nikon n8008 problem
David Jacobson
In article <57g5lb$n...@news.icon.net>, Quang Tu <qm...@icon.net> wrote:
>I have recently encountered this problem with my N8008 and SB24. I was
>wondering if anyone else has run into the same problem or have any thought
>about it.
>I bought a used N8008 in 1994 and have had no trouble with it. I bought a
>used SB24 at the end of august this year. Since october i have had this
>incidence happen 3 times. That is, I would be shooting away with the combina-
>tion, and suddenly the camera would freeze.
>It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
>the camera itself, take the flash off the camera, and it would do nothing.
>It would even stay on even when I switch it to off, ie. i can't turn it off
>unless i unscrew the battery compartment and remove the batteries. sometime
>when i do this then put the battery back in it would turn back on and remain
>frozen in the on position.
>I'm wondering if this is a problem with the SB24 or the connection between
>them. Also I'm wondering if this is a battery problem. I have installed
>new batteries in both the camera and the flash yesterday and I will see if the
>problem occurs again. The battery compartment of the camera and flash are
>not dirty or corroded or anything.
>It's hard to pinpoint the problem because it doesn't happen very often.
>I appreciate any input in this matter. Thanks
The on-off switch in the 8008 does not really turn it off, it just
puts it in a mode where the LCD does not display, the shutter won't
release, etc. Occasionally the software in the 8008 crashes, as it
were. I've had it happen to me about 4 times in 6 years.
You seem to suspect that it is more likely to happen when using the
flash. Of my 4 crashes, none were when the flash (SB-24).
Here are the possibly unusal things about the 4 crashes I suffered
1. Last frame of roll
2. In the rain
3. Stybring Arboretum in San Francisco (lots of drippy ferns)
4. Top of Yosemite Falls
Because 2 and 3 involved dampness and in 4 the camera had been in a
backback that may have gotten damp with perspiration, I always assumed
these were dampness related. But maybe that was just coincidence.
When I was in Yosemite one other time I met a gentleman in the meadow
that has the big view of Half Dome who was upset with his 8008 becuase
it had locked up on him.
I wish Nikon would get software right.
-- David Jacobson
Quang Tu
Khai
>
>Because 2 and 3 involved dampness and in 4 the camera had been in a
>backback that may have gotten damp with perspiration, I always assumed
>these were dampness related. But maybe that was just coincidence.
>
>When I was in Yosemite one other time I met a gentleman in the meadow
>that has the big view of Half Dome who was upset with his 8008 becuase
>it had locked up on him.
>
>I wish Nikon would get software right.
>
Once my 801 frooze on the last frame of the film, it wouldn't completely close the
shutter after taking the last frame. I turned it on/off, but nothing helped. Even
changed the batteries. I used it indoor, so it was not exposed to any dampness or
extreme temperatures. The camera wouldn't wound back the film either, so I was
stuck. The LCD display turned itself on and off when I pushed the buttons (all of
them) and things seemed very mixed up.
After a posting on this newsgroup I got a lot of respons from other people who
have had the same problem. One guy pointed out that the problem may be in the
"static-electricity-build-up-department" inside the camera and that this may
occur when there is damp in the air. Also wore out batteries gives it some strange
behavior. This is a shame for such a nice camera as the 801.
Khai
Neil Giordano
In article <57g5lb$n...@news.icon.net> Quang Tu, qm...@icon.net writes:
>I have recently encountered this problem with my N8008 and SB24. I was
>wondering if anyone else has run into the same problem or have any thought
>about it.
I purchased a used 8008 earlier this year and just recently (the last 3
months) have had the exact same problem. No one at my local camera store
could explain it, and it hasnšt happened enough to pay to get it checked
out.
I canšt find any commonality in the situations itšs locked up on me:
1) the first time was, ironically, when I was testing out a brand new
Nikkor 35-135 lens at Calumet in Manhattan (the lens was broken, too --
they allegedly sent it back to Nikon);
2) while shooting at the Bull Durham blues festival (clear, warm night --
no humidity);
3) shooting on the streets in Chicago last week (bitter cold).
Go figure. If anyone has some suggestions on fixing it for good please
post them. Thanks.
Neil Giordano
DoubleTake Magazine & DoubleTake Books
Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University
nei...@acpub.duke.edu
Bob Neuman
In article <57g5lb$n...@news.icon.net>, qm...@icon.net says...
>I have recently encountered this problem with my N8008 and SB24. I was
>wondering if anyone else has run into the same problem or have any thought
>about it.
>I bought a used N8008 in 1994 and have had no trouble with it. I bought a
>used SB24 at the end of august this year. Since october i have had this
>incidence happen 3 times. That is, I would be shooting away with the
>combination, and suddenly the camera would freeze.
>It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
>the camera itself, take the flash off the camera, and it would do nothing.
>It would even stay on even when I switch it to off, ie. i can't turn it off
>unless i unscrew the battery compartment and remove the batteries. sometime
>when i do this then put the battery back in it would turn back on and remain
>frozen in the on position.
This has happened to me as many as five times during a wedding (!!!!
awkward!!!!), but it is always corrected by switching off both the flash
and the camera, dropping the batteries enough to break the connection
for a few seconds, then restoring everything to normal. It happens mostly
with weak batteries, near the end of the roll, and/or on humid/wet days.
No permanent damage results, and I still prefer the 8008 (not 8008s)
over all other Nikon AF-type bodies (I use them manually, and for their
flash capabilities and built-in motor [the F4 is too large and heavy for
me {I carry two bodies}, but otherwise I might prefer it]).
Hope This Helps
Dave Burk
Quang Tu wrote:
> tion, and suddenly the camera would freeze.
> It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
<snip>
> It's hard to pinpoint the problem because it doesn't happen very often.
> I appreciate any input in this matter. Thanks
I have had this happen a couple of times. I thought that it was related
to Rear curtain sync and long shutter times. The first time was
outdoors on a misty rainy evening. I was able to get the camera to close
the shitter by pulling the batteries for 5 seconds or so, but the
autofocus was whacked afterwards and I would get 'err' in the viewfinder
when I tried to make an exposure. I took the SB-24 off the body and
pulled the batteries for 60 seconds or so and the camera seemed to
reboot.
The second time was a couple of days later. I was trying to see if the
long exposure-rear curtain sync trick would cause the camera to hang
again. I was -very- sucessful. This time the shutter would not recycle
even after pulling the batteries for 2-3 min. I ended up freeing it by
setting the self timer to trip the shutter. ( Different neural pathway
to the shuter?) It caused the camera to cycle normally and the beast
has not given me problems since. However, I have avaoided using the rear
curtain sync with anything more than 1 second shutter speeds.
The camera had been cool when I brought it into the house to make these
tests so it -may- be moisture related. I hadn't thought of that.
Ilkka Nissil{
In article <57hr9m$r...@ratatosk.uio.no>, Khai <k.t.n...@econ.uio.no> wrote:
>In article <57gjts$p...@cello.hpl.hp.com>, jaco...@cello.hpl.hp.com (David Jacobson) says:
>
>>
>>When I was in Yosemite one other time I met a gentleman in the meadow
>>that has the big view of Half Dome who was upset with his 8008 becuase
>>it had locked up on him.
>>
>>I wish Nikon would get software right.
I think recently they have, it's just the
F-801/s (the first) that's a bit buggy.
People don't seem to know this widely, but
the fix to the problem of freezing on the last
frame is fixed by pressing and holding the
metering area selector button (matrix/cw/spot)
for a few seconds; the mirror comes down and
everything works as they should.
Ilkka
inis...@beta.hut.fi
Morten og Karin
Hi Bob
The problem you describe should be due to static electricity e.g. from
winding the film when taking a lot of pictures in a row. I had my N8008
modified (a very cheap operation) so now it isn't a problem anymore.
Morten Høgholm Pedersen
Mail us at home -> mo...@cybernet.dk
Mail Morten at work -> mor...@nmr.ku.dk
Morten og Karin
Hi everybody
As I wrote to Bob Neuman (a 'mis-posting') there's a well known solution
to the problem you all have. Go to your dealer / nearest Nikon 'garage'.
They'll know what to do about it. The make a minor modifikation to your
camera body, and the problem is gone. Mine has never jammed since.
Bob Neuman
In article <329D49...@cybernet.dk>, mo...@cybernet.dk says...
>As I wrote to Bob Neuman (a 'mis-posting') there's a well known solution
>to the problem you all have. Go to your dealer / nearest Nikon 'garage'.
>They'll know what to do about it. The make a minor modifikation to your
>camera body, and the problem is gone. Mine has never jammed since.
Hmmm, it is not well known in this part of the world....
What do they do???
BTW, someone recommended pressing the meter-pattern button
to clear the jam, but I tried it and it didn't work.
Only a complete shutdown followed by dropping the battery
for a few seconds to remove power has worked, and it has
worked consistently on three different 8008's...
(though it would be nice to remove the problem....).
Hope This Helps
maohai huang
Quang Tu (qm...@icon.net) wrote:
: It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
: the camera itself, take the flash off the camera, and it would do nothing.
: It would even stay on even when I switch it to off, ie. i can't turn it off
this has happened to my 8008s at least twice. in all occations the problem
was with the batteries. low voltage due to use, cold.. and once i got
a dead one in a brand new 4-pack of Energizer.
you have to get the batteries out and put good ones back. once this
condition lasted for several days before it cured itself. incidentally
it was in very cold and dry weather. i suspect other people's experience
about wet weather is related to slow battery current leak in damp
conditions ...
i guess if you call nikon, they might tell you something useful.
- mh
aco...@acopacific.com
Nikon is aware of the problem and they "fixed " my 8008 - well
"Improved" is a better description - The issue is static electricity -
in some cases- falsely resets the camera incompletely...I guess thats
the way to describe it.
Just an aside - How many 36 exp rolls do you get on a set of
batteries?
Love the 8008 - have two - but for the nagging little problems - Oh
I've had the camera develop this lock up when I went to rewind on
marginal batteries..again some kind of transient.
Noland
jaco...@cello.hpl.hp.com (David Jacobson) wrote:
>In article <57g5lb$n...@news.icon.net>, Quang Tu <qm...@icon.net> wrote:
>>I have recently encountered this problem with my N8008 and SB24. I was
>>wondering if anyone else has run into the same problem or have any thought
>>about it.
>>I bought a used N8008 in 1994 and have had no trouble with it. I bought a
>>used SB24 at the end of august this year. Since october i have had this
>>incidence happen 3 times. That is, I would be shooting away with the combina-
>>tion, and suddenly the camera would freeze.
>>It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
>>the camera itself, take the flash off the camera, and it would do nothing.
>>It would even stay on even when I switch it to off, ie. i can't turn it off
>>unless i unscrew the battery compartment and remove the batteries. sometime
>>when i do this then put the battery back in it would turn back on and remain
>>frozen in the on position.
>>I'm wondering if this is a problem with the SB24 or the connection between
>>them. Also I'm wondering if this is a battery problem. I have installed
>>new batteries in both the camera and the flash yesterday and I will see if the
>>problem occurs again. The battery compartment of the camera and flash are
>>not dirty or corroded or anything.
>>It's hard to pinpoint the problem because it doesn't happen very often.
>>I appreciate any input in this matter. Thanks
>The on-off switch in the 8008 does not really turn it off, it just
>puts it in a mode where the LCD does not display, the shutter won't
>release, etc. Occasionally the software in the 8008 crashes, as it
>were. I've had it happen to me about 4 times in 6 years.
>You seem to suspect that it is more likely to happen when using the
>flash. Of my 4 crashes, none were when the flash (SB-24).
>Here are the possibly unusal things about the 4 crashes I suffered
>1. Last frame of roll
>2. In the rain
>3. Stybring Arboretum in San Francisco (lots of drippy ferns)
>4. Top of Yosemite Falls
>Because 2 and 3 involved dampness and in 4 the camera had been in a
>backback that may have gotten damp with perspiration, I always assumed
>these were dampness related. But maybe that was just coincidence.
>When I was in Yosemite one other time I met a gentleman in the meadow
>that has the big view of Half Dome who was upset with his 8008 becuase
>it had locked up on him.
>I wish Nikon would get software right.
> -- David Jacobson
David Rosen
Dave Burk (bu...@worldnet.att.net) wrote:
: Quang Tu wrote:
: > tion, and suddenly the camera would freeze.
: > It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
[snips]
: outdoors on a misty rainy evening. I was able to get the camera to close
: the shitter by pulling the batteries for 5 seconds or so, but the
[more snips]
Far out, Catherwood !
Bye, - dr
Mark Allaye-Chan
Quang Tu (qm...@icon.net) wrote:
: It would not respond to anything i do. I could turn off the flash, turn off
: the camera itself, take the flash off the camera, and it would do nothing.
: It would even stay on even when I switch it to off, ie. i can't turn it off
This lockup problem used to happen on my N8008s when the batteries were low
or sometimes when you had reached the end of a roll of film. This lock
up problem appeared about 4 times during the first 4 months of owning
the camera. I had suspected that problems tend to occur when
the batteries are low and if the motorized film winder tries to advance the film
when you have reached the end of a roll, that is likely when the camera draws
the largest current from the batteries causing the battery voltage to
dip. I suspect that it is these "brown outs" that cause the CPU to
subsequently misbehave, crash, etc.
I switched to rechargeable NiCAD batteries, and I have not
seen the problem in the four years since. NiCADs generally will
allow for a much heavier current draw and this may explain why
I have not seen the problem since.
Also, I generally give the batteries a good charge just before every use of the camera.
Of course there could be other reasons apart from sensitivity to power conditions for why
anyone else's 8008s is misbehaving, but this has been my experience.
... Mark
DGalensky
wouldn't you know...after working diligently yesterday to get
into position to photograph a group of hooded mergansers
(who are very particular about company) i found myself
needing to add a converter to the lens. taking the camera
off, adding the converter, and reattaching the camera, i
found a blinking 'Err' on the LCD. moving aperture
ring: no effect. changing expousre modes: no effect.
removing batteries: no effect. now i'm pissed, and
by this time the mergansers are in ohio.
so i take the godforsaken @#!$% back to the truck. i try
all the above yet again. nothing works. i'm really
getting frustrated now. then i remember (luckily) that
the only time i've seen this behavior is when loading
film without a DX code when the ISO is set to DX. so,
i set to 100 speed and voila. it works.
this on exposure number 22 of a roll, DX'd to that point.
setting back from manually set ISO to the DX setting,
everything worked fine and the problem cleared. same
roll of film in the same spot on the roll. but
after missing the shot once, what are the chances that
i'll ever set the camera to DX again? not likely.
duane
eric smith
i had the same thing happen to mine!! i had to open the back remove the
film,and the switch it on and off, after a while it started to work
again.very strange.
In article <57hr9m$r...@ratatosk.uio.no>, Khai <k.t.n...@econ.uio.no>
writes
>In article <57gjts$p...@cello.hpl.hp.com>, jaco...@cello.hpl.hp.com (David
>Jacobson) says:
>
>>
>>Because 2 and 3 involved dampness and in 4 the camera had been in a
>>backback that may have gotten damp with perspiration, I always assumed
>>these were dampness related. But maybe that was just coincidence.
>>
>>When I was in Yosemite one other time I met a gentleman in the meadow
>>that has the big view of Half Dome who was upset with his 8008 becuase
>>it had locked up on him.
>>
>>I wish Nikon would get software right.
>>
>
>Once my 801 frooze on the last frame of the film, it wouldn't completely close
>the
>shutter after taking the last frame. I turned it on/off, but nothing helped.
>Even
>changed the batteries. I used it indoor, so it was not exposed to any dampness
>or
>extreme temperatures. The camera wouldn't wound back the film either, so I was
>stuck. The LCD display turned itself on and off when I pushed the buttons (all
>of
>them) and things seemed very mixed up.
>
>After a posting on this newsgroup I got a lot of respons from other people who
>have had the same problem. One guy pointed out that the problem may be in the
>"static-electricity-build-up-department" inside the camera and that this may
>occur when there is damp in the air. Also wore out batteries gives it some
>strange
>behavior. This is a shame for such a nice camera as the 801.
>
>
>Khai
--
eric smith