E-510 Disaster! and What Should I Do Now?

[erikzen]

Let this be a lesson to everyone on the importance of a high quality tripod.

I've been wanting to use my 70-300mm to try taking some photos of the moon. Since a shot of the moon all by itself could be somewhat uninteresting I decided to wait until I could try and capture a shot of the moon partially obscured by clouds. Last night seemed like a good night to try.

I took my E-510, 70-300mm lens, cable release, and a tripod that is a hand-me-down from my father-in-law, and set up the camera outside, waiting for the clouds to reveal my subject. I have used the tripod on numerous ocassions and have never had any problems with it. However, this was the first time I tried it with a lens of this weight. Not that the lens is that heavy, mind you, but it's heavier and longer than any other lens I've used on the camera before.

Apparently, the additional weight was too much for what turns out to be an inferior tripod. The legs are telescopic, but rather than a collar that can be screwed tightly for each leg, it has clamps that snap into place when the leg is at the desired height. On one leg this clamp was not strong enough to stay in place with the additional weight of the lens. The leg slid back up and the tripod and camera fell forward.

It was one of those slow motion moments and I felt like I had enough time to grab the camera in time, before it hit the ground. Reaching out, I managed to grab the cable release and attempted to pull the rig back towards me. Of course, the cable release is only attached to the camera by a mini USB connection, so the cable pulled right out in my hand.

There I was, mortified, my beloved camera lying on the ground with my lens, less than a month old, attached. I feared the worst. I picked up the camera to begin my post mortem.

It was dark, so it was difficult to see if there was any cosmetic damage. I half expected to see broken glass from the lens or at least the filter, but there was none. I picked up the camera and for a brief moment I thought I may have actually escaped from this horrible episode unscathed. Alas, that was not to be. I picked up the camera and tried to focus on a nearby house light. I noticed right away that something was wrong, as the camera was making an usual noise, and the AF didn't seem to be working properly. Disgusted with myself, I quickly ran inside to better assess the damage.

When I got inside things were not quite as bad as I originally thought. There did not seem to be a scratch on the lens. There were however, some scuffs on the top of the pop up flash. I realized that the noise I heard was the AF flash assist going off, but that the flash had not popped up. The problem with the AF was actually that the focus adjustment on the view finder had been knocked out of whack. Adjusting it, I could see the camera was still focusing properly. My final assesment of the damage was that the flash would no longer pop up, but I could actually pry it open manually and it would fire properly, and there were a few scratches on the top of the camera.

The moral of the story is, it doesn't make sense to put $800 worth of camera equipment on top of a tripod of questionable pedigree.

The question I have now is what should I do about the camera. I think I have a couple of options:

1) Contact Olympus and ask them to repair it. The question is whether or not they will fix it under warranty or if I will have to pay for the repair. My guess is that it's going to be pretty obvious to anyone that the camera fell and they will charge me for the repair.

2) Take the camera to a camera store, such as B&H or Adorama and trade it in towards an E-520.

3) A possible third option would be to have the camera repaired and then trade it in. I will probably get a much better deal on a working camera as a trade than one that is in need of repair. However, if I'm going to pay to have the camera repaired and wait for it to be returned to me, I might just hold onto the E-510. I don't have a burning desire to upgrade but thought that might be an option in this case.

What would you do?

[Jaedon]

Set the flash to no pop ups... get a hot shoe flash... and keep shooting.

If you send it for repairs and they deny the warranty you are stuck with the repair bill which could be costly enough to just buy a new camera. If they accept the warranty repair then you are good to go... but it is doubtful. And if you are going to pay for the repair anyway... you may as well just buy a new one. They make things so much more expensive to repair than to replace these days it makes no sense. At least you will know you have a decent back up camera if you get a new one.

[erikzen]

I already have a flash so I am good to go there.

Do you think a camera store, such as Adorama or B&H, will give me something for the camera on a trade in? I don't really need two cameras. I'd rather get $100 for the E-510 and put that towards an E-520, than have an extra camera lying around that's not going to get used.

[another view]

You'd probably get very little as a trade-in even if it was in perfect condition. Try the quote estimate at keh.com which I'd guess is probably fairly close to what any shop would give you. Because it has damage they might not even want it, and if they did they'd have to figure in at least the price of the repair to what they'd give you. So that one's out.

Repairing it just to sell it probably doesn't make a lot of sense - sell it "as-is" on ebay, maybe with a 5-day guarantee that it works exactly as you state. You'd get less money, but I'll bet it would be less of a difference than the repair cost (IOW you'll lose less).

Warranties don't cover situations like this, so you'll have to pay for the repair. If it were me, I'd use it as-is and then later on sell it as-is. I have an 80-200 f2.8 Nikon with a broken AF slider switch which works fine with a piece of gaffers tape to hold it in place (yes, I'm cheap). It would cost me about $200 to have it fixed but some day if I sell it, I'd guess I'll lose half of that. However, call Olympus and describe the damage. They'll probably be able to give you an idea of the cost. Nikon has a flat rate for minor repairs so maybe Olympus does too. I'm guessing this repair would be in that category.

[erikzen]

Thanks for the tip on the KEH website. I see what you mean though. If it was not in need of repair and only had minor scratches the estimate is $257. I'm thinking the repair is going to cost close to that so I am really out of luck here. What a shame. I guess I'm going to have to live with the camera as is and eventually buy a new one.

I guess before I give up I'll call Olympus and find out what it might cost to repair.

[erikzen]

I called Olympus and the flat fee repair charge is $260.80, which does not include tax and my cost to ship it to them.

Not good.

It looks like I may end up with 2 cameras whether I like it or not. I'll try to live with the camera for now. I can actually still use the pop up flash if I force it open by hand. I was afraid to do this too much for fear of making it worse but I guess I have nothing to lose now.

[SmartWombat]

I'd still keep it and not bother with the built-in flash. I haven't used one in the last 3 years.
Two cameras has been a bonus for me, three is one too many.
I doubt my 20D has been switched on in a year ...

[another view]

The repair costs almost exactly what KEH will give you for it, assuming the repair is made. Essentially the camera is worthless in that scenario, but it's really the worst of both worlds. You might sell it on ebay as-is for $200 (or more)...

I rarely have used pop-up flashes but they are nice in those few cases because it usually meant I didn't have anything else with me. I'd use the camera and not worry about it.

[Greg McCary]

I would get the 520 and keep the 510 for back up if all that was damaged but the flash and get a flash unit instead of the built in.
My tripod toppled over a couple of times. A vine swing over it once and the wind another. The camera, then a 510, hit on soft ground once and concreate the other but it survived. The Zuiko lenses will take a fair amount of abuse. My 40-150mm fell out of the camera bag and hit hardwood flooring. I knew it was a goner but it still lives.
I have learned a lesson with a sturdy tripod as well. I seldom leave it unattended.

[erikzen]

Ugh! I'm really disappointed in myself. I usually do a good job of keeping my toys in excellent condition. Honestly, if it's only the pop up flash, and I could use it if I really needed to, I shouldn't be so upset. I already have an external flash so it's not like I need to spend extra money on that. Still, every time I use the camera now I'm going to feel a bit melancholy. I'll get over it.:cryin:

[erikzen]

I was testing the camera out briefly this morning. I'm not convinced now that the only damage was to the pop-up flash. It seems like the exposure is off. It will take more testing under various conditions to know for sure. I'm leaning towards getting the camera fixed at this point only because I know I like this camera and that is my cheapest option. Although I don't want to be penny wise and pound foolish.

I guess it boils down to a question of incremental cost. To have a camera that I'm happy with I either have to spend $300 to get this fixed or $600 to get a new camera.

Or I could look at it in terms of total expenditure. I could spend $300 to fix the camera I already paid $600 for, for a total of $900. Or I could spend $1200 and have two cameras, although one of them I am not completely happy with.

[erikzen]

Well, I did it. I went out and bought a new E-520 body. Provided the E-510 is actually functioning correctly I'll be able to make some comparisons. Although I rarely do this, I purchased a 3 year extended warranty, that covers damage (like me dropping the camera). Considering what happened previously it seemed like a no-brainer.

[GB1]

Erikzen -

Ouch. I have nothing to add but sympathy and my own story I was walking downtown with my Mamiya 645 once holding it by its strap and all of the sudden the strap decided to act like it was greased in wax and slid right off of one of the camera strap eyelets. Like you. I grabbed at it, but it was too late and it struck the pavement pretty hard. It cracked around one superficial area. After testing it, it still seemed to work and not leak any light (shot the rest of the roll and developed it). But later, it's shutter started to periodically stick. Swapping lenses made no difference. It was sad. But I got another on eBay for a very good price from a fellow who had only used his 3 times and then went digital.

Hope your situation turns out OK. Btw I think you are right to blame the inferior tripod, but personally I much prefer the clamps to the screw locks - they're faster to fasten and seem more absolute ("did I turn that leg all the way, or ..?").

G

[another view]

It seems like the exposure is off.

Was this with the lens that fell? If so, try another lens. If not, try another lens anyway. The aperture inside the lens is mechanical so I'd guess if there was in fact a problem, this could be it.