Weird Videography Glitch, K-1 and the new 50mm f/1.4

K David · 04-23-2019, 10:17 PM

I recorded some new videos for my YouTube channel this week and I've noticed a weird glitch with my K-1 and ONLY the new 50mm f/1.4 with the electronic shutter. Randomly, and usually after about 9 minutes of recording, the electronic shutter appears to pop open and won't close until I stop the video and adjust the aperture.

I have looked through the lens afterward to see what's happening, and the aperture is fully open. I typically shoot video for my channel at f/8, but certainly no wider than 6.3 or 5.6. I think the clip below was f/8 or f/11.

Also, the issue persists until I adjust the aperture on the camera, meaning that if I don't adjust the aperture the lens will remain wide open while, it seems, telling the camera it is at f/8 or f/11,

Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

Here is a quick clip, no audio, that shows it when it happens. My current thinking is that this is an electronic shutter glitch. The lens is great otherwise and this is inconsistent, so before I called Pentax I wanted to see if this was something anyone had heard of. As you may be able to see in the video, it is literally fine in one frame and then not fine in the next.

Youtu.be

stevebrot · 04-23-2019, 11:04 PM

Originally posted by K David

...and ONLY the new 50mm f/1.4 with the electronic shutter.

Is it safe to assume you intended are talking about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation on the D FA* 50/1.4? If so, popping to the full open state might indicate a drop of power or a fatal error in the controller workings. (Temp? Battery?)

Steve

Adam · 04-24-2019, 01:43 AM

Although it could just be a power issue, I'd recommend reporting this to ricoh as it might be a good candidate for a firmware stability fix.

biz-engineer · 04-24-2019, 04:57 AM

Originally posted by stevebrot

Is it safe to assume you intended are talking about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation on the D FA* 50/1.4? If so, popping to the full open state might indicate a drop of power or a fatal error in the controller workings. (Temp? Battery?)

That let me think about a software timeout for the aperture command, that obviously wouldn't work for video recording.

stevebrot · 04-24-2019, 07:32 AM

Originally posted by biz-engineer

That let me think about a software timeout for the aperture command, that obviously wouldn't work for video recording.

Would not work for long time exposures either.

Steve

K David · 04-24-2019, 08:13 AM

Originally posted by stevebrot

about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation

Thank you, yes. That's the word I needed.

Originally posted by Adam

it might be a good candidate for a firmware stability fix.

Will do and good idea. I'm hoping it's a firmware issue. That was my first thought since it doesn't happen with the 31mm or the older 100mm macro with the aperture ring. The new 50mm is my only Pentax lens without an aperture ring.

Originally posted by stevebrot

Would not work for long time exposures either.

That gives me an idea of something I need to test. I'll give this a go with a long exposure and see what happens.

biz-engineer · 04-24-2019, 09:28 AM

Originally posted by stevebrot

Would not work for long time exposures either.

Yes, this came to my mind. Then I thought the video section of the firmware may be different from the photography section of the camera firmware.... obviously, here I make an assumption.
In live view mode, the actual aperture setting used by the camera may be different from the f number programmed by the used, in order to maintain a constant frame rate and brigthness on the back display. If I set my lens aperture to f5.6 (manually), and point the camera to a darker area, I can hear the camera opening up the lens aperture to wider than f4, f2.8 etc. even if the camera still indicates that the aperture is f5.6.

K David · 04-24-2019, 09:43 AM

I sent Ricoh an e-mail with a description of the issue, a link to the video I shared in my original post, and all the details I have. If they respond, I'll let everyone know.

K David · 04-25-2019, 02:09 PM

I heard back from Ricoh. They asked what firmware I have (1.5) and then suggested that I upgrade to 1.51 (despite the 1.51 firmware apparently only having an affect on the new 11-18mm lens.) So I'll do that and we'll see what happens when I record hte next batch of videos in a week.

K David · 05-04-2019, 09:27 PM

Update:

I upgraded the firmware. It's worse. The issue happens more frequently and it's not rectifying as readily as it had been. So this seems to be an issue (I'm waiting for Ricoh to get back to me to see if I'm right) with the lens' electronic aperture. It looks like I may have made a mistake being an early adopter.

K David · 05-12-2019, 05:04 PM

Still waiting on a response from Ricoh following the latest firmware update. Nothing and it's been eight days since I follow up, and I haven't heard anything from then since April 25. Won't lie, this is starting to make me a bit unhappy.

biz-engineer · 05-13-2019, 06:20 AM

Originally posted by K David

Still waiting on a response from Ricoh following the latest firmware update. Nothing and it's been eight days since I follow up, and I haven't heard anything from then since April 25. Won't lie, this is starting to make me a bit unhappy.

One week isn't much time considering that they have to have someone who is assigned to reproduce the problem in lab and look for a solution before given a suitable answer. That said, things are weird at Pentax cameras these days..

K David · 05-13-2019, 08:26 AM

Originally posted by biz-engineer

One week isn't much time considering that they have to have someone who is assigned to reproduce the problem in lab and look for a solution before given a suitable answer.

Which is totally cool. I just would like them to say 'hey, we need to replicate this. Can you give us a couple months to see what's going on?' But being ignored makes it feel like they hope I'll just give up and live with equipment that doesn't work correctly.

Class A · 05-14-2019, 06:25 AM

Originally posted by K David

I upgraded the firmware. It's worse.

Note that you can downgrade as well. You may want to try older firmware versions. Perhaps 1.5 is a better option while you are waiting for a response from Ricoh.

Does the issue reliably occur after x minutes into a video recording?
If so, others could check whether they can reproduce the problem. It could be just an issue with your copy, even though that seems unlikely.

K David · 05-14-2019, 07:51 AM

Originally posted by Class A

Does the issue reliably occur after x minutes into a video recording?

Actually, one thing that makes me think that it's a mechanical issue with the lens is that it's unpredictable. Sometimes the aperture pops open and then immediately shut (this is uncommon). Most of the time when it happens it opens and then doesn ot close until I change settings on the camera. This happens anywhere from 3 to 9 minutes into a video. One time, the lens held the aperture shut for 11 minutes.

So it's not reliably predictable.

04-23-2019, 11:04 PM	#2
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by K David ...and ONLY the new 50mm f/1.4 with the electronic shutter. Is it safe to assume you intended are talking about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation on the D FA* 50/1.4? If so, popping to the full open state might indicate a drop of power or a fatal error in the controller workings. (Temp? Battery?) Steve Last edited by stevebrot; 04-23-2019 at 11:13 PM.

04-24-2019, 01:43 AM	#3
Adam Administrator Site Webmaster Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Arizona Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 51,597	Although it could just be a power issue, I'd recommend reporting this to ricoh as it might be a good candidate for a firmware stability fix. Adam PentaxForums.com Webmaster (Site Usage Guide \| Site Help \| My Photography) PentaxForums.com server and development costs are user-supported. You can help cover these costs by donating or purchasing one of our Pentax eBooks. Or, buy your photo gear from our affiliates, Adorama, B&H Photo, KEH, or Topaz Labs, and get FREE Marketplace access - click here to see how! Trusted Pentax retailers:

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04-24-2019, 04:57 AM	#4
biz-engineer Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2015 Photos: Gallery Posts: 12,239	Originally posted by stevebrot Is it safe to assume you intended are talking about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation on the D FA* 50/1.4? If so, popping to the full open state might indicate a drop of power or a fatal error in the controller workings. (Temp? Battery?) That let me think about a software timeout for the aperture command, that obviously wouldn't work for video recording.

04-24-2019, 07:32 AM	#5
stevebrot Otis Memorial Pentaxian Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Vancouver (USA) Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 42,007	Originally posted by biz-engineer That let me think about a software timeout for the aperture command, that obviously wouldn't work for video recording. Would not work for long time exposures either. Steve

04-24-2019, 08:13 AM	#6
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	Originally posted by stevebrot about the KAF4 electronic aperture control/actuation Thank you, yes. That's the word I needed. Originally posted by Adam it might be a good candidate for a firmware stability fix. Will do and good idea. I'm hoping it's a firmware issue. That was my first thought since it doesn't happen with the 31mm or the older 100mm macro with the aperture ring. The new 50mm is my only Pentax lens without an aperture ring. Originally posted by stevebrot Would not work for long time exposures either. That gives me an idea of something I need to test. I'll give this a go with a long exposure and see what happens.

04-24-2019, 09:28 AM	#7
biz-engineer Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2015 Photos: Gallery Posts: 12,239	Originally posted by stevebrot Would not work for long time exposures either. Yes, this came to my mind. Then I thought the video section of the firmware may be different from the photography section of the camera firmware.... obviously, here I make an assumption. In live view mode, the actual aperture setting used by the camera may be different from the f number programmed by the used, in order to maintain a constant frame rate and brigthness on the back display. If I set my lens aperture to f5.6 (manually), and point the camera to a darker area, I can hear the camera opening up the lens aperture to wider than f4, f2.8 etc. even if the camera still indicates that the aperture is f5.6.

04-24-2019, 09:43 AM	#8
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	I sent Ricoh an e-mail with a description of the issue, a link to the video I shared in my original post, and all the details I have. If they respond, I'll let everyone know.

04-25-2019, 02:09 PM	#9
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	I heard back from Ricoh. They asked what firmware I have (1.5) and then suggested that I upgrade to 1.51 (despite the 1.51 firmware apparently only having an affect on the new 11-18mm lens.) So I'll do that and we'll see what happens when I record hte next batch of videos in a week.

05-04-2019, 09:27 PM	#10
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	Update: I upgraded the firmware. It's worse. The issue happens more frequently and it's not rectifying as readily as it had been. So this seems to be an issue (I'm waiting for Ricoh to get back to me to see if I'm right) with the lens' electronic aperture. It looks like I may have made a mistake being an early adopter.

05-12-2019, 05:04 PM	#11
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	Still waiting on a response from Ricoh following the latest firmware update. Nothing and it's been eight days since I follow up, and I haven't heard anything from then since April 25. Won't lie, this is starting to make me a bit unhappy.

05-13-2019, 06:20 AM	#12
biz-engineer Pentaxian Join Date: Feb 2015 Photos: Gallery Posts: 12,239	Originally posted by K David Still waiting on a response from Ricoh following the latest firmware update. Nothing and it's been eight days since I follow up, and I haven't heard anything from then since April 25. Won't lie, this is starting to make me a bit unhappy. One week isn't much time considering that they have to have someone who is assigned to reproduce the problem in lab and look for a solution before given a suitable answer. That said, things are weird at Pentax cameras these days..

05-13-2019, 08:26 AM	#13
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	Originally posted by biz-engineer One week isn't much time considering that they have to have someone who is assigned to reproduce the problem in lab and look for a solution before given a suitable answer. Which is totally cool. I just would like them to say 'hey, we need to replicate this. Can you give us a couple months to see what's going on?' But being ignored makes it feel like they hope I'll just give up and live with equipment that doesn't work correctly.

05-14-2019, 06:25 AM	#14
Class A Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Wellington, New Zealand Posts: 11,251	Originally posted by K David I upgraded the firmware. It's worse. Note that you can downgrade as well. You may want to try older firmware versions. Perhaps 1.5 is a better option while you are waiting for a response from Ricoh. Does the issue reliably occur after x minutes into a video recording? If so, others could check whether they can reproduce the problem. It could be just an issue with your copy, even though that seems unlikely.

05-14-2019, 07:51 AM	#15
K David Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Colorado Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,437 Original Poster	Originally posted by Class A Does the issue reliably occur after x minutes into a video recording? Actually, one thing that makes me think that it's a mechanical issue with the lens is that it's unpredictable. Sometimes the aperture pops open and then immediately shut (this is uncommon). Most of the time when it happens it opens and then doesn ot close until I change settings on the camera. This happens anywhere from 3 to 9 minutes into a video. One time, the lens held the aperture shut for 11 minutes. So it's not reliably predictable.