Missing images after first shoot with SL3

[LocalHero1953]

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4 hours ago, JTLeica said:

I was sent this same message by my Leica Dealer as a precaution.

This might have been covered already, but its interesting that its mostly Wedding photogs having the issue... i.e. people that are taking a lot of images in quick succession, could be to do with the buffer being interrupted? 

Anyway, I will go back and read the whole thread now but thought I would chime in being an SL3 user. I am off to cornwall again, and it will be my primary camera so I want to mitigate issues. I have not had any problems so far.

I suspect wedding photographers are discovering this because they are taking lots of photos over a period of time and running through batteries - and so likely to change them on the fly, often without turning power off. It doesn't necessarily have to do with the buffer or speed of shooting. Perhaps it's to do with where the camera records the last file number, or last file memory address - does it keep it in live memory that gets lost when the battery is removed? (But what do I know? I'm just a geologist who hits rocks for a living).

If I change a SL2-S battery on the fly (as opposed to at home before I set off, or at the end of the day) then I am highly likely to do so without switching off - the moment the battery symbol flashes red, I pop the battery and put the next one in. I've certainly never lost images with the SL2-S though.

Edited June 28, 2024 by LocalHero1953

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[wintersmith]

1 hour ago, giganova said:

So you are removing the battery while the camera is powered on? 🙈

yes it should be fine to change a battery whilst powered on!  - just like the SL2, s, and Q2 - you shouldn't have to do a full shutdown just to change a battery! When red light is stopped flashing pop it out and pop a fresh one in

[jonoslack]

50 minutes ago, LocalHero1953 said:

I suspect wedding photographers are discovering this because they are taking lots of photos over a period of time and running through batteries - and so likely to change them on the fly, often without turning power off. It doesn't necessarily have to do with the buffer or speed of shooting. Perhaps it's to do with where the camera records the last file number, or last file memory address - does it keep it in live memory that gets lost when the battery is removed? (But what do I know? I'm just a geologist who hits rocks for a living).

If I change a SL2-S battery on the fly (as opposed to at home before I set off, or at the end of the day) then I am highly likely to do so without switching off - the moment the battery symbol flashes red, I pop the battery and put the next one in. I've certainly never lost images with the SL2-S though.

Hi There Paul

It's happened to me once, I got a battery warning light when I was working in a hurry and simply changed the battery - which seems pretty reasonable to me. I don't see why you should have to turn it off first. 

As far as I can tell it lost the file counter number since the previous time I had turned it on and started overwriting files from that point. 

I think for many people they might not notice it - a few missing images without a break in the sequence can be easy to miss . . . . unless it was during a wedding 🫣. 

[jonoslack]

1 minute ago, wintersmith said:

yes it should be fine to change a battery whilst powered on!  - just like the SL2, s, and Q2 - you shouldn't have to do a full shutdown just to change a battery! When red light is stopped flashing pop it out and pop a fresh one in

I completely agree - I do it all the time - especially at weddings - you get the red battery warning light and simply change the battery - 

[wintersmith]

1 hour ago, andybarton said:

Depending upon how long you have had the camera, you might also be able to use your credit card insurance.

purchased March 12th and this happened on May 17th - Ive asked the store today for a full refund under the UK sale of goods act as camera is not of satisfactory quality. So I'll see what happens before the credit card route. The store have offered a demo body replacment but only when the firmware is available which no one knows when. I pushed for a replacement body in case the one I have is faulty but it seems unlikely when reading all these others with the same problem. Think it will be a switch back to Sony for me

[andybarton]

The credit card route is time limited.

[wintersmith]

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1 hour ago, LocalHero1953 said:

I suspect wedding photographers are discovering this because they are taking lots of photos over a period of time and running through batteries - and so likely to change them on the fly, often without turning power off. It doesn't necessarily have to do with the buffer or speed of shooting. Perhaps it's to do with where the camera records the last file number, or last file memory address - does it keep it in live memory that gets lost when the battery is removed? (But what do I know? I'm just a geologist who hits rocks for a living).

If I change a SL2-S battery on the fly (as opposed to at home before I set off, or at the end of the day) then I am highly likely to do so without switching off - the moment the battery symbol flashes red, I pop the battery and put the next one in. I've certainly never lost images with the SL2-S though.

yes i guess so, us wedding photographers are pretty much constantly shooting for 12 hours 3000-5000 shots per weddings. and then only notice the missing files when we come to backup but most probably when we edit the wedding which could be several weeks after the event and the cards have been reformatted. When I was shooting my missing files the photos were actually being displayed on the LCD screen as I often play/preview every few mins just to check everything is ok - they were always visible so I never knew there to be a problem

[jonoslack]

4 minutes ago, wintersmith said:

yes i guess so, us wedding photographers are pretty much constantly shooting for 12 hours 3000-5000 shots per weddings. and then only notice the missing files when we come to backup but most probably when we edit the wedding which could be several weeks after the event and the cards have been reformatted. When I was shooting my missing files the photos were actually being displayed on the LCD screen as I often play/preview every few mins just to check everything is ok - they were always visible so I never knew there to be a problem

Dreadful to have seem them . . . . . I've sent you a private message 

 

[LocalHero1953]

59 minutes ago, jonoslack said:

It's happened to me once, I got a battery warning light when I was working in a hurry and simply changed the battery - which seems pretty reasonable to me.

Hi Jono - do you mean it happened with your SL2/2-S or with your SL3?

[dasjak]

The other thing is, that it is also a pain to shut down the camera fully. I never know if it works or not, the shutdown I mean. The power button is a mess to be honest, the one from previous models was way better but it is what it is.

Even though the camera sometimes has hickups after a full shutdown (ie when I press the power button again to turn on nothing happens, then i longpress and it shuts down, even though it wasnt running in the first place. bit weird...)

but i have not lost images since i always shut down the camera...it jsut takes so long and is annoying 😕

 

i would return it if the autofocus wasnt so much better than with the sl2-s...

[jonoslack]

4 hours ago, LocalHero1953 said:

Hi Jono - do you mean it happened with your SL2/2-S or with your SL3?

Hi Paul

With the SL3, certainly not with the SL2/SL2-S

[jonoslack]

2 hours ago, dasjak said:

The other thing is, that it is also a pain to shut down the camera fully. I never know if it works or not, the shutdown I mean. The power button is a mess to be honest, the one from previous models was way better but it is what it is.

Even though the camera sometimes has hickups after a full shutdown (ie when I press the power button again to turn on nothing happens, then i longpress and it shuts down, even though it wasnt running in the first place. bit weird...)

but i have not lost images since i always shut down the camera...it jsut takes so long and is annoying 😕

 

i would return it if the autofocus wasnt so much better than with the sl2-s...

Tell me about it!

but there are a lot of good possibilities about the on/off button, so I think that whilst it's a bit of a PIB at the moment, it may turn out to be really useful with further firmware updates. . . . and I think that fundamentally it's a wonderful update, it'll get there!

[LocalHero1953]

19 minutes ago, jonoslack said:

Hi Paul

With the SL3, certainly not with the SL2/SL2-S

That's a relief!

[Jonathan Levin]

Ugh. The button thing again…

so easy. Long press ON

short press STANDBY

short press or partial shutter press OFF STANDY/SHOOT

long press again CAMERA OFF

[dasjak]

7 hours ago, Jonathan Levin said:

Ugh. The button thing again…

so easy. Long press ON

short press STANDBY

short press or partial shutter press OFF STANDY/SHOOT

long press again CAMERA OFF

Ugh, not so easy. You will see, if you quickly pull the battery  after a long press, all that easy behavior will not always work that way…so easy!

[Ken Abrahams]

I had a moment today while shooting in the city. The battery was quite low as I was walking around a gallery and not checking the camera. I  was worried the power might get too low. Long press and there are a few seconds before you see the Leica logo fade in and out on screen, means its off. I gingerly swapped the battery out and checked my images. It's definitely a very uncomfortable moment changing batteries in the SL3. 

[Photoworks]

I will change the batteries without turning the camera off for some time.

but the camera settings get lost and are saved only if you power the camera down. This is evident in SL2, SL3...

 

[Simone_DF]

On 6/28/2024 at 3:09 PM, giganova said:

So you are removing the battery while the camera is powered on? 🙈

I do it all the time with the SL2-S. Never lost a picture. I also let the battery in the camera go until it’s dead, which is basically the same concept. 
Oh, I do also unplug USB sticks the same way. 

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[Jonathan Levin]

4 hours ago, Ken Abrahams said:

I had a moment today while shooting in the city. The battery was quite low as I was walking around a gallery and not checking the camera. I  was worried the power might get too low. Long press and there are a few seconds before you see the Leica logo fade in and out on screen, means its off. I gingerly swapped the battery out and checked my images. It's definitely a very uncomfortable moment changing batteries in the SL3. 

Ken. There is a few second delay between long press and being fully off. I wonder if removing battery during that off cycle could have some unwanted effect?

I have been running two batteries almost all the way down for first few cycles per Leicas recommendation. After that I’ll probably discharge to any level since Li batteries don’t care about state of charge.

[Jonathan Levin]

On 6/28/2024 at 10:35 AM, jonoslack said:

Hi There Paul

It's happened to me once, I got a battery warning light when I was working in a hurry and simply changed the battery - which seems pretty reasonable to me. I don't see why you should have to turn it off first. 

As far as I can tell it lost the file counter number since the previous time I had turned it on and started overwriting files from that point. 

I think for many people they might not notice it - a few missing images without a break in the sequence can be easy to miss . . . . unless it was during a wedding 🫣. 

Jono. I suppose in a perfect world you should be able to just pop out a battery (and memory cards) without shutdown. And maybe you can these days. To me it would be like pulling the plug from wall main on a desktop computer while its still running with or without apps running, or disconnect a car battery from a car while engine is running. I may be over thinking this but in my 43 years shooting professionally and suffering every meltdown (digital) known to mankind, I prefer to minimize the risk in fear of losing images or worse. But I do respect how others handle their workflow

Edited June 29, 2024 by Jonathan Levin