D-60 locked up

[vmiles]

I hope someone can help me. I've just had my D-60 for a few days. I went to great lengths to get it too. I am living in Portugal for my job so ordered it and had it sent to a business associate who was coming over. I shot several 100 pics in London a week ago and was pleased with the results for my first time using a digital.

The camera sat for about 10 days without use. Yesterday I attached the battery grip for the first time and tried to shoot. the camera 'seized up' and is not demon possessed. It is always in 'busy' mode, it seems. I can't interface with it with the computer because it says it's busy...tells me to shut off the LCD. When I turn the camera on, the assist beam fires, the camera focuses, etc as if the shutter button was 1/2 down. In some modes like portrait it takes off shooting endlessly!

I cannot access the menu or LCD because of being in 'busy' mode. But when it shoots, the pic does briefly show in the LCD.

Did I do something wrong....or do I have a lemon? Is there someway to 'reset' the camera? I have removed both batteries...let it set for 1/2 hour but when I put the batteries in it wants the date/time reset (LCD functions fine here) and then starts focusing on it's own again.

It appears to be 'stuck' in some mode.

Any suggestions? Sending it to the US Service Center will cost me about 110 USD and doesn't excite me. And they probably won't mail it back to me here.

HELP!

[jimbobski]

Does everything work O.K. with the grip removed?
Perhaps this is where the fault lies if everything was O.K. before you fitted.

[vmiles]

Sorry. Should have made that clear. I removed it and still have the problem no matter what I do.

[robertwgross]

First of all, tell us the state of the regular BP-511 battery, charged or not. Try replacing that one.

Second, tell us the state of the date/time CR-2025 battery. Try replacing that one.

Third, tell us the type of CF card. Try replacing that one.

Fourth, tell us what battery icons show on the top display.

---Bob Gross---

[vmiles]

I have tried this with 3 different BP511 batteries. All fully charged.

The camera is new so I'm assuming it (CR2025) is OK, but I don't have another one here at home to try tonite.

I am using a 1 Gb microdrive. The problem occurs when the drive is out of the camera.

I get one battery symbol showing the battery charged.

[robertwgross]

OK. That suggests that the problem is not the BP-511 batteries.

I would go after the CR2025 battery next, since that is a cheap fix (you can always use a spare CR2025 if that does not fix anything).

Then you are going to have to go after a different CF card.

I have custom options set in my D60 so that if there is no CF card, it cannot shoot. Apparently, you have yours set otherwise, because you stated that you had these symptoms when the microdrive was out of the camera. Obviously you must have some type of working CF card in the camera to make progress.

---Bob Gross---

[vmiles]

I'll go out today and get a space cr2025 and try that.

The problem is identical whether the microdrive is in or out of the camera. As soon as I turn the camera on, the assist beam flashes and the lens starts focusing as if I had the shutter button 1/2 pushed down.

[Ken Fong]

Another thing worth checking in the meantime are the contacts between your lens and body (check if the contacts are clean.) There's a very remote chance that the body and lens aren't communicating to each other very well.

Also, are you in a humid environment?

[vmiles]

Nothing else has worked so far. I'll try cleaning the contacts.

I called Canon support. They have no suggestions and agree the thing is demon possessed. If cleaning the contacts doesn't work tonight then I'm sending it in, I guess.

[Ken Fong]

One last thing worth mentioning... if you suspect that moisture (from humidity) is affecting the contacts (either on the lens or somewhere else in the camera), try to leave the camera in an air-conditioned environment overnight. Unfortunately, it is starting to sound like something got fused. Hope everything works out for you.

[LittleG.]

Does the same thing happen with another lens? I had a faulty lens from sigma when I first got my D60 and I panicked the cam was faulty. It wasn't. It was the lens. After replacement all was well.

[spark]

One last thing could be happening to the tiny press switch located inside the battery compartment. They could be malfunction......

[kraterz]

The D60 knows that the 10D is out now, so it will start misbehaving :) :)

[vmiles]

I took it to Canon...I found a service center here in Lisbon after many calls. There was a malfunctioning 'chip' on the main board. It's fixed and behaving properly now.

Thanks for all the input!!

[redbutt]

Something almost identical to this is happening to the 10D that I just got on Friday. I'm not even screwing with it...just sending it back to B&H and getting a new one.

[Digi Girl]

I had a similar problem with my D30 - i bought it secondhand and received it with gremlins. I have since spent nearly £200 to have it repaired - it needed "re-callibrating" (whatever that means!?!) and it costs.

If your warrantee is still good, I suggest having it replaced. The only thing I can see I did wrong was let mine sit for a week or so whilst I waited for my lenses to arrive. When I fit them, my camera also seized - the mirror locked up, the only way I could get it to go back down was to remove the battery then re-insert it. When I did manage to take any photos they turned out with a green and purple psychedelic haze to them. Very very frustrating.

The person i bought it from wouldn't even entertain the idea that I had a problem with the camera.

It's working fine now and I've taken some lovely photos - it cost me enough!?!

Good luck.