20D fell off tripod!!!

Well last night the sky was putting on quite a light show, so I thought of getting out my tripod and getting some long exposures of the lightning. Thought I had the camera securely on the tripod went to turn off the porch light and hear a thud on the ground. Look down and there's my camera and my lens with the front of the lens broke off. Well I go to the local camera store to look what they had for a replacement and come to find out the contacts in the camera, one of them is stuck in and any lens I had tried won't auto-focus now. Plus I'm getting the Error 99 warning after I took a shot, but can that be just from the contact being pushed in? And is this a cheap fix too? Any response will be welcome..
Thanks,
Grady

Grady69 wrote in post #12897415
Well last night the sky was putting on quite a light show, so I thought of getting out my tripod and getting some long exposures of the lightning. Thought I had the camera securely on the tripod went to turn off the porch light and hear a thud on the ground. Look down and there's my camera and my lens with the front of the lens broke off. Well I go to the local camera store to look what they had for a replacement and come to find out the contacts in the camera, one of them is stuck in and any lens I had tried won't auto-focus now. Plus I'm getting the Error 99 warning after I took a shot, but can that be just from the contact being pushed in? And is this a cheap fix too? Any response will be welcome..
Thanks,
Grady

No offense, but I'm not sure if a 20D/50mm 1.8 is worth fixing. Judging by what it was that broke I would venture to say that it possibly might approach the value of the camera and lens.

None taken, I know the fifty isnt worth fixing, but I was hoping the camera would be a cheap fix, wasnt getting the error 99 till today when I tried a 18-135 lens. Thanks...

Your camera jumped.....so sad that it tried to take it's own life.


Perhaps you need a 50D to replace it?

The best thing to do is send your camera body in to a Canon Service Center and see exactly what is wrong with it. If its fixable and they don't charge an arm and a leg to fix, then get it done. If the cost exceeds the worth of a 20D then trade it in for a refurbished body.

Take Care,
Cheers, Patrick

I would give canon serive center a call as they may have a book price for all repairs for the 20D, i have previously seen a US service thread quoting $199 for any repairs on a 20D.

Cheers
Ash

That doesn't sound good. Contact Canon and then decide what direction to take with fix/replace.

Thanks guys, that helps alot! I will give them a call and see where to go from there. Thanks again..

Well got a rough estimate from canon of 190-280 dollars to fix. Have to send it in to get a more accurate estimate then decide to go from there..

With an older camera, where it's not a warranty issue, I would try to find a reputable local repair shop. If you have any decent independant camera stores near you, check with them. It may turn out to be a simple fix.

sbattey wrote in post #12897626
Your camera jumped.....so sad that it tried to take it's own life. ....

It was because of the shame of being paired with the 50 mm lens. Cameras have feelings, too, you know.

Is it just one of the sprung contacts on the body that is stuck in and wont pop back out? On a 20D I'd give that a crack at fixing, after all if the repair costs approach $250 then you can just grab another 20D for that (maybe even a 30D).

I'm not sure that an err99 tells you much, I think it's a bit of a generic catch-all error code. So I guess it could be caused by the contact problem. What did the camera hit when it fell? If it was on grass then I'd be surprised if the 20D suffered any internal damage.

Grady, that blows. I'll PM you soon.


Jason C

Grady,, with a pair of fine tweezers, gently take the pushed in contact and very gently see if you can pull it back out.. Contacts are usually spring loaded..

what kind of tripod were you using?