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How Long Do DSLRs Really Last?
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Nov 18, 2016 19:03:19   #
Jim Bob
 
n3eg wrote:
I remember PhotoArtsLA talking about problems with Hasselblad sensor corrosion. It does happen.


I'm sure it does. But judging from the posts in this thread, apparently not very often. Simply amazing to me.

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Nov 18, 2016 19:07:42   #
Jim Bob
 
rook2c4 wrote:
I guess the real question is, what's the life expectancy of micro-circuitry? And perhaps equally important, what's the life expectancy of LCD screens? As far as I know, none of my LCD screens from the late 70's and early 80's are still functioning; they have all died over the years. I don't know if today's LCD screens have a longer lifespan, but it can't be forever. Let's be honest, a DSLR with a dead LCD screen is practically a useless camera.


Your supplement to my original post is very helpful. We all realize of course that everything has a limited or finite life span. But these great posters suggest that for DSLRs, that span is extended. This is very reassuring for all of us who love this art form.

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Nov 18, 2016 19:10:51   #
Jim Bob
 
Bugfan wrote:
How long an SLR lasts depends on how often it's used, what environment it's used in and what it cost.

In my film days my primary SLR lasted thirty years and actually still works as do all the old lenses.

Digital is Nikon for me and I've got four of those. These too have ranged from twenty years to about seven yars with no problems. There is much to be said about buying a DSLR that is robust and well built albeit at higher cost.

To clarify a few things ... I do not take care of my DSLRs. I expect them to perform under all conditions. So they get used in rain and snow, in searing sun and heat, in howling winds and dust, in temperatures down to minus thirty. They seem to handle these hazards very well.

I do however ensure they are always meticulously cleaned after each rough shoot. I obviously also don't drop it or bang it against hard surfaces. While they may be robust they are not invincible.

I do expect each DSLR to fail eventually, they are rated in shutter clicks and sooner or later I'll hit the number for each camera. At that point it won't be worth fixing, it will simply need to be replaced. I guess I've avoided that dreaded number by having more than one camera and thus not stressing only one. Add to that whatever the number is, it won't die the day the number rolls over, I may get more out of it than that.

The only thing that's frustrating is that I didn't have to upgrade my film SLR, it just kept working. Today however upgrades seems all too common. What I would love to see is an SLR that has a removable back so that we can attach a different sensor as we used to change film types. It would also be nice to have a replaceable pentaprism finder that houses all the sensors the camera uses for focus and exposure. In this way we wouldn't have to upgrade all the time, we could just replace parts of the camera at less cost. But of course that's why it won't happen I guess, the camera makers are having enough trouble maintaining profits with all the cell phone cameras about. To now move to replaceable parts they'd probably go broke.
How long an SLR lasts depends on how often it's us... (show quote)


Great post based on your personal experience which suggests that these little marvels are really tough and not proned to failure in general. Remarkable.

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Nov 18, 2016 19:12:21   #
Jim Bob
 
Peterff wrote:
So how many babies do you admit to? Never thought of you as the "Baby Daddy" type. Perhaps we learn something new every day!


Alright. Stay on task. Let's not drift off into "baby daddy" land.

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Nov 18, 2016 19:47:43   #
SharpShooter Loc: NorCal
 
Peterff wrote:
So how many babies do you admit to? Never thought of you as the "Baby Daddy" type. Perhaps we learn something new every day!


A funny story.
Many years ago, as a very young man, I was having a conversation with a guy I didn't know well. He posed the question, "do you have any kids that you know of??" 🙉🙊🙈💣
It took me by surprise and I actually had to admit to myself the the possibility was certainly there!!! LoL
Sorry Jimmy Boy !!!
SS

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Nov 18, 2016 20:23:43   #
Jim Bob
 
SharpShooter wrote:
A funny story.
Many years ago, as a very young man, I was having a conversation with a guy I didn't know well. He posed the question, "do you have any kids that you know of??" 🙉🙊🙈💣
It took me by surprise and I actually had to admit to myself the the possibility was certainly there!!! LoL
Sorry Jimmy Boy !!!
SS


Well, I considered the source and in so doing find that I am not terribly surprised. Try to dick, I mean stick to the subject.

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Nov 18, 2016 21:11:49   #
mwsilvers Loc: Central New Jersey
 
Jim Bob wrote:
How many of you have actually had a DSLR in need of repair during or after the warranty period? How many of you own DSLRs that have never required repair and are still fully functional after exceeding the shutter actuation life spans provided in the manuals?


I have four Canon dslrs. Two Rebels, a t2i and a t3i, a 60D, and a 7D Mark II. The oldest is from the beginning of 2010. None have ever required a repair.

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Nov 19, 2016 05:20:52   #
bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.
 
i'd like to hear from a fashion or sports photographer who shoots a thousand or more pictures a day.

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Nov 19, 2016 06:03:06   #
David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA
 
My Nikon D50 bought in 2005 is still functional (and is my backup body), but the D7000 I bought in 2013 failed (salt corrosion inside) earlier this year and I bought a D7100 before going to Spain this past summer. (I guess the salt got in when I was at Normandy, France in 2015.)

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Nov 19, 2016 06:36:06   #
DRG777 Loc: Metro Detroit
 
Macbadger wrote:
I have been using SLRs since 1969, DSLRs since 2008. I never had a problem until 2012 when I went on safari in East Africa. Before I left, I asked a pro photographer friend what lenses he would advise I take. He told me, and then said to take a second body for sure. I never owned more than one before that, and since I never had a problem, I asked why he would advise the second body. He said that if I did have a problem on a trip like that, and didn't have a second body, I would probably kill myself. Well I took his advice and bought a second body. About half way through the trip, I couldn't get the lens off my primary body, nor would it take any photos with the lens already attached. Thank heavens I took his advice. I now bring two bodies on any trip that I consider critical. The fact that one has never had a problem, even for many decades, is no guarantee that you won't have a failure. Of course, the failure will come at the most inopportune time.
I have been using SLRs since 1969, DSLRs since 200... (show quote)


I also got my first DSLR in 2008. It had a crop sensor and I used a super zoom lens so that I didn't have to carry or change other lenses. I shoot mostly landscapes, and found that even though this setup had a pretty wide field of view, I was still doing panoramas, and sometimes the software did not combine them right, which was a lot of work to fix. After a couple years I added a full frame sensor body with a 16-35 mm zoom that gave me about a 50% wider field of view, and I then carried both cameras all the time. In the 8 years I never had a problem with the equipment. This last September, I was on a 2 1/2 week trip to Norway. On day 4, while crossing some wet rocks, my feet went out from under me and the wide angle zoom hit a rock and broke in two. While I missed the wider field on occasion, I was able to carry on otherwise with the other camera without missing a beat.

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Nov 19, 2016 07:48:22   #
Edia Loc: Central New Jersey
 
Cameras and other mass produced items follow three types of maintenance to keep them operating well. Mostly, cameras and light bulbs are run until failure. Cars use preventive maintenance where you change the oil every 5,000 or 10,000 mile whether you need to or not. Vital equipment like jet engines have sensors that provide feedback to predict when maintenance is required. With cameras and cars, we replace them before they fail because of new features or because we want "new and improved".

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Nov 19, 2016 08:18:49   #
TommiRulz Loc: Corpus Christi, TX
 
ha ha ha - as far as DSLR's --- I wish they would break every now and then, so I would have an excuse to buy a new one! BUT THEY NEVER DO !! I still have my first Rebel that I bought in 2005 and I did not treat it nice - and it still takes fantastic pictures. Now I let my 7 year old son use it - and HE gets fantastic pictures.
I upgraded my rebel in 2009 with a 7D, again did not treat it nice - it has over 300,000 actuation's - AND still takes GORGEOUS pictures.


The only camera I have ever had that actually broke was the Olympus TG 860 - a water proof camera I bought for the beach. The flash died, then it quit taking pictures all together. I bought another one because I liked the selfie screen and it broke too !!! So this summer I'm going back to Canon D30 or Nikon aw130.

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Nov 19, 2016 08:49:25   #
wingclui44 Loc: CT USA
 
Jim Bob wrote:
How many of you have actually had a DSLR in need of repair during or after the warranty period? How many of you own DSLRs that have never required repair and are still fully functional after exceeding the shutter actuation life spans provided in the manuals?


All my SLRs dated back to 1970, and DSLRs have never had problem. The shutter in the DSLRs are still mechanical shutter but controlling by electronic circuitry. The failure of the shutter on DSLR usually is caused by electronic circuit break down, not mechanically!

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Nov 19, 2016 09:04:48   #
dcampbell52 Loc: Clearwater Fl
 
Jim Bob wrote:
How many of you have actually had a DSLR in need of repair during or after the warranty period? How many of you own DSLRs that have never required repair and are still fully functional after exceeding the shutter actuation life spans provided in the manuals?


I have a Nikon D70s that I bought new when they first came out. It more than doubled the expected shutter count and finally died last year. I had given it to my wife and she used it heavily until it died. I bought her a used D70s for about $80 from B&H or Adorama (don't remember which) and it is still going strong with about 90,000 clicks on the shutter. I will probably give her my D7100 when it dies and get whatever Nikon has as the equivalent of the D7100 at that time (D7500? who knows). At least, I am comfortable that all of my lenses will work on all of my (and my wife's) camera bodies.

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Nov 19, 2016 09:07:21   #
Rich1939 Loc: Pike County Penna.
 
dcampbell52 wrote:
I have a Nikon D70s that I bought new when they first came out. It more than doubled the expected shutter count and finally died last year. I had given it to my wife and she used it heavily until it died. I bought her a used D70s for about $80 from B&H or Adorama (don't remember which) and it is still going strong with about 90,000 clicks on the shutter. I will probably give her my D7100 when it dies and get whatever Nikon has as the equivalent of the D7100 at that time (D7500? who knows). At least, I am comfortable that all of my lenses will work on all of my (and my wife's) camera bodies.
I have a Nikon D70s that I bought new when they fi... (show quote)


Want to get extra stuffing and cranberry sauce? Give your wife the new camera and keep using the old oone

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