Questions & Answers (click + for answers)

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• Q: Cleaning Nikon DSLR?
  How to clean Nikon DSLR body, its lenses and if possible at home sensor? Which is a good cleaning kit to buy? I am from Mumbai, India.

  A:http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/ccd_cleaning shows a method of cleaning the sensor. I have never performed this task, so proceed at your own risk. The alcohol used is a very high purity alcohol which won't leave behind the white haze common with most alcohols. I don't know if you can get these materials in India. Pec-pads and Eclipse solution are recommended for lens cleaning also. Perhaps you can visit a professional camera store in Mumbai and see what is available, or what they recommend. I've cleaned dust off my CCD low-pass filter sensor using a blower brush without the brush attached for easy to remove dust. I've used canned air on more stubborn dust problems. If you use canned air, be sure that the can is upright so you won't blow liquid propellant from the can. You should always do a short blast of air on a vertical surface to be sure no liquid is being sprayed before blowing onto the CCD low-pass filter surface. The camera body can be cleaned with a soft cloth that is lightly dampened with water. There is a section in the back of the manual titled "Caring for the Camera" which gives suggestions on camera cleaning.
• Q: buying a nikon d60 kit off ebay......good idea?
  alright im looking at this deal on ebay that you can "buy now" for 850. comes with new nikon d60, 2 VR lenses, tripod. 16mb memory cards, 3 filters, cleaning kit, backpack, slr flash, sd card reader, aluminum case, and some more stuff. is this the real deal? how can they sell all this stuff so cheap. for the 55-200mm vr lens alone i thought would be around 600 bucks. what do you guys think? The company has a 94% rating and it looks like all they do is just sell these kits. let me know

  A:94% is not very good for an ebayer. I buy from ebay but only if is a great deal, unavailable new, or not risking a lot of money. I would buy a new camera from: Amazon Adorama B & H photo or a local camera store.
• Q: Nikon D80 . Is this a good pack for the $$?
  After comments from a previous post I made, I am currently looking at this Nikon D80 Package. I want to do wedding photography in my town. There are NO wedding photographers here, so the only option would be me, or do it yourself. What additional items will i need not listed. Thanks *1 Nikon D80 Digital SLR *Plus Nikon 18-70mm f/3.5-4.5G AF-S Lens *Plus Nikon 70-300 g4-5.6G AF Lens *Plus 2X Auto Focus Tele Converter *Plus Nikon SB-600 Speedlight Flash *Plus 2 Lens Pouches *Plus 2 Lens Cap Holders *Plus 2 UV Filters *Plus 1 4GB SD Memory Card *Plus 1 4GB SD Memory Card *Plus 1 USB Memory Card Reader *Plus 1 Deluxe Carrying Bag *Plus 1 Hard Carrying Case *Plus 1 Deluxe Video & Photo 60" Tripod *Plus 1 Camera/Video Mini Tripod *Plus 1 3 Pc. Lens Cleaning Kit The Price is $1535

  A:I remember your question and your situation and this looks like a pretty decent kit for your plan. I think it would be a good idea to go another $200 for at least the middle-grade 70-300 lens, though. It is noticeably better than the non-ED lens. I really doubt that you would need the teleconverter or the mini-tripod. As far as the price, actually, I priced these items individually and if you are getting a discount because this is bundled as a kit, it is not so low as to be unbelieveable. The memory cards might be an off brand or something... The real money is in the first 5 items and the rest can be almost free to a large dealer. Make sure that the tripod can support the weight of your camera with the 70-300 lens, though, before you use this combination. If you have a specific dealer and item (cat. no.) in mind, click on the pencil icon and "add details" so we can actually go check it out and tell you more. Thanks. I'll check in on Wednesday.
• Q: Nikon D40 compared to Nikon D70?
  I was going to get a Nikon D40, but I found a D70 going for $400 on ebay in good condition. And it comes with a case, tripod, extra battery, battery charger, extra memory, a lens cleaning kit, and two lenses. The lenses are: AF zoom Nikkor 28-80 f/3.5-5.6 G lens and a Nikkor 70-300 lens. I'm worried about getting the D70 because I haven't heard much about it. Is it not bein gmade any more or something? Anyways, which one would you get? If I got the D40, it would just be with the kit lens...

  A:I own a D70s. My only real concern for your D70 is whether it is a D70 or D70s. There are minor differences between the two, but the D70 is older. It depends on who used the camera and how much they used it. If it was someone's only camera and they took a lot of photos with it, the shutter may be nearing the end of its useful life. We don't really know what the limit is, but if the thing has over 25-30,000 shots on it, consider it high mileage. It should go 50,000 or so without a rebuild. See if you can find this out before you buy. The lenses are "okay," but not spectacular. The 70-300 could even be the $100 version, even though it's made by Nikon. The overall price is pretty good, though, regardless. Beware, though. I love eBay and use it a lot, but you have to watch out for some sellers. This sounds like a camera dealer and not a private seller. We have had more than a couple of people buy a kit with the Nikkor 28-80 who were "upgraded" to a Sigma lens by the seller. Read the sellers feedback - even the positive comments - to be sure that they ship what they advertise. I just saw a NEW D70s with the excellent Nikon 18-70 lens available at www.staples.com for $999. It's way over $400, but you might check this out. Just go to their site and search for "Nikon" and you'll see it. I added this tidbit thinking that others who opened a question about the D70 might be interested. Here's a new seller who says that her camera has not been used a lot and it's got the same two lenses. Item No. 120152210458
• Q: How do you get the polarizer off the lens?
  I have a Nikon D50 SLR digital camera with the 18-55mm lens kit. I just purchased the 52mm Sunpak Circular Polarizer to attach to my lens... I put it on but CANNOT get it off! I put it on nice and straight - the threads were even and all... but it has that outer ring that holds the actual glass that rotates and rotates, but does not tighten or loosen. The ring that have the threads is SO TINY that I cannot even get a grip enough to budge it! I put in on just to make sure it fit... and didn't take the time to clean the lenses previously. I'm now stuck with a polarizer I can't get off and a dirty lens I can't clean. HELP ME!! Is there some special way to do it, or a tool I need? I'm lost and VERY UPSET and FRUSTRATED!

  A:well a polarizer does have the ring that spins, thats the polarizing ring that you can turn to illiminate the reflrections in water or a store window. The ring that spins is mounted to the smaller ring with the threads that screws into your lens. Maybe try a small piece of tape, so you can hold the two rings together, so the top ring wont spin. You might need soemone with a little bit more manual dexterity, or try a tiny tiny drop of vaseline. Other than that, you might have to take it to a camera store so you dont end up damaging the lens. You might have accidentally crossed the threads. Dont worry. Its just a camera( albeit a NICE one), and this polarizer will be off of the lens at some point in the future right?? Its not stuck for good. Unless you are a photogrpaher who is losing money each minute the polarizer is one the lens, really, you might be getting tooooo frustrated :)