After three years using a Canon Rebel XT as my only body (when I didn’t have access to the MU photo locker), I finally upgraded to a 7D (video hooray!). I’d been looking forward to testing out the 8fps feature at the first home football game of the season…and then it poured that day, which put a bit of a damper (no pun intended) on my plans.
I was still assigned to photograph the game, though, so I wrapped the body and my telephoto in two layers of garbage bag, and taped everything down with duct tape. Then I went out to shoot.
But I had to leave a little bit exposed beneath the garbage bags so I could work the dials and change settings…and after about a half an hour, enough water snuck into the camera body that it stopped working. Just like that. My two-day-old camera that I had sunk my summer savings into. The only good thing was I had managed to get enough photos that I could still turn in something to the paper.
I was trying my best not to freak out, and I did know about the rice trick, so I decided to give it a go. I put the camera body in a giant Ziploc baggie with about a pound of rice, and let it stay there for six days. I tested everything after a day, but nothing happened; after three days, though, the display flickered a little bit, like it was trying to start up (hope!). By the end of the week the rice had absorbed all of the water. And the camera works like it just came off the factory line. I’m still floored by this; I really thought it would end up being one of those tricks that works for everybody but me.
So. Here are some of the photos that almost did me in:
Ivy,
I’m so sorry you had this experience but I’m glad that the rice trick worked for you. The 7D is weather sealed, but only to a point. Canon claims its like the seals on 1N, which was a film body from the early 1990’s. You might want to look into some lightweight rain gear, like the Kata E-690 Medium Digital SLR Camera Raincover
Also, if you register your 7D and receive a clean & check voucher (sometimes Canon gives those out, but not always) it would be worth sending it in to be looked at for moisture damage. They will often fix a lot of problems with that voucher.
Sorry again that you had this issue, Ivy!
David
Thanks DK! I do need to get some rain gear one of these days…got to upgrade from the standard-issue plastic trash bag!
Hope your project is going well!