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In 1977 we hired our first narrowboat from Anglo Welsh at Market Harborough.From that moment our destiny was set. In 2006 we finally purchased our own brand new 57' narrowboat which we named 'Free Spirit'. Our aim is to travel the length and breadth of all the navigable rivers and canals of the UK. This will be our story as it unfolds.

Monday 29 December 2014

Why do things always pack up in threes?

First it was the washing machine. Then 2 days ago the freeview box gave up the ghost and we had to take another visit to Currys to buy a new one. More expense which we could have done without, and now it's the camera which is causing me grief and what a time for my camera lens to pack up. I'm in a bit of a dilemma now 'cause its just  5 days before we leave for our 3 week cruise to Dubai. Both of us keep packing and re packing to try to keep the baggage weight limit down to 23kg. Not for the cruise, mind, but because we are flying back from Dubai. So why the dilemma. Well a lot of it is to do with the weight limit and whether I take my Canon camera. I have the 70-300mm zoom lens which I use all the time. For a day or two I have noticed most of my photos are out of focus. Thinking it was operator error I reset the camera to it's factory default. This made no difference so I then changed the lens back to the one that came with the Canon camera, the original 18-135mm. I then tried first taking a photo with the original lens, and then with the same focus range of 135mm with the zoom lens. This was the result.

with the original lens 18-135 at a zoom range of 135mm


With the zoom lens 70-300 also at a zoom range 135mm


18-135

zoom lens.
I checked that the stabiliser mode was engaged on the zoom lens ,which it was, so that wasn't the problem. So now I don't know whether to take this camera with me. If I don't it means I can pack more clothes but then I wont be able to zoom in on the wildlife I'm hoping to capture on the excursions. My only other option is to take the Panasonic Lumix which has a 24x zoom and is nearly as good at zooming in as my Canon lens. The benefit of taking this camera is the weight, much lighter, but the down side I can only shoot in JPEG and not in RAW. So I'm wondering if anyone could shed light on why the lens should behave as it does. Could it be that the stabiliser isn't functioning properly? and if it is, can it be repaired? To late to do that before we go on holiday and buying a new lens is not something I would relish. So any suggestions would be appreciated.

2 comments:

Graham said...

Irene,

Merry Christmas!

I suggest that the best solution might be to try to find a good independent camera shop. If they don't know what the problem is they should be able to point you in the direction of a local camera repair specialist, who, if you explain the circumstances, might be able to fix it quickly.

Hope you both enjoy the cruise whatever the outcome.

Graham

Ian and Irene Jameison said...

Hello Graham, Happy New Year to you and your good lady. Thanks for the help. We are off to Milton Keynes for New Year Eve and staying until we leave on the third. Ian has already sourced a good Canon repair shop in the area so hopefully we can at least get to know if it can be fixed. Xxx

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