WeylandYutani
New member
Hi, sorry if ive posted this in the wrong thread. Ive never used a forum before, and although im pretty computer literate, it took me 5mins to work out how to ask a question!
Hopefully, someone out there might be able to help me with this awful problem.
First, my kit:
D3100 (2 years old)
Nikon 18-55 DX Kit lens
Nikon 35mm DX 1.8 lens
Nikon 55-200mm VR lens
D7100 (2 days old)
Okay, heres the problem. Ive just recieved my brand new d7100 body, and immiediately tried it with my 55-200. I was in my front room, the 'big light' was on (so the room was well lit), and i tried to take a picture to test the focus point system. It was set to aperture priority, iso 100, and at the lowest f-stop (wide open). I think its 3.4, but cant remember exactly. Anyway, the camera recommends a shutter speed of 1.5 seconds. Im confused with this, as the room is well lit! I take the picture, and sure enough it takes 1.5 seconds for the shutter to open and close. The exposure was fine, but obviously blurry (hand held). Strange that the exposure was fine, though (and by fine i mean no clipping, just well balanced lighting).
I then switch to manual mode, and again have the f-stop wide open, iso 100, but set a shutter speed of 1/60. The image turns out totally black.
At this point, im quite perplexed. I check the exposure compensation, but thats at zero. I run through the settings, switching things like noise reduction to off etc - essentially setting the camera to have no processing effects. I take the picture again, (both in aperture priority, and manual) and have exactly the same results. I try changing the metering mode, but get the same results on all options. Incidentally, i also tried shutter priority, and the camera would only expose the image correctly at around 1-2 second shutter time. I then up the iso, and even at 6400, it still wants a ridiculously slow shutter speed.
Very odd, but it gets a lot worse. I then try my different lenses, and have exactly the same problem with them all - even my 35mm prime, which is normally brilliant in low light conditions, let alone a brightly lit front room! All the lenses focus fine, regardless of which af mode i set it too.
Faulty body, right? Thats what i thought. I then get my d3100 out - which was working fine just a couple of days before - and try the same routine as above (hoping that it must be a setting on the d7100 that i dont know about). I then have exactly the same problem with my d3100 across all lenses! Neither bodies will expose correctly unless the shutter speed is well over a second, regardless of the settings i dial in or which lens is attached! And this camera body was working perfectly just a few days before.
I then try using the flash, and up the iso as high as it will go on the d3100 (hi 2), and the best i can muster - using the 35mm prime - is around 1/20 to get a properly exposed image.
Im really scratching my head, here. At first i thought it must be to do with the light in the room, but the room is well lit. Bright, infact. I then point the camera at a light source, and again can only get just under a second for shutter speed.
Ive searched several forums (as well as i could, considering how hard it is to explain the above in a concise sentence for a google search), and found the following page on nikons website - https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com...r-camera-consistently-over-or-under-exposing?
So, ive checked the aperture lever on both bodies, and theyre not bent in any way. I also did the mirror lock thing without a lens on, and both aperture levers moved exactly how i would expect them too.
It also recommends to do a depth of field preview with the shutter speed set to 1 second, which i did, and its supposed to make the screen go quite dark, however it barely made any difference.
The cameras and lenses have never been dropped, nor come in contact with liquid in any way. They are kept in neoprene cases, inside my camera bag when not in use, so they couldnt have been accidentally knocked over.
The only thing i know for certain, is that the 55-200mm was on the d3100 from when i last used it (indoors, incidentally, and it worked fine), and that was the first lense that i put onto the d7100. Could that lens somehow have developed a problem which has then spread to the mounts on both bodies, which in turn is preventing any of the lenses from working? Crazy, i know, but its far too much of a coincidence for everything to stop working at the same time, and for both bodies to develop exactly the same fault.
Ive also looked very closely at the mounts on both bodies to see if there are any breaks, but cant see anything. Same with the lenses. Everything looks brand new!
Whats really confusing me is that the pictures are perfectly exposed with the shutter speed at 1.5 seconds and the f-stop wide open...
I know its a big read, and if youve got this far, thanks for sticking with me!
Can anyone offer me any advice, or even the slightest idea of what the problem might be?
Id really appreciate ANY help with this, as im totally lost!
Thanks
Hopefully, someone out there might be able to help me with this awful problem.
First, my kit:
D3100 (2 years old)
Nikon 18-55 DX Kit lens
Nikon 35mm DX 1.8 lens
Nikon 55-200mm VR lens
D7100 (2 days old)
Okay, heres the problem. Ive just recieved my brand new d7100 body, and immiediately tried it with my 55-200. I was in my front room, the 'big light' was on (so the room was well lit), and i tried to take a picture to test the focus point system. It was set to aperture priority, iso 100, and at the lowest f-stop (wide open). I think its 3.4, but cant remember exactly. Anyway, the camera recommends a shutter speed of 1.5 seconds. Im confused with this, as the room is well lit! I take the picture, and sure enough it takes 1.5 seconds for the shutter to open and close. The exposure was fine, but obviously blurry (hand held). Strange that the exposure was fine, though (and by fine i mean no clipping, just well balanced lighting).
I then switch to manual mode, and again have the f-stop wide open, iso 100, but set a shutter speed of 1/60. The image turns out totally black.
At this point, im quite perplexed. I check the exposure compensation, but thats at zero. I run through the settings, switching things like noise reduction to off etc - essentially setting the camera to have no processing effects. I take the picture again, (both in aperture priority, and manual) and have exactly the same results. I try changing the metering mode, but get the same results on all options. Incidentally, i also tried shutter priority, and the camera would only expose the image correctly at around 1-2 second shutter time. I then up the iso, and even at 6400, it still wants a ridiculously slow shutter speed.
Very odd, but it gets a lot worse. I then try my different lenses, and have exactly the same problem with them all - even my 35mm prime, which is normally brilliant in low light conditions, let alone a brightly lit front room! All the lenses focus fine, regardless of which af mode i set it too.
Faulty body, right? Thats what i thought. I then get my d3100 out - which was working fine just a couple of days before - and try the same routine as above (hoping that it must be a setting on the d7100 that i dont know about). I then have exactly the same problem with my d3100 across all lenses! Neither bodies will expose correctly unless the shutter speed is well over a second, regardless of the settings i dial in or which lens is attached! And this camera body was working perfectly just a few days before.
I then try using the flash, and up the iso as high as it will go on the d3100 (hi 2), and the best i can muster - using the 35mm prime - is around 1/20 to get a properly exposed image.
Im really scratching my head, here. At first i thought it must be to do with the light in the room, but the room is well lit. Bright, infact. I then point the camera at a light source, and again can only get just under a second for shutter speed.
Ive searched several forums (as well as i could, considering how hard it is to explain the above in a concise sentence for a google search), and found the following page on nikons website - https://nikoneurope-en.custhelp.com...r-camera-consistently-over-or-under-exposing?
So, ive checked the aperture lever on both bodies, and theyre not bent in any way. I also did the mirror lock thing without a lens on, and both aperture levers moved exactly how i would expect them too.
It also recommends to do a depth of field preview with the shutter speed set to 1 second, which i did, and its supposed to make the screen go quite dark, however it barely made any difference.
The cameras and lenses have never been dropped, nor come in contact with liquid in any way. They are kept in neoprene cases, inside my camera bag when not in use, so they couldnt have been accidentally knocked over.
The only thing i know for certain, is that the 55-200mm was on the d3100 from when i last used it (indoors, incidentally, and it worked fine), and that was the first lense that i put onto the d7100. Could that lens somehow have developed a problem which has then spread to the mounts on both bodies, which in turn is preventing any of the lenses from working? Crazy, i know, but its far too much of a coincidence for everything to stop working at the same time, and for both bodies to develop exactly the same fault.
Ive also looked very closely at the mounts on both bodies to see if there are any breaks, but cant see anything. Same with the lenses. Everything looks brand new!
Whats really confusing me is that the pictures are perfectly exposed with the shutter speed at 1.5 seconds and the f-stop wide open...
I know its a big read, and if youve got this far, thanks for sticking with me!
Can anyone offer me any advice, or even the slightest idea of what the problem might be?
Id really appreciate ANY help with this, as im totally lost!
Thanks
