Canon has
just released a new firmware for the Canon EOS 5D Mark II to fix the infamous
black dot and Vertical Banding Noise issues.
The
firmware version is Ver 1.0.7 and can be downloaded from the following page:
http://web.canon.jp/imaging/eosd/firm-e/eos5dmk2/firmware.html
Firmware Update Version 1.0.7 improves and
mitigates the following two types of image quality phenomena that occur under
certain shooting conditions.
- “Black
dot” phenomenon (the right side of point light sources
become black)
- Vertical banding noise
Firmware Version 1.0.7 is
for EOS 5D Mark II cameras with firmware up to version 1.0.6. If the camera’s
firmware is already version 1.0.7, it is not necessary to update the firmware.
Notes:
When updating to Firmware Version 1.0.7, please also update the Digital Photo
Professional and Picture Style Editor software. Firmware Version 1.0.7 can be
downloaded from the bottom of this page. Updates for Digital Photo Professional
and Picture Style Editor can be downloaded from the following Web site.
So what is the Canon EOS 5D Mark II Black Dot Issue?
The Canon EOS 5D Mark II black dot issue rears it ugly head when shooting at higher ISO settings, when photographing bright objects as night (High Contrast) (black dots appear to the right of the bright object), You can see an example of the issue in the sample photograph below:
The Vertical Banding Noise issue was less of an issue as it only appeared when shooting in SRAW1 mode, the work around was to shoot in a different mode.
Canon EOS 5D Mark II owners including myself welcome this update, I am now off to update my camera.