edward_wallace3

Last few nights , I have been visiting The Shard in an attempt to get reflection free, night time exposures. Since I have to contend with glass refections I have fashioned all my lenses to either have rubber hoods or metal hoods as I am able to place the lens hood flatly against the window and with the aid of a Lenskirt get a a good reflection-free shot. This is just not possible to do with the petal lens hood. The rubber hood/metal hood serves as a buffer protection when you gently place your lens against the glass surface. I just need to find a proper hood that does not bind evertime I take it off. Going back to the Shard again this evening without that HN-28 hood attached but need to alter the technique. All the other photogs were fusing because of all the reflections and reverse the petal lens unto the lens while others with rubber hoods and Lenskirts were full of glee with their results. Thank you all for your suggestions I am indeed grateful for your time.

Thank you all for your help. Nick you suggestion proved right today. As it was cold last night I left camera near window ledge. I inquired help of an assitant. As I held the body of the lens the assitant took hold of the hood with 2 hands and did a quick twist and behold the hood is now off. But we screwed it on again and it was still hard to get off. Should I use lubricant on the threads or just not use this hood?

I recently purchased the 70-200 vr ii lens as I never have been a fan of the petal shaped hoods. Photogs have suggested to give the HN-28 lens hood a try; its deeper than the orginal, yields excellent contrast and you can stand the lens up with this particular hood. So I decided to purchase the HN-28 lens hood for my 70-200 vr ii lens. Unfortunately, the hood is stuck to the lens filter mount and it wil not come off after all my attempts. I tried many methodes to no available; rubber band techniques, wd-40 toothpick application, washing liquid as lubricant around the filter; plyers grapping the outer edge of the filter rocking it back and forth in a attempt to lossen it. I viewed all the YouTube demo's still nothing worked. If I take it to a Nikon dealer like Fixation here in London do you think they have proper tools to fix it? I will never attempt to put the HN-28 metal hood on this lens again thats if I can ever get this damn thing off. Any thoughts� Kind Regards, Ed

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I noticed on several occasions that when I take an picture with my iPhone 5s I get a weird image sometimes imbedded within the frame. When I zoom into it it s a colored animated icon of something but wonder how the hell it made its way to the picture taking process? What are your thoughts?

The expander joint is what is needed and not to be sold separately. Must pay for center column and plate part from Manfrotto for £95. I just told Fixation to bond the plate to column via super glue and lets call it a day<div></div>

Well Fixation has had the tripod for over a week now andvtripodvis not fixed. In told have to continue to wait in the cue. Alternatively, I was told I can get a full refund if I did not want to wait. I am wondering if I can do the tightening. If I can get a long socket wrench and thread it through the Center column would that suffice?

The Verdict. Called Manfrotto and they said just order £95 centre column with plate attached. Can not buy plate separately. Was told an 3 piece aluminium expander joint was missing from the head and that the previous owner may have broken. Anyway I went back to Fixation and was asked to leave tripod there to fix. They service team looked at it and said it isn't missing a part but simply needs tightening from inserting a special tool through the bottom of the column up to the mounting plate thereby expanding a joint That tool will tighten the large plate bolt and thus secure the plate to the column. All in all unless you have a long racket nut tool the head will remain loose. The tripod will be fixed by next week.

Maybe that is why Fixation,UK sold it for £140<div></div>

I just purchased a used Manfrotto 055CXPRO3 tripod and now have issues. When I orginally extended the center column The mounting plate came off in my hand. Is this normal? Furthermore, once I lock The Manfrotto 496rc head down securely I still get wiggle no matter how tight the tensioner knob and large wing knob is fastened. Should I return the unit or is there something I can do to remedy the problem? Your suggestions are well appreciated. Best, Ed

So I made a move to buy a lens instead but did asked MPB what would be the charge if I were to buy the D3s back? I was told by the MPB pricing team, "we could offer the camera back to you for £625 for spares and repairs". Do you feel MPB could have done more as far as inquiring other Nikon authorized shops to see if they indeed have parts to get it fix or was the £625 price tag a reason for them not to seek out other repair outlets?

Whether it was an economical decision not to repair the camera or scarcity of available parts MPB did treat me fairly in offering a full refund or store credit which I did the latter. So amenable/ fair deal in the end. But I still have some thoughts here. Since I was told the body is unfixable what will MPB do with it now? Has anyone on this forum purchased gear for parts in an attempt to go elsewhere to get it repaired. When I go to the States, would NIKON USA authorised dealers have better inventory of parts than the U.K.?

Well after all has been said and done I will not get a D3's but ordered a Nikon 70-200 2.8 VR 11 lens. I talked to Fixation and they said they are an authorized Nikon dealer for Nikon UK. Fixation warned me not even to try to purchase another D3's as some parts are no longer available leaving you with an unfixable metal clunker.

MPB will not honor Warranty Two months ago I traded in a Sony A7s camera for a D3s. At the time MPB said the shutter had 40,000 clicks on it. After using the camera for several weeks it began to act up. I kept getting black frames and "err" messages on the tip LCD panel. Anyway, I sent camera in to MPB and they informed me next day it has gone out for repair. Today, after a week of them trying to fix the camera I get this email: Edward, Unfortunately, the camera is beyond economical repair and as such we are unable to offer this on this occasion. We don't currently have another like for like body to send to you. Is there an alternative item you would be interested in at all? Sorry for the disappointing news, do let me know your thoughts on how you'd like to proceed here. Best regards, MPB. I then asked what is wrong with it and receive this email: Dear Edward, Thanks for your email. Fixation have advised that unfortunately it needs the entire shutter base plate removing and replacing as this has become faulty. This is an extensive repair as it includes the shutter assembly and internal electrical components. This unfortunately makes the repair not possible as some essential parts are no longer available and the cost involved. Again, we must apologise for the disappointing news here. Let me know your thoughts. Best regards This leaves a sour taste. Please advise. Best, Ed

I quests I need to go to a store and try a Nikon AFS lens as I I have exhausted all other options to make this work.