# Canon 5D Mark II error 20 Need Help!!



## hopopotamus (Jul 14, 2012)

Hello everyone, 
This is my first post.
My self and my camera took a hit and fell in the fresh water ( 3-5 sec at the most ) After I dried the camera I turned it on and it works perfectly expect for one thing. Shutter does not work. Well I can still use auto focus but when i press the button it will not fire. Instead it give me a message error 20 and it tells me to turn the camera on and off or take the battery out and or format CF card. I did all of that used several different CF cards original canon batteries and I still get the same message. For the record if I choose to manually clean the sensor option I will get shutter to move without any problems or error message. After several days of trying to find some answers online ( i did find lot of reports about the same error message but nothing was remotely similar to my problem. So I decided to ask for some help or advice on my favorite website. 
Here is the full story. I will try to include as many relevant details as possible so someone can tell me if they had similar experience and if I'm wasting my time trying to get it to work.
We were in Yosemite national park climbing the Lower Falls. Now I know I should have taken the dry route and not climb the falls without any protection for the camera but that is just me being an idiot  Once I fell in the water first thing I did was to take the battery and the CF card out. I dried the camera as best as I could and left everything open. As soon as we got in to car I turned the heater on and kept the camera about 12 inches from the heat source. Once we got to hotel I used the fan in like 30-45 min intervals ( minimum to medium heat ) and camera set about 20 inches from the heat source for the remainder of the night. In the morning everything looked totally dry but I still got a plastic container, 5 pounds of rice and very fine lady stocking and left it in the trunk of the car for about 48h. I try calling several local repair shops and all they said was " Sorry for your loss.We can offer you brand new camera at incredible price.... We drove from Bakersfield to Las Vegas and than continued on to Grand Canyon. Once we got to Grand Canyon I just had to see if I could turn the camera on again ( words cannot describe Grand Canyon it is a Must on anyones bucket list ) What give me hope was the fact that the battery that was in the camera was charging properly also my cell phone was in the water for the same amount of time and was working just fine after only 24 hours of drying. After we took it out of the rice we cut the stocking open placed the battery in and woala camera turned on and everything was looking good. It did reset to manufactures original settings so I had to set date time and some other things again. Finally I wanted to take test picture and shutter locked up. I restarted the camera again got in to menu and used the manual sensor cleaning option to reset the shutter. 
Now the question is do I try to give the camera to local NYC repairer shop and see what they say and if they can help me or do I just send it to Canon and hope for the best ( this camera is only 3 month old ). Another thing is do I tell them about the water or do I just say that camera took a hit and ask them to check everything. I also had 24-70mm L lens on the camera when all this happened and from the outside lens looks great not a scratch on it, but on inside is full of dust and there is still some moisture in it. I'm sure I will be able to take the moisture out but I'm not sure if they can take it apart and clean the lens so I can use it again. If you can service this camera or know someone who can do it please don't be shy. Plan is to take the camera in to service on Monday.
I'm part time wedding photographer ( second photographer ) and I really need everything to be in pristine condition and working perfectly. 

P.S. English is not my native language so I do apologize for my bad grammar.

Thanks in advance!!!


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## mathino (Jul 14, 2012)

Have you tried to flash the firmware ? Ive just read that it might help in case of Error 20. Have you tried live view ?

But given info about shutter not working - that doesnt look good. New shutter for 5D Mk II costs about 150 USD + work ofc. Try to contact some repair shop and explain whole situation - also info with water because something else could be damaged. I think that technicians will find out about water damage if they dismatle your camera - even if it was dried.

What I would do is to visit/sent it to nearest Canon service center.

Hope your camera will work perfectly after repair


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## TrumpetPower! (Jul 15, 2012)

mathino said:


> What I would do is to visit/sent it to nearest Canon service center.



This.

From everything I've heard, Canon's rates are quite reasonable -- especially on in-production models -- and you will not find anybody anywhere who can do a better job. You'll get your camera back in like-new condition, minus whatever cosmetic scratches you've already collected. And, if it turns out that it's so hosed that it's not worth repairing, only Canon will offer you a discount on a factory-refurbished camera in exchange for your old-and-busted one (via the Canon Loyalty Program).

Cheers,

b&


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## 1982chris911 (Jul 15, 2012)

Had an Error 20 on mine after 2 days in the humid weather of Singapore ...

Usually this means mechanical problem with the shutter - I did everything you could find in the web to solve it without any success - so basically I guess you will need to send it in so they replace the shutter unit (costs are about 150 Euro)


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## hopopotamus (Jul 16, 2012)

Well I guess I'll just take it to Canon. I just registered as CPS member so i hope that will help me too. 
Thanks to everyone that replayed!!!!


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## hopopotamus (Jul 28, 2012)

Here is the update.
So after suffering initial sticker shock of the $725.00 ( with 30% CPS discount!! ) just to fix the lens that was in the water I just told them that my Mark II is showing the error 20 message. They ended up fixing it in 48 hours under the warranty and there was no mention of water damage on the final invoice!!!! Than they recommended Mr. Toshi to take a look at my lens and they give me his address and the phone number. I visited Mr. Toshi and explained in detail what happened to the camera and the lens. He opened the lens quickly took one look at it and told me it will be done in about one week no new parts needed just a good cleaning. Well I picked up my lens today and it's perfect as good as new!!!!! As the matter of fact he thinks I will not have issues with mold in the long run, but I guess only time can tell. 
All in all I'm extremely satisfied how Canon people handled the situation and with the quality of the equipment that they sell!!!!


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## Drizzt321 (Jul 30, 2012)

Holy crap that's some sticker shock! Awesome to hear that you somehow got it fixed under warranty 

I recently dropped my CPS on it's upper right shoulder, the LCD was fine, but case was cracked. Still worked fine it seemed, but sent it in. I had the estimate in just a couple hours after they received it which was the day after I shipped it since I'm in SoCal. Paid by CC without waiting for my insurance check (got the money, just a few days later), and had it back to me in 2-3 days including return shipping. Love the CPS membership, I don't think I'll ever go back.

Plus, I have the TS-E 24mm and 100mm Macro coming to me in a week for test/evaluation =D Another great feature of membership, you can try out some lenses for just return shipping without worrying about rental fees.


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## Mt Spokane Photography (Jul 30, 2012)

Canon has gone the way of Nikon, and is not supporting local camera repair stores (won't sell them parts or provide repair manuals / equipment). 
This means that a local shop will have to send it to Canon and add their profit to whatever Canon charges them. So, unless its one of the few third party repair centers that Canon supports, just send it to Canon. The price will likely be the same or less. I hope you have it insured.


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