FYI - Nikon 750 weird flare related problem being reported

[GaryLH]

http://petapixel.com/2014/12/22/nikon-d750-owners-reporting-dark-band-problem-shows-lens-flares/

Really a weird flare problem being reported. From the article, it sounds like a a QA type problem that should be easy to sort out if what someone is reporting is true.

Does not affect all the d750.

Gary

 

[John E Earley]

I've not seen this problem with mine.

 

[Huss]

Yeah, it's an issue with Nikon's lack of decent quality control. It does not affect all D750s.
The cause is shown here:

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/54969226

And this is why I have cut Leica some slack with their sensor issue. No mfgs are immune to problems.

 

[John E Earley]

DSC_1302 by Earley Photography, on Flickr

 

[x-ray]

Yeah, it's an issue with Nikon's lack of decent quality control. It does not affect all D750s.
The cause is shown here:

http://www.dpreview.com/forums/post/54969226

And this is why I have cut Leica some slack with their sensor issue. No mfgs are immune to problems.

I've had flare / reflections inside the film chamber with my M film cameras too. Pretty much any camera can have internal reflections. Light bounces around inside the camera, it's a fact. This is hardly on the same level as Leica's problems.

 

[Huss]

I've had flare / reflections inside the film chamber with my M film cameras too. Pretty much any camera can have internal reflections. Light bounces around inside the camera, it's a fact. This is hardly on the same level as Leica's problems.

I'm widge u on the not the same level. Just sayin', all mfgs have issues but this one seems to be due to poor quality control as not all D750s suffer from it.

 

[x-ray]

I'm widge u on the not the same level. Just sayin', all mfgs have issues but this one seems to be due to poor quality control as not all D750s suffer from it.

I'm wondering if it might be due in part to not using a lens hood. When I've experienced it with other cameras it's almost always due to bright areas just outside or inside the frame. It's not possible to blacken the surfaces to totally eliminate reflections. It's certainly possible there are other reasons too.

I think it's premature to call it lack of quality control. To determine that a controlled test would have to be conducted. A standard setup where one would create this problem with one camera and then each other be tested under the same set of conditions to see if they have the problem. At this point every photo is under random conditions and no control or standard to measure too.

I had a client for many years that taught quality control and how to max out your QC. The company was QualPro and they taught a Japanese statistical method. I can't remember the name of the method but in the 80's and 90's it was quite popular in industry. Certainly no company can achieve 100% QC but that's the goal. QC is generally so good now I think it's more the degree of screwup more than the fact there was a screwup. A good example, the first Nikon D1 cameras had a bug in the firmware that caused the menu to reset to Japanese language and reset all preferences to factory settings. I had one of the first in the US and my camera did that. Compare that to Leica's sensor issues. It's all relative and how they handle it in with the customers.

 

[Huss]

If you look at the link you can see that the camera with the issue has its AF sensors raised higher than the one without the issue. That is what is causing the issue, and that is due to lack of QC.

 

[John E Earley]

If you look at the link you can see that the camera with the issue has its AF sensors raised higher than the one without the issue. That is what is causing the issue, and that is due to lack of QC.

More likely a lack of Quality Assurance.

QA aims to prevent defects with a focus on the process used to make the product. It is a proactive quality process.

 

[burancap]

Wait a minute. The problem is not the flare, it is the clipping of the flare by the dark band.

 

[Huss]

Wait a minute. The problem is not the flare, it is the clipping of the flare by the dark band.

Exactly, it is the dark band that is the issue.
Another photo here:

https://secure.flickr.com/photos/travelobsession/15759461885

Thing is, it only appears in conditions where you would have flare. As some shots look good with flare, this can cause issues.

 

[V-12]

I've had flare / reflections inside the film chamber with my M film cameras too. Pretty much any camera can have internal reflections. Light bounces around inside the camera, it's a fact. This is hardly on the same level as Leica's problems.

Never had flare inside the film chamber of an M, but I have experienced the light leak from the lens mount that is an intrinsic part of the Leica design, although obviously it wasn't designed to leak.

Going all the way back to the M3 long exposures would show a leak coming from the mount and in via the rebate in the lens flange for the focusing cam. Typically it shows as what looks like flare in the bottom left of the photograph. The problem has been recently re-discovered by the use of '10-stoppers' on digital M's with exposures longer than say 30 seconds. A simple baffle such as made from a hairband around the lens mount sorts it, or anything else you can invent.

V

 

[johannielscom]

A 7K Leica M with a possible sensor issue and a hairband around the lens mount: I'd take the D750 with flare clipping anytime and twice on Sunday.

Meanwhile: a D600 with oil splatter, a D750 with flare clipping: Nikon isn't doing all that well either so strike that 'twice on Sunday' bit.

Nope, My secondhand D700 and D300 perform as requested: flawless. Next move up is a used D4, also proven technology by now.


EDIT: after looking at the images that demonstrate the 'issue', I'm thinking it's a non-issue. On the page it says that the issue is bad news for photographers 'who use flare artistically'.

How on Earth can anyone claim that an image like below would have been great if that dark band at the top were also full-blown flare?

DSC_4715 1 by hugoxhdz, on Flickr

 

[Huss]

It is a very real issue.
See here:

http://www.imaging-resource.com/new...es-why-and-what-to-do-about-them-its-not-lens

 

[V-12]

A 7K Leica M with a possible sensor issue and a hairband around the lens mount: I'd take the D750 with flare clipping anytime and twice on Sunday.

It's hard to know which is worse, somebody buying an expensive camera and needing on rare occasions to use a homemade solution to an intermittent and solvable problem, or somebody buying a cheap camera and rolling over and gushing in approval that they have only been stung for a few hundred dollars buying a camera with a common everyday problem.

V

 

[Huss]

A 7K Leica M with a possible sensor issue and a hairband around the lens mount

What is the possible sensor issue on the M 240? I have not heard about that, only on the M9 series.

And, what is the lens mount issue? I performed an internet search but did not see anything.

Thanks!

 

[Lss]

And, what is the lens mount issue? I performed an internet search but did not see anything.

It's a tiny light leak that will make itself very visible when making long exposures in bright light.

 

[Huss]

It's a tiny light leak that will make itself very visible when making long exposures in bright light.

Are all/some affected? How long does the exposure need be? I guess how long does someone make exposures in bright light?!

I know this is going off on a tangent, but if it is long night exposures, then it would not concern my type of shooting. But exposures in bright light? The longest I would shoot in bright light would maybe be 1/250 @ f16 with a 3X ND filter.

How do people make longer exposures than that in bright light?

 

[V-12]

How do people make longer exposures than that in bright light?

With the M240 you can't make very long exposures, but you can at least do 60 seconds, which in bright light shining on the front of the camera should show an apparent flare problem. Now it should be emphasised that your idea of bright light may be different to mine, or indeed the focusing of the lens can make a difference as the rear element can act as a baffle when focused at infinity. But focused at a medium distance, say 20 feet, should/could show an apparent flare problem that is in fact a leak. Of course if you bought a Nikon you'd say it was worth it for the privilege, but there is a simple remedy for a Leica.

V

 

[GaryLH]

Looks like factory recall

Looks like factory recall

http://petapixel.com/2015/01/14/nikon-d750-disappearing-stores-shelves-quiet-recall-underway/

If u got a d750, u may want to check it out. Compared to how long d600 owners had to wait to get satisfaction from Nikon, this wait was somewhat blazing fast.

Gary