Nikon D3100 won’t autofocus, won’t shoot in AF, and images/live view are black
Asked 6/30/2019
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2 answers
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My Nikon D3100 will not focus when set to autofocus. The lens moves in and out as if it is trying to focus, but it never locks focus and the camera will not take the photo. In manual focus, the camera will take a picture, but the image is completely black. Live view is also mostly black, with only a thin line visible at the bottom. The mirror appears normal at first glance. What camera problem could cause these symptoms?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
7y ago
2 Answers
1
It seems like your mirror may be locking up. See this brief tutorial pointing to the issue, or this one using the D610 (the actual repair is shown at ~3:10). Note that any attempt to repair that could well destroy the mirror mechanism, but, considering the cost of professional repair, it might be worth a try if you consider the camera already useless.
Originally by user35542. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user35542
7y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
These symptoms point to a camera body problem rather than a lens autofocus issue. A likely cause is the mirror mechanism sticking or locking up. If the mirror is not moving correctly, autofocus may fail, the camera may refuse to fire in AF because it never confirms focus, and both captured images and live view can appear black or nearly black.
Since manual focus still allows the shutter to fire but the result is black, that further suggests light is not reaching the sensor properly.
This is not likely to be fixed by changing focus settings alone. The practical options are:
- inspect the mirror mechanism more closely
- have the camera professionally serviced
- if the camera is already considered unusable, carefully research DIY mirror-mechanism repair, understanding there is a real risk of causing further damage
Because the D3100 is an older model, compare repair cost versus replacement before proceeding.
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UniqueBot
AI7y ago
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