.
Also you can't downgrade firmware on Pentax cameras.

[JohnX]

Here's a lateral thought. Could there be damage to the camera body - the base or lens mount or a control - which is allowing movement and bad connections when you're moving the camera/tripod around?

[MasMax]

Here's a lateral thought. Could there be damage to the camera body - the base or lens mount or a control - which is allowing movement and bad connections when you're moving the camera/tripod around?

That might be a possibility, I will carefully inspect the lens mount on the camera to see if I can spot anything but if there is any sort of movement then it has to be very minute because each time I change lenses I always double check to make sure it is correct and that there is no movement.

Got home a bit late last night and before going to bed I took the camera out to check it and the problem presented itself once again, what I did notice this time is that when I fired a shot (had it in my hands) I saw some light coming from the on-board flash area. At first I thought it was a spark or something but I fired another shot and it seems that the flash is firing even though it is not raised. This would explain why I get a muffled sound each time I take a picture under these conditions.

I raised the flash and took another shot but this time the flash did not fire. With the problem still present, I switched the camera from M mode to the green mode and voila, the continuos live view switching stopped but the camera was not working correctly.

Finally I exchanged the battery and the problem was gone, everything was working correctly once again. I did turn off the slow shutter speed noise reduction and took some more shots and no problem, then I raised the flash took a few more quick shots and all was working again.

It seems that there is definitely a problem in my settings that is causing the camera to become erratic under certain conditions, unfortunately I could not continue since it was very late and I had to go to bed.

Today I'm planning on doing a settings reset to see if this solves the problem.

---------- Post added 12-27-15 at 05:47 AM ----------

The only internal battery is for the clock, and that lasts a long time (6 months maybe?).

Get the latest firmware 1.21.
Also you can't downgrade firmware on Pentax cameras.

Thanks for the heads up bertwert, it's a shame that I can't downgrade the firmware at least I can do a camera settings reset to see if that solves the problem.

Unfortunately I'm already on FW 1.21, I had made a mistake thinking I was on 1.20.