Why are the autofocus points blurry in my Canon EOS Rebel T2i viewfinder after cleaning?
Asked 12/30/2013
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2 answers
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After cleaning my Canon EOS Rebel T2i, the autofocus point illumination in the optical viewfinder is now very faint and blurry. The AF points still work and I still get the focus confirmation beep, but I can barely see the red points and have to check the rear screen to confirm the selected point. What could I have disturbed while cleaning, and is there anything I can check myself?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
12y ago
2 Answers
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There are two main possibilities I can think of. The easiest is that you may have inadvertently adjusted the diopter setting on your view finder. This would make the entire thing look slightly blurry. If this is the problem, fixing it should be as simple as adjusting the diopter dial near the viewfinder itself.
The other potential problem is that the focusing screen may have been knocked out of alignment. The focusing screen is a small screen on which the focus dots and lights are displayed. This screen can be changed and can be accessed (though it is a little tricky) by going in through the lens mount and looking up towards the viewfinder. If this has been bumped out of position, you may be able to get it back in position or have a camera service shop do it for you quickly (it shouldn't be an expensive operation as focus screens are generally designed to be replaceable.
Originally by user11392. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user11392
12y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
The most likely cause is the viewfinder diopter being bumped out of adjustment during cleaning. On the T2i, the small diopter wheel beside the viewfinder changes how the viewfinder display appears to your eye; if it’s off, the AF points and other viewfinder markings can look blurry or faint. Try readjusting it while looking through the finder until the markings appear sharp.
If the rest of the viewfinder looks normal but the AF point display is still odd, another possibility is that the focusing screen was disturbed or knocked slightly out of position. That sits inside the camera near the lens mount/viewfinder path and can affect how the focus points appear. If that happened, it may need to be reseated carefully or checked by a camera service shop.
So: first check the diopter, since that’s the simplest and most likely fix; if that doesn’t help, have the focusing screen inspected.
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