Auto focus is whirring, but the focus is not changing.

Hordern

New member
Hi all.

I've been using the camera fine for a little while, and keeping it in a camera bag, in a cupboard when not in use. Picking it up one day to take photos, the auto-focus refused to work. This happens with both lenses (28-70mm and a 70-210mm), so I suspect the issue is with the camera body as opposed to the lenses. I've tried cleaning the contacts, but no luck there.

When I press the button, I can hear the camera try to focus, there is some whirring going on in there. When I manually adjust it to in focus and try, there is no noise (the further out of focus it is, the more stressed it sounds ;) ), so the sensors appear to be working fine.

Is this something I can fix, or will I likely need to get it serviced? Probably tricky as I'm in Egypt, but I'll see what I can find.

Cheers
 

fotojack

Senior Member
Hi all.

I've been using the camera fine for a little while, and keeping it in a camera bag, in a cupboard when not in use. Picking it up one day to take photos, the auto-focus refused to work. This happens with both lenses (28-70mm and a 70-210mm), so I suspect the issue is with the camera body as opposed to the lenses. I've tried cleaning the contacts, but no luck there.

When I press the button, I can hear the camera try to focus, there is some whirring going on in there. When I manually adjust it to in focus and try, there is no noise (the further out of focus it is, the more stressed it sounds ;) ), so the sensors appear to be working fine.

Is this something I can fix, or will I likely need to get it serviced? Probably tricky as I'm in Egypt, but I'll see what I can find.

Cheers

OK...let's start with the easy stuff. Are the camera batteries at full power? (By the way, if you're going to store your camera for more than a few days, remove the battery from the camera. D200's are notorious for draining batteries).
Is your firmware up to date? A: and B: should both be 2.01 You'll find this in your Setup Menu.
Are your lenses set to AF?
What Mode were you experiencing this problem with? Are your Banks all set up? (if you send me your email address, I can send you a Setup Guide for your D200 that you will find very useful for setting up your Shooting Banks). These are found in your Custom Settings Menu.
What kind of light are you shooting in? Dark areas will tend to confuse the camera AF. Areas with little or no contrast will also confuse the focus sensor.
On the front left of the camera, there is a switch for C, S, and M. Make sure it's on C (Constant) or S (Single). I suspect it might be on M and your lens is on AF...but I'm just guessing at this point. :)
Try any and/or all of these points to see if the issue gets resolved. Get back to us if you still have any problems.
 

Hordern

New member
Thanks Pedroj, I suspect that's the case, but I was hoping someone would be able to turn around, tell me I'm a dunce and give me a quick fix having accidentally altered something. Fingers crossed fotojack comes up with something:


OK...let's start with the easy stuff. Are the camera batteries at full power? (By the way, if you're going to store your camera for more than a few days, remove the battery from the camera. D200's are notorious for draining batteries).
When this issue first occurred (a month or so ago - I'm clearly on the case :rolleyes: ), the batteries were at full. They're currently at around 50%, but thanks for the storage advice, I will do that in future.
Is your firmware up to date? A: and B: should both be 2.01 You'll find this in your Setup Menu.
How would I go about updating this? Currently 1.01 and 1.00 respectively (It's my dads old camera, but the issue only started recently, I had been using it fine for a couple of months).
Are your lenses set to AF?
Do you mean a physical something on the lens itself, or the settings in the camera? If the former, I can't see anything like that. But yes, all settings in the camera have been checked (I even went through all the options in the manual).
What Mode were you experiencing this problem with? Are your Banks all set up? (if you send me your email address, I can send you a Setup Guide for your D200 that you will find very useful for setting up your Shooting Banks). These are found in your Custom Settings Menu.
I've set my profile so anyone should be able to e-mail me - that would be great, thanks.
What kind of light are you shooting in? Dark areas will tend to confuse the camera AF. Areas with little or no contrast will also confuse the focus sensor.
I've tried all sorts, from my room with lights on (not the brightest in the world) to outside in the blazing sun (I'm in Egypt). The issue persists everywhere.
On the front left of the camera, there is a switch for C, S, and M. Make sure it's on C (Constant) or S (Single). I suspect it might be on M and your lens is on AF...but I'm just guessing at this point. :)
This was on C.

Thank you VERY much for your time and ideas.
 

fotojack

Senior Member
1: For firmware update, click on the link and follow the instructions TO THE LETTER! Do EXACTLY as instructed!

2: I'm sending you the D200 Setup Guide, as soon as I get your email address. I cannot send through the forum, as it does not allow for PDF attachments. I need your actual emailing address. Send it to me via PM.

3: "Are your lenses set to AF?" Yes, on the lens itself, there's a switch ....a and M. Make sure it's set to A for Auto. M is Manual.
 
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Hordern

New member
1 - Which link?

2 - Done, and thanks again.

3 - My lenses don't have an A/M switch that I can find. They're pretty old. I did a search online for Nikkon lenses and I can't find my lenses on this page: Digital Camera & DSLR Lenses | All NIKKOR Lenses for Digital SLR Cameras| Nikon

I did however look at similar lenses and saw the A/M switch that you mention in images. Certainly nothing like that on mine.

This is the larger lens that I have:
DSC_5019-0600.jpg


This is the smaller:
KEN_5090-0600.jpg


Sorry if my profile confused matters there, I've just removed the incorrect lens listings. These forums don't have my lenses on the drop down options.
 

Hordern

New member
Well thanks for the ideas (and additional info about shooting banks and the like), but sadly, after trying just about everything, nowt has changed and I'm left with the likely-hood that something has indeed come adrift. I guess I'll shoot manual for now until my dad comes out here on holiday again and I may be able to switch it for his D100 which is still working fine. I doubt very much I'll find anyone out here in Sharm el-Sheikh that can service it, but I'll see what crops up.

Cheers!
 

Hordern

New member
I thought you may like to know that my dad did indeed figure out what had gone wrong - the small nubbin that transfers the power from the camera to adjust the focus in the lens had got pushed slightly too far in (probably happened when changing lenses at some point) and the spring was pushing it back up against a lip. It was all solved with a pair of tweezers :)
 
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