focusing problem with my Rebel

nakedyak · Jul 14, 2006

Seems like i've been having a lot of camera related problems lately...

I think my trusty Digital Rebel is dying

The autofocus is not really working. It takes for ever before it responds, and once it tries to focus, it just searches for a few seconds before giving up, never focusing on anything.

I've tried different lenses, shooting in good light, turning the camera on and off again, different batteries, nothing seems to be working right now.

It was fine yesterday...

Any ideas? thanks

Chiller · Jul 14, 2006

I use the same camera and only once have I had a focusing problem. I thought it was just me, but when it happened the second time, I took it in. The guy at the store set the camera back to the default settings and started again. Seems to be o.k . I have found recently that when using only 1 focusing point in bright light, the camera seems to be "confused' I that that was me too. :lol:

I read an article recently about the same problem, and it happens mostly with Sigma lenses. I only have one of those, and have not had that problem. Mine was with my 70 - 300mm Canon lens.
The one time I did have a focusing problem that was my fault...according to the guy at the store was... I keep a UV filter on my lens for protection, and was outside, when I installed a Polarizing filter. He said that it can create a focusing problem having the two filters on at the same time, cause light would bounce between the filters. Hm... Not sure if he was right or not.
I will see if I can hunt down that article for you. Ill be back.

Carl

nakedyak · Jul 14, 2006

well i'm not using filters, and i'm using canon L lenses, so its not the lenses. I've also tried all kinds of different light.

I"ll try resetting the camera's settings to the default...maybe thats it.

Chiller · Jul 14, 2006

I was really concerned when mine went all funky. Cause in the viewfinder it was in focus. But it was not till i got home that I noticed it.
I searched for the article, but could not find it.
I did find one person say that they the camera took a pretty bad bump, and never focused properly again.
Im not sure how the default settings were done, cause the techy in the store did it. I should have asked him, just in case it happened again.
I hope everything works out for you. If I come across anything, I will post it here. Good luck.

nakedyak · Jul 14, 2006

thanks. i'm really considering taking it into a repair shop now.

basically what is happening is that the small mirror under the main mirror is malfunctioning somehow. It is supposed to flip up and out of the way with the main mirror when the shutter is pressed, and it isn't, effectively blocking half of the sensor. It is also rendering the autofocus unusable because it should be directing the available light to the autofocus sensor so that the camera will know what to focus on, but because it isn't in the right position, nothing will focus.

its a frustrating problem and i already had to cancel a shoot that i had planned today. ugh. i need a 20d

nakedyak · Jul 20, 2006

well they want to charge me $250 to have it fixed...so at this point I"m just gonna try to find a cheap 20d I think.

Digital Matt · Jul 20, 2006

Any ideas? thanks

Manual focus.

EBphotography · Jul 20, 2006

Manual focus is a good idea, but will be inconvenient when you are looking to just take snapshots on vacation and stuff.

Digital Matt · Jul 20, 2006

I wouldn't buy a $900 for snapshots, but that's just me

Btw, Nakedyak, do you have the latest firmware?

nakedyak · Jul 21, 2006

no, but how would that help?

the focusing problem is caused because the smaller mirror keeps falling down which keeps the autofocus from working properly. It's more of a physical problem, my guess is that its caused by wear and repeated use - and also age. i mean its 3 1/2 years old by now.

Big Mike · Jul 21, 2006

3 1/2 years and probably many thousands of photos. $250 doesn't seem to be such a high price to pay.

The Rebel cameras are consumer grade, they are not made to last forever...at least not under heavy use. I'm guessing that a lot of Rebel owners will soon be facing similar issues.

This was probably not much of a problem back when film SLRs were king. A film rebel probably only shoots a few thousand photos in it's whole life. If you were going to shoot more than that, you probably got a pro or semi-pro camera with a better shutter.

Now with digital everyone is shooting like crazy, not just the pros. Hopefully the manufacturers will realize this and make the moving parts more robust than was required in their film cameras.

Look at it this way, when you first purchased your camera, you probably compared the D Rebel to the 10D or one of the older DSLR cameras. They were better cameras but much more expensive than your Rebel. You sacrificed quality for price...and now you have to pay for that choice. Now, $250 doesn't seem like such a hefty price...it's still less than you would have paid to get a 10D in the first place.

nakedyak · Jul 21, 2006

well I just ordered the 20d from Amazon for a little less than 900. Its a big purchase, but I can probably write it off for taxes for work, plus it'll be a huge upgrade from the 300d. I'm looking forward to the improved autofocus and faster burst and all the other cool things about it

Big Mike · Jul 21, 2006

Congrats. I have a 20D and love it.

What are you going to do with the Rebel? Someone would probably be willing to buy it (for the right price) and fix it.

nakedyak · Jul 21, 2006

i'm not opposed to selling it if I could find someone who wanted it. I've seen perfectly good working digital rebels on Ebay for around $250 or so, so I'm not sure how much I could get for one that is broken...