Well, I almost made a fool of myself... :)

[JimFox]

So with my D810 busted up into pieces and the cost for repairs around $600, I was looking at used D810's to replace it. With mine being smacked so hard on the ground, there is no telling if a circuit board maybe got cracked and while it works now might act up 6 months from now. So I have been looking for a couple of weeks. On Mpb, the cheapest one they had was a "well used" one for $808. I was contemplating this one as my cameras are all well used, so that didn't scare me, and frankly I wanted to spend the least amount I could. So buying an Excellent shape one for $1200 just didn't appeal to me.

As I was checking used cameras daily, a week ago Friday when I was up in the Tetons, the one Mpb had for $808 dropped to $729. So I snapped it up! At that price, I couldn't go wrong I figured. Mpb has a 7 day return policy and a 6 months warranty on their used cameras. So the camera showed up last Friday, right before our blizzard here in Colorado. I excitedly opened it up and tried it. All looked great, just some worn off paint. But when I put on a lens and tried to take a photo, the Auto Focus wouldn't work. The lens wouldn't focus, but it took a photo. I looked and sure enough the camera was set to AF-C which in that mode a Nikon camera will take a photo even if it's not in focus. Well, I switched that, and it still didn't focus. I tried another lens, it still wouldn't focus. I did a factory reset, it still wouldn't focus the lens. I did another factory reset, I checked settings.... nothing. So I packed it away and figure I would call Mpb on Monday and let them know the camera wouldn't focus, and that their technicians when checking cameras shouldn't have it in AF-C since it can fool someone.

Well, last night I decided to try it one more time, I put the lens on, it still didn't focus, and I sat there thinking... and all of a sudden it dawned on me. What if the person who had this had switched the focus button to back button focus like they do for Birds. And yep, I pressed the back function button, and it focused.... Whew! So I went to the menu, now that I knew what was wrong and switched the setting back to the normal Shutter button doing the AF.

Now, you would think the Factory Reset would have reset that menu option. I sure would have thought so. But anyway, I finally figured it out, I didn't make a phone call to Mpb where I would have gotten embarrassed if the service guys there told me to check back button focus... And the camera looks to work just great in every other way.

So that's my story for the day....

Jim

 

[Ben Egbert]

Great story. Once I was shooting with my 1DS mk3 and the remote and it quit responding just as the light was getting
Good I tried everything and nothing worked . I unplugged the remote and it started working again. I had the remote set to bulb mode by mistake.

 

[JimFox]

Great story. Once I was shooting with my 1DS mk3 and the remote and it quit responding just as the light was getting
Good I tried everything and nothing worked . I unplugged the remote and it started working again. I had the remote set to bulb mode by mistake.

Yep, that can happen. I can imagine your feeling as the light is getting good to have the camera stop working. That's not a good feeling. Good thing I was just testing mine.

 

[Jameel Hyder]

All is good that ends well. You have a nice camera with a good deal. Enjoy it. Now does that count as the 6th or the 7th camera in your bag?

 

[AlanLichty]

Curious mode for the camera that would be persistent even through a factory reset. Good that you found the problem and can just go use it now.

 

[Kyle Jones]

Why would you want your shutter button to mess with your focus?

 

[JimFox]

All is good that ends well. You have a nice camera with a good deal. Enjoy it. Now does that count as the 6th or the 7th camera in your bag?

Ha ha... this puts me to 6 I think...

 

[TimMc]

My camera is always set on back button focus . I have lost count the number of times it has caused turmoil with others, typically at my local camera store. I think it is a love or hate type setting.

Glad you found your replacement. But your weekend snow storm is at my back door. So you are up one, down one

 

[AlanLichty]

My camera is always set on back button focus . I have lost count the number of times it has caused turmoil with others, typically at my local camera store. I think it is a love or hate type setting.

Glad you found your replacement. But your weekend snow storm is at my back door. So you are up one, down one

So for those of us living in a non-Nikon world what is back button focus?

 

[TimMc]

So for those of us living in a non-Nikon world what is back button focus?

Just one of many superior Nikon design features. Okay, my bad.

Single button on the camera back that controls the focusing so the shutter button only releases the shutter. Easy focus and recompose .

 

[AlanLichty]

Just one of many superior Nikon design features. Okay, my bad.

Single button on the camera back that controls the focusing so the shutter button only releases the shutter. Easy focus and recompose .

Thanks for the answer. Seems odd that a factory reset would allow this to be persistent.

 

[Jameel Hyder]

It’s not just a Nikon thing. This is the only way I use my Canon bodies as well. It can be programmed to either the Af-On or the * button. I prefer the former. A reset goes back to the shutter button doing both focus and exposure.

 

[AlanLichty]

I never used that to be honest. Up until I got my 5D MkIV I always used LiveView and manual focus instead.

When Canon moved to the interface on the 5D MkIV they enabled using the touchscreen on LiveView to set the focus point for autofocus. Touch whatever you want to have as the focal point on the LiveView screen and autofocus does the rest. That feature carries through to all of the mirrorless bodies.

 

[TimMc]

Live view and manual focus worked really well on my Nikon D810 but fell apart with the move to mirrorless. At least on Nikon, the lens only opens to f5.6 until the shutter is released. That just isn’t good enough for manual focus. One of the few steps backward with mirrorless for me.

 

[AlanLichty]

I have what may be Canon's last generation of the 5D series as a DSLR so I can't speak to how this works on their mirrorless LCDs. I was glad for how well autofocus works with the 5D MkIV to make up for my aging eyesight. I use manual exposure almost exclusively and expect live view to reflect my settings. I sample the light areas and the darks using the touch screen and then set accordingly. Touch the desired focal point and take the shot.

 

[JimFox]

My camera is always set on back button focus . I have lost count the number of times it has caused turmoil with others, typically at my local camera store. I think it is a love or hate type setting.

Glad you found your replacement. But your weekend snow storm is at my back door. So you are up one, down one

Ha ha, yeah I have switched to the back button focus a couple of times a year or two ago when some BIF experts showed me how. But for me it was so awkward I couldn’t keep it that way, especially since I only seriously shoot birds about once a year. So for regular shooting I find it awkward, especially after 40+ years of using the shutter button to focus. But, I do know guys that swear by the bank button focus, so I know you aren’t alone in it.

 

[JimFox]

So for those of us living in a non-Nikon world what is back button focus?

I am positive Canon has the same option. It’s simply a button on the back that can be reprogrammed to focus the lens. But it doesn’t trigger the shutter. So when doing BIF you use your thumb to maintain focus on a bird, and then the shutter to take photos. It actually works much better for BIF, but it takes a couple of hours to get used to , at least for me. But outside of BIF, I found it very awkward, and it messed me up in my normal photography.

 

[JimFox]

Thanks for the answer. Seems odd that a factory reset would allow this to be persistent.

I totally agree!

 

[Kyle Jones]

I love back button focus for night photography. I don't have to worry whether I switched my lens to manual (which often makes them easier to bump out of focus) or anything else messing with the focus.

 

[Rick Nantais]

It's remind me a story that happened to me a few years ago. For my last active years I worked in a small photo store near Montreal. One day I receive a phone call from a pro. He had trouble with his Nikon (don't remember the model sorry). He tell me that when he looks in the eyepiece everything is black. Like if the mirror was up. So I have him by phone do some test, remove the lens, reset the camera at no avail. The guy is really pissed on the phone. So I tell him to come to the store, I'll wait for him even after the closure time and if needed I can loan him the store D4. So I wait and the guy arrives, I take the camera in my hand and i see immediatly what the problem is: The little eyepiece trap, you know for long exposure ? Well it was closed ! LOL. But the bad part is the pro give me sh... for not telling him this before he comes. Like if it was my fault. It was the last time I offer help after the store is closed. My boss did call him the next day and the pro came to apologise. I can telle you more stories if you want.