Scratches

[Illusion]

Guys, do you have any scratches on your camera? I feel so bad when I look at my camera. It has 3 small scratches which are not even noticable to a normal eye, but they annoy me so much. I try to protect my camera as much as possible, but I guess there just isnt a way to save the camera from these scratches.

What do you all say about it?

[civis]

I'll take a guess and say it's probably your first decent camera.

My old Nikon F 35mm cam body looks like it lived through a war (which it may have; I bought it used and have put even more scratches and dings into the body). With regular maintenance and cleaning, it's still a great film cam.

A camera is a tool - not a piece of jewelry, and not a neat trinket to collect dust in a display case - and as such it's meant to be used and treated with care, but not to be kept in a velvet box safe from all possible harm. Like your shoes; you take care of them, but you don't stop walking around to keep the soles shiny and the tread new.

[Ikinaa]

civis wrote:
I'll take a guess and say it's probably your first decent camera.

My old Nikon F 35mm cam body looks like it lived through a war (which it may have; I bought it used and have put even more scratches and dings into the body). With regular maintenance and cleaning, it's still a great film cam.

A camera is a tool - not a piece of jewelry, and not a neat trinket to collect dust in a display case - and as such it's meant to be used and treated with care, but not to be kept in a velvet box safe from all possible harm. Like your shoes; you take care of them, but you don't stop walking around to keep the soles shiny and the tread new.

You're right, a camera is a tool, most time, but when I look at some cams (like the new ixus i), they ressemble more a piece of jewelry.
But the G3 (I own one myself) is definitely a tool, even though it's a fine piece of a cam.
As long as there are small scratches, it's not bad, if you've got smashed parts... that's bad... :D

[civis]

Yep, I treat them sort of like children. Handle with care, keep them clean, but they're going to stumble and scrape a knee now and then.

[Illusion]

well, yeah its only a tool. but so is a car. i mean, if u see a scratch on your car, it hurts rite. so is the case with my cam. it feels bad to see scratches. any ways, i do believe pictures are more important than a camera itself. a great picture doesnt require a GOOD BODY camera. all that matters is the machinery inside and the hand that uses it.

[MiG82]

I couldn't care less about scratches as long as they aren't on the lens.
Same with my car. My car wears it's battle damage and uglyness proudly. I like to use it (= drive it hard), not show it off to others.

[Andy_T]

My G2 has many scratches - can't be avoided sometimes.
Important is that you don't scratch the lens - so put the lens cap on when not in use.

I also normally turn around the LCD display so it's sheltered in the camera when I don't use the camera.

Another thing to watch out ... the metal foil in front is not real sturdy, it's more for the appearance. Mine is bent on some corners where it came in contact with hard objects.

Regards,
Andy

[paul162brown]

I would agree with what has been said in the main, but would also stress the importance of taking care with your camera, in my opinion, with the effects that scatches and other marks can have on any future re-sale value. I know we all love our G3s and think we will have them for a long time anyway but the time will ultimately come when we upgrade and will need our camera in good nick in order that we may command a decent price for it.

That said, I am such a clumsy ****er that I Always end up scratching and denting my gear.

I would be very interested if one of the big manufacturers developed a rubber shelled type camera with some kind of shock resistance, possibly also with water splash resistance, along the same lines as the G-shock watches and that Nokia mobile (5210? is it). That way we wouldn't have to worry too much about scratches and dents etc and I wouldn't have to worry too much when I inevitably drop mine camera AGAIN!!

[stoneylonesome]

No scratchs yet, save from one tiny little one on the LCD screen that drives me nuts, you can only see it when the camera is turned off so it doesn't effect your viewing. My old Canon SLR's howver look like they've been well used. it just happens...

[drisley]

I picked up a silver touch-up marker from staples.
Really matches the camera finish nicely!

[satnitefever]

I wish I had three scratches...

unmlucki8ly I probably have nearly 10 on the bottom from being scached by the tripod base and as well as a bump on the outside of the LCD screen..

heh

[pradeep1]

I've put enough scratches on various cameras I've owned, sometimes I actually look forward to that first scratch or dent, as then I can stop worrying about the camera looking good and start using it without worry of ruinings its looks. I like a nice clean camera much like the next guy, but I don't think I'll ever sacrifice a good picture opporunity for the sake of a camera. I figure that I'll just hang onto my G3 and never sell it. I mean, how much do you think you'll actually get in a couple of years when the new 25MP cameras come out from Camera. Our G3s will be just odd curios that old farts like us talk about when digital was still in it's infancy and how we were pioneers in using cameras that did not have superfast focus. I am perfectly happy giving my G3 one day to my unborn kids and as an old "beater" which they can use to learn photography. Imagine that, a G3 as a "beater".

Fun, fun.

[civis]

Aw, bum them a fully manual film cam to learn on. With the manual and a good basic photog book.

"By the numbers, I will teach you..."

[MiG82]

Why would you want to waste money on developing film?
Great thing about digi cams is that you can experiment like mad. I've been reading about photography techniques, but reading is no subsitute for getting a feel of your cameras DOF with different parameters etc etc.
In three months or so I've saved more on development costs than the cost of the camera (4414 photos already).
Want to play with DOF? Shoot 20 photos and spend some time looking at them and the EXIF data.
Want to learn about lens characteristics at varying apertures? Shoot away.
There's no way I would ever do this with a film camera. I think that a digi cam with manual controls is a far better learning tool for the technical aspects at least.

[cityboy_ca]

Don't compare your camera to a car! Compare it to an SUV. It may look nice when it's all shiny and new, but you just know the owner isn't using it the way it's meant to be enjoyed.

If you use your camera it's going to show signs of use. When I see someone with any tool that's scratched and worn I always assume this person is enjoying what they paid for.