Do DSLRs ever give warning before they expire?

My only experience with a DSLR failing was when a D80's shutter opened and never closed again. This happened out of the blue. In 25+ years of using film bodies, I had an F100 and FM10 do something similar, but otherwise my cameras gave warning that they were getting worn out (occasional overlapping frames due to a slipping film advance, buttons sticking, etc). I had other problems come up, but nothing serious enough to prevent me from taking pictures until I could get repairs.

 

Since I'm now (finally) fully digital and I do some backpacking where carrying a backup body is undesirable due to weight, I'm curious how commonly DSLRs give up the ghost in a sudden, non-field-repairable way. Are there ever warning signs? I have checked my cameras' shutter counts and they are well below the supposed ~100K limit, but does that even mean anything?

 

I'm just looking for others' experiences. I know there's no substitute for carrying a backup, but how common are sudden, non-accidental failures, especially among the lighter DX bodies (D3xxx or D7xxx series) I use for hiking?

No because nobody would know when they would fail. They don't expire but rather just fail. Digital camera or even film camera would generally just fail without any sign. The meter on my Df just quit one day.

My own ones are still alive. - I watched a YouTube video where some guy tortured a crop EOS to find out if the shutter lasts the promised life span. - I think towards the end of it it made funny noises and something went wrong with the mirror mechanism too?

 

My biggest DSLR related fears would be

• moisture / dropping damage
  
• breaking / worn out zooms (also failing AF / aperture / stabilizer in any kind of lens)
  
• battery failure
  

Never had one fail...just batteries get exhausted.

Sometimes you will still occasional errors or signs of wonky behavior, while sometimes they just die with no warning.

 

I have a D300s that has I think 475K actuations on it(I'm only responsible for a few thousand of those)-I bought it with that many). It continues to work perfectly fine, or at least did the last time I tried it. I do take it out occasionally where I'm not doing something critical, can carry a back-up body with me, and need a fast-ish DX camera(the D300/D300s can do 8fps with an MB-D10 and EN-EL4a battery). It could die the next time I try to shoot a frame with it, or could go another half million frames. Realistically, it's probably somewhere between those two numbers, but also probably closer to the first than the second. I paid a little of nothing for it in a package deal of all "high mileage" bodies along with a couple of D1Hs, and kept a single D300s along with all of the D1Hs. I kept the highest count D300s(the others were sold with disclosure-one went to a member here with 125K or so on it, another with a bit over 400K was sold on Ebay) with the intent of purposely using it until it dies.

Yes, you start looking to upgrade. That will get your current camera to fail shortly.

There are some kinds of failure that could give warnings. If electrical connections corrode, you might start to see corrupted files. If the shutter, mirror or aperture lever start to stick, they might do so intermittently before seizing completely. If it's actually shutter blades warping I wouldn't expect much warning before a complete failure. If something electrical burns out, I'd expect a similar sudden death. There's not nearly so much that can be "slipping" or "stiff" but still work compared with a film body - especially since the digital bodies have analysis of the shutter so if it starts to run slowly, they'll report an error rather than keeping going. Lenses are probably a bit more tolerant - a sticky aperture blade or stiff focus mechanism will probably keep going. But other than reading some of the lensrentals blog, I have no experience of actually trying to repair these things - my house has historically had so much cat hair in it that I don't even clean my own sensor.

 

Fortunately, we usually have cell phones that can take a back-up image. I usually carry an RX100 around in case I have a dSLR problem.

...Fortunately, we usually have cell phones that can take a back-up image. I usually carry an RX100 around in case I have a dSLR problem.

It was in fact my beloved RX100 I that had some glitches and then stopped working altogether 1,5 years ago.. And the WWW-community pointed at a typical cable-break for this (and II) model to be the culprit.. but because S*NY then had to replace not only the cable but the entire lens-group, they declared my camera total-loss after 2,5 years and refused to repair under guarantee. If I can help it: never will I buy from that company again.

Rant over .. sorry for that! ;)

 

Apart from above best-avoided line of models (I loved the damn thing!): WHAT in fact are nowadays the suitable backup camera's for a DSLR? or walk-around-on-a-sunny-day semi-compacts?

I haven't had any shutter failures or that kind of camera failures which would prevent the continuation of photography (battery empty and card full, yes, but...).

 

I believe the F5 had a shutter monitor which measured the actual time the shutter was open and compared it to the intended time, and if there was a discrepancy, there would be some warning light or message. I believe camera would somehow try to compensate for the error in shutter opening time. I guess this could be seen as a way of implementing an early warning. I believe current cameras also monitor the shutter but I don't know if they give an early warning about looming shutter failure.

I have checked my cameras' shutter counts and they are well below the supposed ~100K limit, but does that even mean anything?

 

It doesn't mean anything. The 100k quoted by Nikon is not a limit, but a statistical average on when failure is most likely to occur (the MTBF). It only concerns the shutter, which as a mechanical part is more likely to get worse with more use. But that doesn't mean other parts cannot fail either.

And for none of them you can predict when a single camera will fail.

It was in fact my beloved RX100 I that had some glitches and then stopped working altogether 1,5 years ago.. And the WWW-community pointed at a typical cable-break for this (and II) model to be the culprit.. but because S*NY then had to replace not only the cable but the entire lens-group, they declared my camera total-loss after 2,5 years and refused to repair under guarantee. If I can help it: never will I buy from that company again.

Rant over .. sorry for that! ;)

 

Ah. Sorry to hear that. I got mine refurbished, but I think it was long enough ago that it probably wasn't yours. My main objection to the recent ones is that they've got really expensive.

 

Apart from above best-avoided line of models (I loved the damn thing!): WHAT in fact are nowadays the suitable backup camera's for a DSLR? or walk-around-on-a-sunny-day semi-compacts?

 

Well, I got a Coolpix A so that I had a compact camera I could post to Nikon Wednesdays with. Allowing for equivalence it can't do much the RX100 couldn't, and it's bigger - but the smallest case I could find for it was a leather one that convinces everyone I'm shooting a Leica, so there's that.

 

Canon have just announced updates to the G5 X and G7 X, if you want something with a 1" sensor and zoom that's basically in the RX100 market. Otherwise the Panasonic LX100 series seem to get good reviews. Generally the RX100 models have been slightly given the edge when I've seen the compared, but there's not much to it. They're all reasonably-sized sensors, compared with a tiny sensor that could be attached to a bigger zoom range in the same package; pick your poison.

Well, I got a Coolpix A so that I had a compact camera I could post to Nikon Wednesdays with. Allowing for equivalence it can't do much the RX100 couldn't, and it's bigger - but the smallest case I could find for it was a leather one that convinces everyone I'm shooting a Leica, so there's that.

:rolleyes: Convincing the status-seekers by accident is always a good thing! (says I, driving a Dacia, haha). A Coolpix A replacement by Nikon is obviously long overdue..

 

Canon have just announced updates to the G5 X and G7 X..

Yes, those two I will follow with much interest! FujiFilm seems obsessed now by cranking out an endless and incomprehensible range of interchangeable-lens camera's (good for them!) .. so my attention has shifted somewhat away from them.

 

Next weeks Denmark/Sweden/Norway trip will have me carrying the trusted D800 again, even on the occasional trekking I'm afraid.. (let me just pretend I'm 20 years old again!).

Stephen,

When my Fuji S2 that used Nikon lenses and AA rechargeable batteries failed about 8 years ago it had been well used but never damaged. The electronics became wonky and processing was slow. Nothing dramatic like green guacamole oozing out as it flashed on and off during its death throes, just a gradual slowing down that I could not explain. My primary cameras at that time were a a D2x a D200 and a new D3s. I still have the D2x and D3s that have not slowed down though I use both less and less, especially the D2x. I baby my gear in a dry cabinet in hopes that there will be less problems associated with moisture on electrical contacts as well as to prevent mold on the glass. I truly loved my Fuji S2 but I think that the newer stuff will probably hold up better over time. I just bought a refurbished Fuji x100f three months ago that has a fixed lens and choice of electronic or mechanical shutter. All most no moving parts and dead silent. I have started carrying it everywhere. It will be interesting to see how it holds up. My current Nikons are between 1 and 7 years old and I believe still too young to say but given their history so far I will not hold my breath. My biggest fears is that the rubber on the camera bodies may become tacky as it gets older. Enjoy your back packing and the fact that you don’t have to carry film. Good hunting.

The X100 series tempted me, but they're surprisingly big (the X-Pro1 is enormous, but then I was surprised at how big an M3 was when I played with one), and still not very cheap. More importantly for me, the diopter adjustment doesn't cope with my iffy right eye. I'd be tempted by Fuji if I even wanted a DX system for portability, but the X100 series is likely always to be something I'd like to have slightly less than the money. My D850 and RX100 will be with me on a trip next week, with too many computers.

 

I think having a Coolpix A in a leather case might have made me seem more the hipster and less the pervert when I tried street photography - I seemed to get fewer people sticking fingers up at me. I've largely given up on the idea, because while everyone seems happy to be on CCTV, nobody seems happy to be in anyone's photo of the same scene. I could try to master going and asking people for less candid images, but I'm not really confident enough, I don't like people enough, and it's easier to stick to wildlife and landscapes. Not that this stopped me from being quizzed over a PA system by a security guard when I tried photographing birds from a car park roof. It's a little more reasonable in central London, where people are more used to pictures being taken, but then I don't normally get funny looks with a dSLR there either. Maybe it's specific to Staines. So much for expanding my horizons.

 

The problem with the Coolpix A is the slow lens: the images are fine, but at f/2.8 I can get the same subject separation from the RX100 despite its smaller sensor. Whether Nikon can make the lens faster (and possibly a little longer) without making the camera enormous like an RX1R is another matter. I suspect Nikon have enough on their plates with the move to the Z series.

I'm curious how commonly DSLRs give up the ghost in a sudden, non-field-repairable way. Are there ever warning signs? I

The only "warning" was with one of my past D300 cameras. Occasionally it gave a "card error". Sometimes it captured a half-baked image - top half contains the subject and the lower half something else. These were sporadic sabotages. Swapped cards and still the same. Warning enough. So I sold it cheap in "as-is" condition.

Edited July 25, 2019 by Mary Doo

Hmm... my DSLR went "cough,

cough," and then it croaked...

http://bayouline.com/o2.gif

my Fuji S2 that used Nikon lenses

Mine had the oddity it later life that if I gripped the grip too hard, the shutter button became inoperable. It got to the stage where I barely had to squeeze it make it not work.

 

Guess there was a loose connector or crimped cable somewhere.

 

It was about 6 years old and I gave it away.

 

Today, I might have opened it up to see if it could be fixed...:)

I would say that one should not expect a warning or unusual behavior before failure. My experience with most electronic camera failures is that they just suddenly went inop, and not related to shutter count or wear/tear.. Not always, though. I have a pair of D2xs that sort of hang up (shutter) once then work ok after pulling the battery. Am sure those shutters are on borrowed time but not worth fixing now. Nice paperweights!

 

I had a D3 that had around 400K clicks, and looked like it had 1MM from a war zone. Best running and focusing D3 I used of several, regretted selling it but it morphed into part of a D810 that has served well.

The S2 is an interesting example, and I'm pretty well convinced it may well be one of the most unreliable DSLRs ever made.

 

I bought 3 or 4 of them trying to get a working one(part of the "Nikon mount not Nikon DSLR" collection). I do FINALLY have a working one, but have a few others around with an interesting mix of problems. The most common seems to be "sensor failure"(if you Google Fuji S2 sensor failure you'll find a lot of discussion about it) where the camera will SEEMINGLY operate normally but won't actually capture an image on the screen. I have another where-as best as I can tell-it seems to be stuck at base ISO. Outdoors in full sun, I can get perfectly exposed images even using AE on the camera as long as I have it set to base. If I set it to something else, it underexposes according to the meter.

 

I love the color rendition of Fuji DSLRs, but the only one I actually bother with anymore is the S5. The S3 seems to give nearly identical images, but is much clunkier to use. The S5 actually uses a "real" DSLR body(D200) as opposed to an adapted film camera, which I think is what makes the overall experience so much more pleasant.

A few years ago I bought a D7200 that proved to be a 'lemon'. Right out of the box the AF was off and needed massive fine-tuning, which obviously didn't work correctly across a zoom range.

 

Then I got an 'Err 43' message on the top LCD when I attempted to use a shutter speed higher than 1/1000th. This was well within the 12 month warranty. Apparently the error 43 indicated a camera timing error. It went off for repair and came back weeks later in much the same state, and was replaced after further complaint to the supplier.

 

In short, yes, I got some warning of impending doom. The camera remained useable at speeds below 1/1000th. For how long it would have remained that way, I have no idea.

 

YMMV, obviously.

 

FWIW. The replacement body has much more accurate AF - with the same lenses, and has worked flawlessly since.

One good thing (if you can call it that) is that electronic gear doesn't really "wear" out; and like rodeo-joe's camera, failures often occur early on.

 

Of course lots of electronic cameras still have mechanical parts like the mirror.

Huh. Turn my back for two seconds, and Sony announces another RX100...

 

Edit: ...that I'm not going to pay £1200 for no matter how good it is. :-)

 

I'd quite like the high frame rate shooting on some of these, though. It's the main reason I have a 1 V1, but 1200fps is less useful in the V1's aspect ratio.

 

Got to say that 24-200mm 20fps eye tracking zoom that fits in a pocket is a heck of a soccer mom camera, if they've got that much disposable income.

 

At this rate I'll leave the country for a week and come back to a Df2!

Edited July 25, 2019 by Andrew Garrard

leave the country for a week and come back to a Df2!

Going to Never Never Land?

Going to Never Never Land?

People still think there is a Df2. It's not possible. A Zf perhaps. What I meant that Nikon will never make a DSLR to take the place of the Df.

People still think there is a Df2. It's not possible. A Zf perhaps. What I meant that Nikon will never make a DSLR to take the place of the Df.

...And so we thought that 12Mpx was the max and more than enough .. and the D300 would be the last of the semi-pro DX's .. ;)