Canon G16 Malfunctioning at Depth

I recently (Feb 2015) upgraded to a Canon G16 in Ikelite housing from a Canon PS S3. The S3 worked great for me with very few issues for almost six years, so I was excited to try out the G16. However, in the six months or so I've been diving with the G16 I've had nothing but problems. I'll sum them up in a short list-

- Zoom will not work below approximately 45 feet (I systematically deduced this after consecutive dives where the problem was "fixed" on the boat, but then reappeared underwater)

- Camera often switches to manual focus instead of macro mode

- Menu will get stuck toggling incessantly between choices rendering the camera useless; toggling continues despite button no longer touching camera body

- Camera will not recognize or fire strobe (Ikelite DS51 with TTL)

These problems are sometimes but not always solved by turning the system off and back on (and let's face it, that's not really a solution).

I've encountered one or several of these problems on almost every dive, which is really putting a crimp in my underwater photography (not to mention adding stress and frustration to an activity that is already mentally and physically demanding). I try not to think of the shots I've missed while the camera is malfunctioning, but they are beginning to accumulate.

I have had no floods or other detrimental incidents. I know the camera is lined up properly within the housing because some of the time the controls do perform their intended function. I am almost certain the problems are due to the underwater pressure, as I have not been able to replicate any of the issues on land (even immediately following a dive before removing the camera from the housing), and the camera functions properly while on terra firma.

I bought the camera from amazon.com, so unfortunately don't have a dealer to provide personalized customer service.

My camera is still under warranty, but I am concerned that sending it in will prove useless if technicians are unable to replicate the problems, and I will be told there is nothing wrong with the camera.

Has anyone else experienced similar issues? The G16 seems to be a very popular underwater camera, which leads me to conclude that either: A) Other people have encountered and solved these types of problems and will be able to proffer advice, or B) I got a lemon.

I would occasionally have something happen to my S3, such as the screen turning off, while underwater, but I can count the number of these incidents on one hand over six years of diving; i.e. I am aware that sometimes systems malfunction underwater for no reason that we can perceive, but the sheer amount of problems I have encountered with the G16 seems unnecessary and is certainly prohibitive. I really wanted to like this camera and am frustrated that my underwater photography is taking such a large hit.

Hi NaCl.H20.girl

Sounds really annoying.

It also sounds like an alignment issue. This often results in what appears to be faulty camera controls and, from my experience, is more common in the poli-type housings such as Ikelite. I would not rule out an alignment problem just because some of the controls work properly. It's a classic symptom that the camera is fine on the surface but at depth has random problems which, sometimes, can be resolved by turning it off and on.

It's not easy to resolve as you can't (obviously!) do much about it underwater. I can only suggest that you take great care fitting the camera into the housing and do a visual check to ensure all the buttons are lining up correctly. You could play around with the camera outside the housing and see if gentle (unintended) pressure on one button can cause a problem when using a second button deliberately.

Maybe others can offer a better solution - but, as I say, sounds like an alignment issue to me.

Good luck finding a solution.

I've been using Ikelite products for a long time. First with a G10 and then with a 5d Mark2. I recommend calling Ikelite support. They are fantastic at trouble shooting and service. They may ask you to send in the housing and camera for testing. I had had a few "fit" issues and they took care of the problem fast and cheap.

The G16 is a excellent camera and your problems are not camera related.
Most of the cases your problems appear near the maximum rated depth of the housing, especially on OEM Canon housings,

but in your case it is rather strange as it appear already in shallow water.

The problem can be also a weak spring of one or more buttons, so the ambient pressure push them in and they push the correlating knob.

This can lead to malfunction as you describe and you can try to repeat that on land while slightly pressing a button.

You should contact Ikelite and send them the housing to have it checked!

Chris

Do you have a screen protector on the g16 camera?

It really seems like a fitting issue. No not recall u saying which housing it is.

Even ifs a Canon. I have seen same model of camera having a difference in size.. Often it's just mm and does not matter on land.. But once pressure is applied. Does soke weird things to it.

Else... Really it can be that you are not putting in the camera correctly or have something else on the camera that is causing the problem