Black Area on Photos

[Sharpe2026]

Hi, I recently purchased a D3100 with 18-55mm lense on ebay for my Fiance as a birthday present. I have tried taking a few test photos (bearing in mind i have zero DSLR experience) and the photos come out with varying sizes of black band across the image. The two images below were taken within 10 seconds of each other, I did not adjust the settings or move position. I'm hoping this is down to my inexperience and is just something I need to adjust. If anyone can help it would be much appreciated.

Thank You

 

[Texas]

Looks like shutter fail.
Give it a lot of exercise, maybe that will free up the grain of sand in the works.

 

[480sparky]

Yep... I'd say the shutter is getting hung up on something.

 

[Bikerbrent_RIP]

Welcome aboard. Enjoy the ride.
We look forward to seeing more posts and samples of your work.

I agree with Texas, looks like a shutter failure. I would cross my fingers and demand a refund from the seller. The repair would cost more than the camera is worth.

 

[Sharpe2026]

Thank you for your help everyone. I requested a refund and the seller agreed immediately so I will look for another one!