The dreaded black/blank frames

[rollbahn]

I bought my Epson R-D1 a month ago from someone on RFF and unfortunately yesterday I got the dreaded blank frames e.g. I take a photo and get a black image - nothing.

I have tried different batteries and all sorts of things I have found on here and elsewhere but it looks as though I am just damn unlucky.

I have taken almost exactly 1000 frames with it and no issues - I was enjoying the camera so much, it is very disappointing.

I'm in Australia so it looks like the only option for me is to send it to Epson Japan and have it looked at?

[kdemas]

A general (non-RD1 specific) thing to try is pull the battery and let it sit overnight with no battery. Changes are low it will work but it's worth a try.

[back alley]

are you shooting in a rapid succession?
the rd1 is slow to load images on to the sd card.

[paradoxbox]

i agree that black frames are usually the sign of a battery problem or being overly aggressive with the cocking lever - slow down a little.

if that doesn't help i would suggest new batteries, not just different batteries. it's likely the batteries you have are the original ones from whenever the camera was made and are beyond their useful life. new 3rd party batteries can be bought for around $6 a piece on the internet

[rollbahn]

back alley - Thanks but I'm not shooting rapidly. I always let it write to the card fully before shooting another shot e.g. watch the red blinking light.

paradox box - Thanks for the help. As above I'm not shooting quickly at all - I shoot once and let it write. I go fairly slowly with my shooting style.

I didn't try different batteries that I already had as I knew the six or so I was given in the sale would be fairly old so I went out and spent $40 on a good one at a local battery store (avoiding the $6 ebay ones), allowed it to charge fully but same thing unfortunately.

That doesn't discount the probability that an Epson battery may fix the issue as Rich Cutler has mentioned but I am fairly sure if it was a battery issue, this one would have solved it. I can get an Epson from Japan for about $70 but I'm not sure that is going to fix anything.

kdemas - I haven't tried that for as long as overnight so will give that a go - thanks very much.

Thanks again to everyone for their help. It feels so helpless having a big black dead brick instead of my beautiful camera!

[kdemas]

One last thing...have you tried a different card?

[rollbahn]

kdemas - Yes I have two cards. One a cheap SanDisk and the other a Sandisk Ultra and both produce the same result.

[rollbahn]

Sorry everyone - I should clarify that it takes the blank frame for every shot. If I walk over to my camera and turn it on and take a shot it is blank. It's not sporadic - it's completely blank every time no matter what shutter speed, Bulb etc.

Looking back through the 30 shots or so that I took yesterday before it died I had one very underexposed shot in amongst a bunch of good ones (no change in settings at all - EXIF the same and no change in aperture as I was using f8 all day) and then about 6 frames later I had a totally bright white frame (severely overexposed) and then about 10 good frames after that it was dead.

[Maiku]

Contact the Japan Camera Hunter if you decide to send it Japan. When he receives the camera he will relay it onto Epson Japan and then send it back to you.

He is one of RFF sponsors.

Good Luck.

[rollbahn]

Thanks Maiku - much appreciated.

[Mr_Flibble]

Blank frame every frame sounds like a serious electronics or mechanical problem
Sending it in is probably the only soluction

[rollbahn]

Mr Flibble - Yeh I try to tell myself it isn't but deep down I know it must be I am very unlucky to pick the one that had this problem but that's the chance when you buy secondhand I guess.

[froyd]

Originally Posted by rollbahn

Mr Flibble - Yeh I try to tell myself it isn't but deep down I know it must be I am very unlucky to pick the one that had this problem but that's the chance when you buy secondhand I guess.

Don't beat yourself up about buying second hand. You take chances when you buy new as well. Not unusual for things to go bad just after the warranty expires.

[daveisbest]

My R-D1 does this sometimes after I take the SD card out, load the images onto my computer, put the card back in the camera and format it. The first shot on the card after the format will sometimes be blank. I then "quick format/full format" the card a few times in the camera, turn the camera on/off a couple of times and the camera eventually goes back to shooting normally.

[andephotographic]

Is the shutter firing?

[rollbahn]

Thanks guys but she's definitely dead as I have tried everything and it just fires one blank shot after another. I tried the formatting and checked the shutter firing, which it does so it seems a serious issue. The old girl is on her way to Tokyo as we speak - $50 postage before we even start on the repairs!

[back alley]

i sent one of my rd1 bodies in for the spa treatment to japan...the cost was very reasonable and it was fairly quick - tho i did have a second body handy so it wasn't too stressful for me - it was running well before i sent it and it now seems even better...just tighter and no hassles at all.

[rollbahn]

Thanks that's great to know. Thankfully I hadn't sold my GXR M-mount yet so I will survive the next few weeks.

[paradoxbox]

sorry to hear. it's likely to be an expensive repair but just suck it up and keep using the camera after you get it back..! you'll love it once it's working nicely again

[__hh]

Originally Posted by Maiku

Contact the Japan Camera Hunter if you decide to send it Japan. When he receives the camera he will relay it onto Epson Japan and then send it back to you.

He is one of RFF sponsors.

Good Luck.

Curious. What would be the benefit of having an extra link in the chain (two, if you consider both directions)?

Would it not be just as good, or better, if the OP sent it straight to Epson?

Nothing against our beloved sponsor here. Just seems like an unnecessary step to take.

[back alley]

Originally Posted by hunghang

Curious. What would be the benefit of having an extra link in the chain (two, if you consider both directions)?

Would it not be just as good, or better, if the OP sent it straight to Epson?

Nothing against our beloved sponsor here. Just seems like an unnecessary step to take.

you could if you spoke japanese...

[paradoxbox]

actually i think there are english speakers at the epson call center. when you call epson you actually don't speak to the camera repair center, you just speak to the call center and the (almost always female) operators will relay your message to the repair people who are located in a different area

[rollbahn]

I speak a little Japanese but handing someone about $70 to handle the entire process I am sure is well worthwhile. I think it would prove almost impossible trying to do it yourself via Epson Japan.

Originally Posted by hunghang

Curious. What would be the benefit of having an extra link in the chain (two, if you consider both directions)?

Would it not be just as good, or better, if the OP sent it straight to Epson?

Nothing against our beloved sponsor here. Just seems like an unnecessary step to take.

[rollbahn]

I am quite excited to get it all done as I was always thinking I needed the the RF calibrated properly and get a general service but unless it was broken I probably never would have wanted to send it away for that long.

So it sort of works out well as I still haven't sold my other camera yet and I get back a properly working camera that doesn't look like I've drunk too much bourbon when I turn my lens to infinity

Originally Posted by paradoxbox

sorry to hear. it's likely to be an expensive repair but just suck it up and keep using the camera after you get it back..! you'll love it once it's working nicely again

[WPalank]

Originally Posted by rollbahn

.... I get back a properly working camera that doesn't look like I've drunk too much bourbon when I turn my lens to infinity

You did check to make sure you had the lens cap off, right?

Sorry rollbahn, had to do it. Looks like you're keeping a sense of humor through all this. Hope all works out in the end.

I bought the RD-1 way back when it first came out. After I got some calibration issues sorted, man that camera was magic. Now she's carefully boxed and I will never sell it. My first entry into Rangefinder Photography, no looking back!