NEED HELP FAST******************

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Name
John
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Yes
I DON'T believe this

Nikon D300 #4

I've set all the menus to the recommended - even carried out a factory reset

something is not right - the view through the eyepiece is very DARK

mounting a 18-70 AF-S DX lens - an err message is displayed and the focus wont lock

a 35 1.8 is no diferent

any ideas..................I REALLY dont need this hassle yet again
 
Have you tried pressing the DoF preview button to see if it clears ?
Could be the lever that controls the aperture
If not may be the mirror sticking, but then it would be completely dark.
Do you have another lens you could try ?
 
Obviously something not right .. return to seller as faulty .. IF you do decide to buy another get from a Reputable source such as wex
 
the book says =insert a fully charged battery page 44 and that is all page 44 has notghing ab out it. Going to check another3 ref book. All say the same.
 
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Have you downl;oaded and upgraded the Firmware should be
A 1.11
B 1.11

link

have you checked to see if the mirror is sitting down in the right position . To me it all points to that mirror sticking would gently lift it up or put it in the cleaning position ,maybe a bit of dirt is stopping it or a weak mirror mechanism
What is the shutter count? should give some idea of how many times the mirror has lifted and dropped
 
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Have you tried pressing the DoF preview button to see if it clears ?
Could be the lever that controls the aperture
If not may be the mirror sticking, but then it would be completely dark.
Do you have another lens you could try ?................

yes tried a 50mm f2 A1 works perfect with bright viewfinder.. No meter of course.............................. :thinking:
 
have you checked to see if the mirror is siktting down in the right position . To me it all points to that mirror sticking ....

Nope... no lens - mirror flips up/down really fast
 
50mm 1.8 AF focuses - wont fire .. viewfinder dark again
 
It should be set to the smallest aperture, say f/22, and then there is a switch (see image, switch with small white dot aligned to orange marking) which will lock it down. If this switch has been bumped, the aperture ring may have moved and the aperture will close down and make the viewfinder dark.
 
in the camera body there is a lever shown on the left. Should be in this position. That isn't stuck in the down position is it?
M4020001aaasssssA.jpg
 
in the camera body there is a lever shown on the left. Should be in this position. That isn't stuck in the down position is it?
View attachment 287945


YES YES YES ....Marvelous..!....wot do i do now..?

edit..
.when i press and release the lower Function button the lever flips up very fast but returns to the down position
 
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Random Internet search suggestion ... 'go into settings and disable the DOF button (last option is "none")'.
No idea if it will help but it's something else to try. :)
 
Found this as an answer to someone with the same problem https://www.nikonforums.com/forums/topic/3136-d300-viewfinder-problem/

" Do you have any -D lenses to do an experiment? There is a custom setting to use the aperture ring instead of the control wheel, activate that. Set the aperture to wide open on the lens. Does the viewfinder work now? If so, you can use it like that until you get a chance to get it fixed. You will still need to open up to focus and then close to taking aperture for each photo. "

It sounds like a setting has been tweaked somewhere, since that lever is electronically controlled.

Others have had this issue too:
 
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YES YES YES ....Marvelous..!....wot do i do now..?

edit..
.when i press and release the lower Function button the lever flips up very fast but returns to the down position

as in the photo that little lever inside the camera body should be in the UP position not the down position. turn off the function button f4 and see if that sorts it might be set on a non cpu lens setting look at function buttons + dials =BKT turn it off

link may be helpful the previous owner might have beeing using a lens without the contacts

 
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4th faulty body in a row, what are the odds..

not 4 at all - 1st was sold, 2nd didnt turn ON after 2 years in storage, 3rd was retuned with faulty rubber repair

this 4th actually works - i reckon I've buggered the menu
 
as in the photo that little lever inside the camera body should be in the UP position not the down position.

link may be helpful the previous owner might have being using a lens without the contacts................

seller said
''I did a few shots with the camera before listing it, with a 70-300 AF-S DX zoom lens by the way, and there were no issues with lens mounting or anything. The camera is in perfect working order.''

so what now..?
 
You're the buyer and as such ebay will help you get your money back if the body is faulty.

As previously suggested buy from a reputable retailer next time if you want after sales service and a warranty.
 
" Do you have any -D lenses to do an experiment? There is a custom setting to use the aperture ring instead of the control wheel, activate that. Set the aperture to wide open on the lens. Does the viewfinder work now? If so, you can use it like that until you get a chance to get it fixed. You will still need to open up to focus and then close to taking aperture for each photo. "

It sounds like a setting has been tweaked somewhere, since that lever is electronically controlled....

yes Nikon 28-70 AF 3.5-4.5 D
mounted; lock removed and f3.5 set

WORKS PERFECTLY ......what now....?
 
go to custom setting menu and reset.................

thanks............. I have the original Owners Manual and 2 ''How to '' books
which section in the custom menu do I reset................... :thinking:
 
Reset it all first and see if the problem has gone. Start with a clean slate then if ok do the settings you want
 
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I haven’t got any Nikon lenses to take a pic of but on some of them with the apertures on the lens at the right hand end of the numbers there is a little switch ... this changes the way the lens works if irc you have to set it to the smallest Aperture ie F22 then move the switch ..
this could be your problem ? .. as it sounds like your lens apeture is not opening up dark screen .. or just take a couple of sample photos your p.p software should give aperture values if there small that’s the problem.
I would suggest stop messing with the camera and menu settings as this sounds like operator error to me
 
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........Reset it all first and see if the problem has gone. Start with a clean slate then if ok do the settings you want...............

thanks
I've tried that a couple of times...no dice.!
 
I haven’t got any Nikon lenses to take a pic of but on some of them with the apertures on the lens at the right hand end of the numbers there is a little switch ... this changes the way the lens works if irc you have to set it to the smallest Aperture ie F22 then move the switch ..
this could be your problem ? .. as it sounds like your lens apeture is not opening up dark screen .. or just take a couple of sample photos your p.p software should give aperture values if there small that’s the problem.
I would suggest stop messing with the camera and menu settings as this sounds like operator error to me..........

^^^^
yes Nikon 28-70 AF 3.5-4.5 D
mounted; lock removed and f3.5 set

ditto with 50mm 1.8 AF

both lenses work CORRECT,
but ONLY in M and A modes = bright viewfinder and perfect picture (in focus)
S and P give an error message in both cases

the main PROBLEM is mounting an AF-S DX lens results in a dark viewfinder (works perfect on my D90)

depressing the shutter release; focus OK - very brief bright flash of the object before the image is taken = perfect exposure and focus

an aside - she accepted an offer £25 below her asking with no quibble nor counter offer
I now feel I've been sold a faulty item - if NO improvement by tonight I will return for refund............:mad:

thanks for all your advice and comments......(y)
 
A= 1.10
B = 1.10..........should still be OK

Definately do the upgrade first there might just be a blimp in that version. Can't do any harm. It may well be a hardware fault in that version on the camera
link. It will rewrite the hardware progame in the camera so if there is a hardware communication problem that will sort it

Nikon | Download center | D300 Firmware

easy enough to do following the instructions on how to.

Apart from that can't think of anything else sorry
 
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..Apart from that can't think of anything else sorry...

thanks - I see you point but I'm loathe to do any updates. As i will prob return the camera.. She then has the excuse it was MY update which caused the problem. I'll do a factory reset and remove my copyright details too

She actually admitted she had encountered this prob before.
''...There is a feature which I never could really figure out, it happens to me by pushing a button on the side accidentally, it puts the camera into a sort of 'live view mode' I believe .... I think the BIN button takes it out of it.......''

not looking good.!
 
Have you tried cleaning the camera contacts not with a pencil but with isopropyl alcohol or cleaning solution maybe sensor cleaning fluid? also the metal ring as that could be used as part of the communication between camea and lens
 
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I’ve had 3 of the d300s models in the past ,never a problem with any of them ... if your not happy now your always going to doubt the camera .. best bet is return it while you can and then buy from a reputable Dealer that offers warranty and also takes PayPal .... in order of best 1st wex,srsmicrosystems,mpb,camera jungle I have used them all and any issues are swiftly dealt with .
Wex are best as they give a 30 day no quibble testing period
 
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Purely FWIW re: buying secondhand

LCE show a few D300 including one with a 6k count all seem to well under £200 and some higher count ones <£100




All the best with finding/getting one that is old but trouble free.
 
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