[mamethot]

Thought I would let you know that I shot 2 time lapses in movie mode and did not experience the syndrom yet.

Crossing fingers...

[colescuttle]

Thought I would let you know that I shot 2 time lapses in movie mode and did not experience the syndrom yet.

Crossing fingers...

Thanks for responding. Your experience is encouraging. Did you avail yourself of the warranty hardware fix and/or are you using 1.11?

George

[johnmflores]

In regards to the runaway/crazy mirror problem being tracked here, Amy's posts both here and and on Steve Huff's blog (where she is a regular contributor) have done much to create the appearance of a pervasive flaw. While there is no doubt regarding Amy's experience and that there are K-3 bodies with this problem out there, it is my impression that the incidence is far less than the K-5 mirror flop and sensor stain issues that characterized that model's first couple years of service and that the K-3 is one of the more dependable cameras out there. Of the dozen or so K-3 owners that I know well from this forum, none of us has experienced this problem. I would have expected that at least one of the bunch would have been unlucky if the incidence was even 10%. I know that it is not a valid sampling (in much the same way as this thread), but the serial number data base for the K-3 might be a good indication of incidence of trouble-free K-3 bodies:

Pentax K-3 Serial Numbers - Pentax Serial Number Database - PentaxForums.com

Steve

This is an interesting point. I once reviewed a scooter where halfway through a trip the speedometer cable broke. I thought about including that in the final review but then I paused and thought about it. This was a press vehicle that no doubt had a hard life-could the broken cable be a one-off issue or a production flaw that afflicted many of the scooters?

There was another time when a press bike was not smooth within a certain RPM range. And other times when I rode a press bike that owners online had reported rear drive failures but I did not have experience on the same model. Sample variation does exist.

In each case I thought hard about what to write and what to exclude in the review. I scoured online forum and other reviews to see if others had reported on the issue. I asked the manufacturer questions. Ultimately, I was driven to present as accurate a picture to the readers as possible; that's a responsibility I feel as a writer of a review that will be read by tens of thousands of readers. So I didn't write about the speedometer cable. I did mention the rough running motor but did mention, based on my research, that it was not a widely-reported problem and when reviewing the following year's model that it was much smoother. And even though I didn't have a problem with the rear drive, I believe I mentioned that others did and encouraged potential buyers to do their own research. I try to do right by my reader's. My reputation depends upon it.

It's all too common these days for news organizations to strive to be first with something because of the ratings and eyeballs it will garner. Even if that comes at the expense of being accurate. But being accurate is often much harder (and always takes more time) than it looks. And I too am faced with deadline and budget pressures and often have to go to press with my best understanding at the moment. There are a of greys between the black and white.

I write this not as a criticism of Amy in any way-I've only peeked into this thread from time to time and do not recall reading her report on Steve Huff's blog. I just wanted to provide some insight into how I write and report on such things.

My $.02.

[mamethot]

Thanks for responding. Your experience is encouraging. Did you avail yourself of the warranty hardware fix and/or are you using 1.11?

George

1.11 only.

[Darrell Raw]

Software version 1.11, TAV mode, shooting multiple consecutive images against a back-lit subject. D FA 100mm WR lens. Mirror flutter occurred, then the camera reset itself almost immediately and I had an unreadable image on the card. Continued to work after that. Guess the fix in v1.11 does what it says on the tin "Added automatic reset function when detecting rarely occur abnormal motion of the sequence. (When automatic reset function is operated, latest setting will be reset)"

To be honest, that's just not good enough in my opinion - it's a workaround that still leaves me potentially missing a once-in-a-lifetime shot. In addition the camera reset to settings I'd used earlier that day, but did not restore the settings I was currently using.

[danny09]

Thanks for the update. So the Firmware 1.11 does work. No fix by any means. Rather a hassle. Seems it leaves user stranded in the middle of the shoot with his settings reset. That is not nice. Does it wipe out User 1, User 2 settings also?

[phatio]

You are right but at least I feel confident in leaving the camera alone when shooting a time lapse as I know it won't be damaged. It is a first step to avoid a big risk. Hope pentax finds a fix, but I am afraid it is not easy, it must be an hardware failure due to overhheating. In fact my feeling is that the K3 fails in this sickness when stressed.

[Darrell Raw]

I don't think it's stress related, only 2 of the 4 failures I've had could even remotely be considered stressful situations. The two were multiple sequential shots (not in burst mode, just pressing the button several times rapidly). The other two were on single shots.

Does it wipe out User 1, User 2 settings also?

Sorry, I have no idea. Have not set anything up on those.

---------- Post added 09-16-14 at 03:32 PM ----------

Thanks for the update. So the Firmware 1.11 does work. No fix by any means. Rather a hassle. Seems it leaves user stranded in the middle of the shoot with his settings reset.

Also I should mention that I had just changed the settings two or three shots before the issue occurred, it reset to the settings I had used just prior - it's possible it takes some time for the camera to store the settings and the flapping simply happened before it could, it is basically a computer after all and could have been held in "flash" memory which got reset along with the camera. It seemed to almost completely power down then boot back up when the fix kicked in.

[stevebrot]

Thanks for the update. So the Firmware 1.11 does work.

I would say that the firmware works, but as a hack, not as a solution. I would suggest that a service visit might still be the best option.


Steve

[BarryE]

Darrell's experience probably similar to mine with V1.11 (reported earlier in this thread). I got a blank frame. Never had one before or since. I did not notice any reset of settings, probably as I tend to change settings regularly and am thinking new settings for each shoot. Didn't hear or feel anything, either.

I've had one mirror flap incident at v1.02, and then this blank frame. At this stage I'm guessing that this fix is a workaround that works. I've worked in the s/ware industry for many years and workarounds are common, especially when dealing with complicated hardware - the user never knows or cares.

I'm more than happy living with this very nice camera ...

[philbaum]

Here's a video demonstration of how an aperture control malfunction can cause mirror flop:

How a malfunctioning aperture mechanism can cause mirror flop in Pentax DSLRs - YouTube

--DragonLord

Just because you found 1 way to induce mirror flop doesn't mean thats the only way mirror flop is induced, or that it is the cause of flopping reported by others. Interesting definitely, but not conclusive.

Side note. When computers take over what used to be a mechanical function, then the computer chip must have sensors to work with it to tell it what's going on. Example: Friend had a corvette 15 years ago, it would occasionally die in the middle of an intersection after startup from a dead stop. No shop could repair it. Finally sold the car in desperation because it couldn't be fixed. Subsequent owner had the problem fixed by replacing some defective sensor in the car - forget which.

So what's going on here - perhaps its the aperture sensor, shutter sensor, mirror sensor or some other sensor which is not sending out the expected signal.

---------- Post added 09-21-14 at 01:23 PM ----------

Never had a problem with any other Pentax camera or K3, but yesterday was taking a shot in aperture or shutter program mode, and the shutter then went into a continuous flopping mode, even though i turned it off. Flopping didn't cease until i removed the battery. Reinstalled the battery and eveything worked fine again. One and only time.

Had K3 V1.03 firmware installed. Subsequently installed V1.11. Hope it helps.

Fantastic camera by the way. Had done some shot bursts of high speed shots while trying to catch salmon in jumps. An hour after than experience, the continuous flopping occurred. Now wondering is that high speed shooting stressed the camera in some way.

Shot preceding the flopping was at 1/800s, f2.8, iso 400, 70mm fl on DA 50-135 lens.

[PALADIN85020]

Just because you found 1 way to induce mirror flop doesn't mean thats the only way mirror flop is induced, or that it is the cause of flopping reported by others. Interesting definitely, but not conclusive.

Side note. When computers take over what used to be a mechanical function, then the computer chip must have sensors to work with it to tell it what's going on. Example: Friend had a corvette 15 years ago, it would occasionally die in the middle of an intersection after startup from a dead stop. No shop could repair it. Finally sold the car in desperation because it couldn't be fixed. Subsequent owner had the problem fixed by replacing some defective sensor in the car - forget which.

.

Probably the crank sensor on the Vette. I had a '94 Buick that did the same thing. The shop finally figured it out after many tries. The car would go dead while driving with no apparent reason. Let it sit for about 20 minutes, and it could be started up again - very random. At any rate if this happens to anyone reading this - check the crank sensor. They DO go bad and the engine will stop cold when they malfunction. It will save a lot of money on diagnostics!

John

[DRabbit]

Hello all.

I'm sorry I haven't been around. I just updated the list for the first time in over a month. I'm sorry to hear there are still new reports rolling in.

I've now given up on Pentax. At this point, it has less to do with this issue (though that is part of it) and more to do with the fact that a camera that offers an electronic shutter option just makes more sense for me at this point. I'll be giving Panasonic a good go with a couple of GH3s and a GX7. I was already somewhat in the micro 4/3 camp, so I already have a few lenses, which makes the switch a bit painless. For my fun "artsy" photography, I'll be sticking with Fuji for now.

If someone wants to write up a summary of where we are now, I'll put it at the beginning of this thread. It's hard for me to get a sense of what has happened, but it looks like a new firmware 1.11 came out and maybe addresses the problem by shutting the whole camera down? That isn't a solution at all if that's the case.

[totsmuyco]

Hello all.

I'm sorry I haven't been around. I just updated the list for the first time in over a month. I'm sorry to hear there are still new reports rolling in.

I've now given up on Pentax. At this point, it has less to do with this issue (though that is part of it) and more to do with the fact that a camera that offers an electronic shutter option just makes more sense for me at this point. I'll be giving Panasonic a good go with a couple of GH3s and a GX7. I was already somewhat in the micro 4/3 camp, so I already have a few lenses, which makes the switch a bit painless. For my fun "artsy" photography, I'll be sticking with Fuji for now.

If someone wants to write up a summary of where we are now, I'll put it at the beginning of this thread. It's hard for me to get a sense of what has happened, but it looks like a new firmware 1.11 came out and maybe addresses the problem by shutting the whole camera down? That isn't a solution at all if that's the case.

Hi DRabbit,
Yes I believe that firmware 1.11 is not a solution. I think Pentax knows what and where the problem is but the solution of recalling and replacing all K-3s will be expensive. But, I think they should do it.

[phatio]

Yesterday I was doing some AF test shooting and I got a blank frame out of 57. Maybe 1.11 FW intervention?