UPDATE: My camera did return to life. Based on something I saw on some web forum, I popped the battery in and out several times, after which it mystically returned to normal operations. It still makes me rather concerned… but I'm just glad to have it back!
UPDATE #2 – April 5, 2010 - I wrote this post back in 2007 and have actually switched this year over to using a Nikon D90 as my main camera. However, judging by the comments this post continues to receive, the Canon SD1000 still has this issue, and… many people seem to solve the problem by simply giving the camera a good solid whack on a hard surface or blowing compressed air on it. I didn't have to do that, but others did. Read through the comments for various suggestions and links… and obviously use your own discretion with regard to the risk you want to take (or not take) with your equipment. (i.e. the responsibility and choice is entirely yours if you whack your camera too hard and break it…)
Woke up this morning to find that my Canon SD1000 point-and-shoot camera that I carry with me all the time at conferences seems to have died. When I start it up, I hear 6 beeps and then get this error "Lens error, restart camera". Yikes! Switched out the battery. Switched out the memory card. Tried various incantations. Still dead.
Judging from comments I see in online forums here and here, this is indeed a bad thing. I'm not getting the "E18" error that people mention, but I'm getting the "Lens error, restart camera" error.
Suggestions are welcome if anyone reading this has had the issue and figured out how to fix it (outside of bringing it back to the store… which isn't an option for me until next week when I'm back in VT).
From what I understand, the dreaded e18 (which I had a lot of) was a lens error. There are plastic gears which drive the auto focus and zoom of the lens, and they can get stuff (especially fine dust or sand. Beaches are murder on canon cameras) and stop working.
Once I passed the point of no return with my old camera, I tried a bit of percussive maintenance.
Amazingly, alternately giving a little push and pull on the lens while the camera booted, or whacking the damn thing as hard as I could against my leg seemed to make it work. I limped along another 6 months that way!
Same thing happened to mine about the same time as yours. I sent it back to Canon for warranty service (I just bought it in June) but they wanted $104 to refurbish the exterior of the camera because it was “scuffed and scratched.” They contended that if the exterior is not in factory condition, it must be reconditioned to honor the warranty. Well anyway, I told them no thanks (not quite so politely). I just got it back in the mail yesterday and followed the advice of others I found on the ‘net. As it’s starting up after pressing the power button, a moderately hard whack on the table top (the bottom of the camera, the end where the battery goes) fixed the problem immediately. I’m hoping this will last for a while.
Other suggestions to prevent this, I’ve found, said to periodically blow canned air around the lens to dislodge any dirt particle. Also, do not shut off or turn on in rapid sequence. Make sure that the lens is fully retracted after shutting off before you say, ooops I forgot to get one more shot, and turn it back on. Apparantly switching direction of the retractable lens in mid stream can cause it to jam up.
Good luck.
I just bought the Canon SD1000 less than 24 hours ago and the lovely “lens error, restart camera” message started coming on and the lens wouldn’t close. I was about to write off technology when I came across this site and decided to (in this order) smack the hell out of the camera with my hand, pop the battery in and out several times, and then use canned air on the lens. Well, wouldn’t you know, the lens went back in when I restarted the camera and now it’s working just fine! This is my first digital camera and I hope it won’t be more trouble than it’s worth. I thought by now all the technology glitches would have been fixed in digital cameras! Hopefully this site will help other desperate camera owners.
Eric, Jim and D.M., Thanks for all your anecdotes and confirmations that the problem can be solved with a little bit of applied force. I haven’t had any issues with my camera since this experience at the end of October. Hopefully it will stay that way! (And if not, I’ll probably wind up giving it a couple of good whacks…)
Thanks for your comments,
Dan
same happened with mine and yes… after a couple of whacks it worked again..sadly after my hopes were restored now the camera will not focus on anything…i’ll be sending it off it looks like…. any advice??
few days ago , i give to my girfriend may canon sd1000 in the evening when she back home from the beach i start the camara and i saw some pictures and then star the lovely lens error, start the cammera , i said how hell i will do this because i din’t see non button reset , i bring it to the shop and they recuest to me just for diagnostic $50,thank for the sugestions i”be fix it now.
wheela – Unfortunately, I don’t have any further advice.
jorge – Glad this post was helpful.
Before considering this camera do a google search on: Canon sd1000 lens error
19,500 results
Here’s my story:
After 3 months I got the dreaded Cannon SD1000 lens error. We took pictures of a beach and unfortunately left the picture card in the camera when sending it under warranty. This gave Canon the “sand in camera” excuse.
A few days after sending it in for warranty repair, I got an email from canon saying the camera had sand in the battery compartment and they would not cover it under warranty. They said the camera was full of sand and wanted $98 to fix it (best buy is selling it new for $150).
Before sending it in I read about this problem and used compressed air in the battery compartment and around the lens to make sure it was 100% clean, so I know there was no sand in the battery compartment. We only took some beach shots and did not drop the camera in the sand or anything like that.
The service tech I spoke to said the notes said sand poured out of the battery compartment. I know for a fact that the battery compartment was clean. He said he did not know that the lens error issue was a very common problem with this camera (yeah right)
I asked them to send it back unrepaired. I will never buy a Cannon product again. Do not buy the Canon Power Shot SD1000 as it has a major flaw and they do not want to cover their warranty obligations.
i got my camera in november last year and now it says Lens Error Restart Camera…this never happened before but 1 day before it said that my friend dropped it on the ground…even though it worked fine after that the next day i took a picture and it suddenly wouldnt close and said lens error
6 months from new, my imported (in to UK) SD1000 developed the same fault. Starting with soft taps increasing to thumps using my wallet as a cushion, the lens is now working again. There was no evidence of dust or grit and I’ve not been near a beach! Probaby taken about 350 pictures. Not impressed and will not be getting canon next time, shame as this is my 3rd Ixus digital.
Same thing happened to me. I did have it in my board shorts (dry) in Hawaii, but lots of dust and sand. Bad idea. I will try beating on it and using compressed air. If this doesnt work should I just get a new camera or have it repaired? I should also mention it is held together by a rubber band (dents, been dropped a few times on rocks, street, etc). I am very hard on my point and shoot camera. I baby my SLR. In the future I will be more careful with both!
I just spoke to an independent camera repair shop. They said the digital lens problem is pretty common. Apparently the camera manufacturers are building cheap lenses for “planned obselesence” as the repair man has seen many Canon and Olympis cameras with this problem. The repair shop said the entire lens assembly is the only way to get parts, and the assembly usually runs ~$100.
I’m definitely going to start whacking my less than 1-year old camera. The Canon service rep I talked to last night wanted $100 to repair, plus $20 for shipping. This after having repair work for the E18 error in the FIRST MONTH of ownership.
Is there a lawyer around looking for a good class action lawsuit against Canon for not honoring their warranty? If so, sign me up!
Guys, banging your cameras are a temporary fix at best for this problem, or at worse will cause other problems (like the guy who broke his LCD).
For those of you who do not want to hit the camera, or do and it doesn’t work, or you break something else on the camera, my company offers a low cost, fast repair service for the Canon SD1000 and other Canon models.
http://www.darntoothysam.com/s…..uck/Detail
Thanks and good luck –
Thomas Drayton
Owner and Founder of http://www.darntoothysam.com
My daughter saved up for her SD1000 and recently started getting the error also. It finally stopped working so me being a Tv technician and had repaired vcr’s and camcorders for some years, took it apart and found that the problem is indeed a large (large based on the camera size) tooth ring around the inside of the lens barrel has a flat spot. The problem is indeed dirt and more likely sand geting inside and and jamming the incredibly small reduction gears and therefore wearing off the teeth at the particular spot of friction. In an attempt to force the camera to work I left out the reduction gears as I found I could tap the camera and get the lens to come out manually. This didnt work. Now the motor makes its attempt to extend the lenses but there must be a feedback from the motor to the micro and it don’t like what it says. Yes–lens assembly is needed. I just found a used one on Ebay for $56 delived with as/no warranty as it is used (no way). I am waiting for an e-mail back from a suppier to get the price of a new assembly (which will probably be pricey since it includes the CMOS). I really wouldn’t consider working on this yourself unless you have the right tools (tiny philips and flat screwdrivers–magnetized–not hard to find) and are exoerienced at working with fine detail things like model railroading. If the part costs more than $60 delivered than I will probably have the daughter start buying Sonys
LISTEN EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
IF U GET THE STUPID “LENS ERROR,RESTART CAMERA” DONT U WORRY!!!!
DO THE FOLLOWING:
GRAB UR POWER SHOT SD 1000
PUT THE SONG “SHAKE IT” by Metro Station IN UR STEREO
SHAKE UR CAMERA AS FAST AS U CAN WITH THE MUSIC
BANG IT HARDish IN A SUFACE AT THE BOTTOM AND THE SIDE
PRESS THE POWER BUTTON and TA DA!!!!
YOU GOT UR CAMERA WORKING
adivise: take ur SD card just in case u go a little crazy 😀
I got my canon sd1000 less than 3 weeks ago. My daughter is in gymnastics so I have been bringing it with for pics. On the third day I got the almighty “lens error restart camera” after reading many of others, i’m liking this lasts guys! NOT WORTH THE MONEY PAID! I will be starting the shaking soon
My camera wont even turn on anymore! i just used it yesterday morning & I went to use it again last nite & it wont even turn on! Can anyone help???
I’ve just experienced this stupid problem “lens error, restart camera” … so instead of burning a hole in my pocket, i decided to google the problem. The main solution that I found, was to bang the shit out of it! Like I’m really going to do that!!! So .. i shook it a bit … then started banging it a bit … and still no dice….
ANY OTHER SOLUTIONS!?
My SD1000 died at age 10 months. The focus motor stopped working.
I’ll try the multiple whack approach.
I bought this Canon SD1000 in a holiday in the Canary Islands (lower taxes, etc.), in May 2008. Worked quite well for about 2 months, then while trying to take a picture the lens got blocked in the open position and the Lens Error message appeared. No shaking/banging/etc/ solution worked until now. It’s dead but not burried.
Luckily, I didn’t get rid of my old Nikon Coolpix and this saved my holidays …
The best solution for Lens error, restart camera is to switch the power button on and immediately switch off. I works fine, I did the same with my IXUS75 and its working fine now.
Bang it. It works. Beautiful! I was about to replace my girlfriends with a $200 panasonic!
I bought my sd1000 last chrismas. the lens error sucks…this thing is a piece of …work…heeeelllllpppp.
Thanks for the hint! Pushing the battery inside repeatedly solved the problem.
Hi everyone, if you are getting the cnon lens error, please post your experiences over on this web site:
http://e18.bitnet.cx/comments.php
There are about 6000 other complaints about this error listed there.
Okay – I have a Canon SD750 and I thought you were all crazy to say “just whack it!’ But after repeated attempts to reload battery, I finally gave up out of desperation – It’s Thanksgiving and we’re on vacation for goodness sake! So I WHACKED IT! And voila – the camera functions – for now at least – so thanks to all of you and sorry I thought you guys were the ones who were “whacked!”
Hi Guys,
I got the same lens error the time I needed my camera the most. Even before reading this blog, I turned it on/off, shook it several times, changed the battery… yet it didn’t work at all. Too bad I’m in Baguio and I have not time to go to their Manila Service Center (or call long distance).
If you have any scientific way to trouble shoot it please let me know so I can try my luck.
Desperate KHAKI
Another Canon SD1000 bites the dust….. I have tried banging it, using compressed air and removing the battery many times but the lens will not retract and the same ‘lens error, restart camera’ message appears.
This is ridiculous….any recommendations for another camera which is more durable?
received the lens error today, camera worked fine yesterday, so don’t know why the error, anyway, i gave it a couple of shakes and one bang on my leg and it works..phew!!
Lens errors are fairly common. Usually it’s sand or grit interfering with the lens extension mechanism. Or the camera’s been dropped with the lens extended. Or the camera has been powered on, but the lens had been blocked preventing its extension. Or the battery ran down with the lens extended …
There are many things that you can do to try to correct this without opening the camera. They seem to work for about 50% of the lens errors, so if the camera is out of warranty, they’re worth a try:
Go to:
http://camerarepair.blogspot.com
Look for the December 2007 article in the Archives “Fixing a Lens Error on a Digital Camera”.
Another victim. My lens function has just died after two years. My previous Elph is 9 years old and still working. My coworker reported the same issue with 2 recent canons he’s owned.
I own many PowerShot’s and I’ve had this issue on two of them now. There’s a company that specializes in these and their prices are amazing, their service is beyond anything I’ve experienced anywhere. They totally serviced up my SD1000 and that included installing a Brand New Canon lens unit. They charge $69 total and that even covers the return shipping. Go check them out and read all of their feedback, these guys are the best for these PowerShot’s, read their feedback, that says it all. Here’s the link to get your SD1000 looked after:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Canon-SD1000-Digital-Camera-LENS-ERROR-REPAIR-SERVICE_W0QQitemZ260421701174QQihZ016QQcategoryZ64352QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
If you have a different model or that link doesn’t work, try this one:
http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQsassZcanon_expertsQQhtZ-1
Canon won’t cover these lens errors and they quoted me over $150.00 to fix mine. These guys charged me a flat $69 for everything and they installed a Brand New lens and serviced the whole camera up, I don’t know how it can get better than that. Just read all of their feedback, it’s amazing and they earn it, these guys are fantastic. good luck
Lens errors are fairly common. Usually it’s sand or grit interfering with the lens extension mechanism. Or the camera’s been dropped with the lens extended. Or the camera has been powered on, but the lens had been blocked preventing its extension. Or the battery ran down with the lens extended …
There are several other things to try in order of risk before resorting to force. These fixes do not involve opening the camera, and only seem to work for less than 50% of the lens errors. But if the camera is out of warranty, and repair cost estimates are unreasonable, then they’re worth a try. Copy and paste the following link to your browser
http://camerarepair.blogspot.com/2007/12/fixing-lens-error-on-digital-camera.html
If the link shows as incomplete, got to the following, and go to the December 2007 archive “Fixing a lens error on a digital camera”
http://camerarepair.blogspot.com
Hi there! There is likely an issue within the Lens Assembly / Optical Unit of the camera, in other words the “Lens Error, Restart Camera” message is not coming up for no reason, it is there because the camera needs service. The camera will require repair but not to worry as it’s pretty painless. Just don’t smack / hit the camera as many people say to do, that often causes further issues and can throw off the focus in the optical unit as well. Some shops will try to repair the existing lens in the camera and others will either install a used lens assembly or even a cheaper rebuilt part, I’d recommend staying as far away from a fix like that as possible. The best way to take care of this is to simply replace the Complete Lens Assembly with the Brand New Genuine Canon Part! This will completely get everything looked after and the camera will perform like new again!
Hi there, I got this lens error a few months ago and then I tried to twist it back in place… but that didn’t work. It stopped retracting altogether. Sat on my desk for four months. It occurred to me that there may be a solution online, Soo… I looked up the advice on here and other various sites and this is what I did. I banged it several times and it would start moving again but still would not retract. It would zoom out but would refuse to retract. I banged it a bunch more times and in despair, i twisted the lense camera… and something clicked and now it works again!
I can help with this. I’m in charge of a technical department at our college and we have a ton of Canon’s. The students are sometimes a little hard on them and we do get many repaired. Most shops you’ll go to will either fix the lens in the camera or they install the cheaper aftermarket lens or used parts. We have a company that all of our Powershot’s go to. They specialize in these Canon’s and that is all they do. They have a service package where you get the whole camera completely serviced and it includes the brand new original canon lens installed as well. Our cameras come back better than new every time. You get a brand new lens, the whole camera gets serviced and properly adjusted, their service is totally amazing. I have a coupon that you can use as well. I’m not sure when it will expire but as of right now it still works and it gives you an Instant $10.00 Savings making an amazing deal even better. Here’s the link to get it looked after, the coupon can get used at checkout. During checkout it will ask for a promo code, just enter: save10now
The link for the service package is as follows:
http:/www.camerasandparts.com/coleerrese.html
If you have any questions, email me at: bigday7@live.com Good luck with it, that site is the absolute best for a Powershot.
bang the bottom battery bit of the camera onto a book on the table (not too hard). it fixed the camera for me.
My battery died and all of the sudden I started getting the Lense error too. I’ve been beating the camera a bit while redoing my house, but I used the spray can, whacked it a few times and it worked!Thanks
Hey that just worked for me. I just pulled and pushed on the lens while turning it on. in only a few attempts it totally worked!
I’ve had a Canon Powershot SD850 IS for about 3 years now, and earlier tonight, it bounced off a table and fell on the floor, and my picture was all fuzzy. In trying to restart the camera, I got the dreaded “Lens error.” Luckily, I managed to solve it by noticing that the very outer ring–the one that says “Canon Zoom Lens 4x IS”–was cracked and bulging a bit, so I pressed it in and powered up the camera. No whacking at all! Now it works, and my pictures are clear! Thank heavens!
SERIOUSLY–THANK YOU ALL. BIG FAT THANK YOU. IN THE BEST POSSIBLE WAY. My daughter dropped our new canon on the floor and the lens error message came on. After panicking and thinking of when I could possibly go to a store to get this taken care of (with a week before vacation)..I read the forum and smacked the camera with my hand repeatedly, and inserted/removed the battery several times. It worked!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks guys!!! You saved not only time, money, but also an unnecessary explanation with husband as to why i broke yet another electronic equipment:)
multiple whack approach just worked for me!! was about 10 minutes away from goin to Best Buy to get a new camera…awesome.
You are the best! I fixed it following what you said!!! Thank you!!!!
I asked a friend of mine gave me my camera and the camera had a lens error, so I blowed the lens edges with air and pulled the lens in and out a few times and it worked!!! Serioulsy try it! 🙂 I’m so happy I didn’t HAVE TO BUY A NEW ONE!!!! 🙂
It only took a little tap on the counter to get mine working again. Sounds like some of you need to be brave enough to also push and tug a little on the lens when shocking it does not work.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, JIM!!!!! IT WORKED!!! I smacked the camera 3 or 4 times on the table and suddenly the lens went to its correct position and now it’s fine!!
The same thing happed with me on a new camera. I pull out the batterie while it was till extsended put it back in and it gave me the lense error … or shit…
Jim is the man. I actually took the camera apart(thinking it was already a loss, might as well)to see if I could un-jam the thing. It didn’t work. However slamming it a few times on my thigh after I put it all back together seemed to have fixed it! For now I can hold off on buying a new one. When in doubt, bust it out. Thanks again.
“Lens Error, Restart Camera” This error has a lots of cause.
1. It could be exposed to lots of dust that may cause gears to stuck up. “Possible, but the camera was built for dust free errors. The Camera would be hot if continue using because the dust would cover the board’s air inlet not lens error. My advice, clean it up.”
2.It could be poured by liquids. “Toinks! If a electronic device will be exposed to a liquid it may explode or short circuit. My advice, if this thing happened give some time for the camera will dry up before turning it on again”
3.It could be your battery. “Your battery is not appropriate to the device. Use the Ni-MH with a 1900mAh or not leass than 2500mAh AA Batteries.My advice, put a newly recharge or new batteries turn on your cam while turning on bump it to a soft object like your hands as many as you can bump ’til it retracts”
4.If neither of those cause stated. Try to contact the manufacturer or the store you bought it and try if there’s a warranty for this kind of problem.
Thank you for Reading….
Great info on this Lens Error Restart Camera problem. Possible causes, solutions and ways to prevent it!
http://www.teleplancamerarepair.com/camera-repair-blog/post/Lens-error-restart-camera-Error-on-Canon-DSC-cameras.aspx
You are right. I hit the bottom a couple of times on my desk, blew some compressed air init and I am back in business! Thank you!
I have a Canon Powershot SD850 and the lens has been shut (lens error) since day one. I tried a ton of online fixes, but this one worked:
Try gently but firmly tapping the A/V-Digital out corner of the camera 4 or 5 times.
It worked for me–not like a charm, the lens makes a lot of creaky noises going in and out, but it worked.
Hi All,
After reading all the posts for this error, I took the camera and whacked it 3 times on a table. and voila, it is working again. Removing battery and SD card did not do anything so dont bother with those.
I cant believe this. same error occurred for me last night. I tried to apply a bit of pressure on the lens to help it along, tried to find a reset button, removed the battery over night and nothing…. then I read this post, with one swift tap on the counter (near the bottom corner of the camera)and then pushed the power button, magic it works fine now.
Wow. I did exactly as you said, while pressing the power button, I moderately whacked the camera on the table, like you said the end where the battery goes. It really did work. I’m not confident that it won’t happen again, but it works right now. Thank you.
So it worked. I slammed the side where the battery goes and it was fine. After looking at my picture I put it on camera mode and it did camera restart again 🙁
LOL, It worked. Thankx. XD ROFLMAO.
I tried lots of things to get my lense to work, the cold air, taking out the battery, tapping. I was thinking I would have to buy a new camera. The only thing that worked was giving it a smack on the bench a few times. Its working now, fingers crossed!
Thanks for the help, saving me some money… all I did is, put my finger nail in between the lense when on, and moved around, and like he said with a couple tries it opened right up. DON”T BANG YOUR CAMERA AROUND!
Have Power Shot A2000 is-Got lens error message-tried knocks-could not get it going again-$90 quoted for repair-purchased new SD 1400 is-If this snafus, no more Canons!! Gwyn
IT WORKED FOR ME TOO!
I had one more problem, I noted a small round black plastic piece coming out of the lens area. I pulled it out easily. I assumed it was a spacer.
Nothing else happened for many months. Then the lens message appeared this am.
I fixed it just as you said. BANG!
Another satisfied “customer”.
Thanks Jim!
Ohmygosh, you’re a genius! I just slightly banged my camera on the table 4 times, once in each direction, and then pressed the power button again. Came on like magic! Going to blow it with canned air real quick to make sure it’s clean. thank you!!!!!
i gave mine a few whacks on a hard back book, popped the battery in and out a few times, but it didn’t start up until i blew into all the spaces of the retractable lens… may wanna give that a try before you go whacking yours, never know what that could do. thanks guys, i thought it was a goner 🙂 in the canons defense, i’ve had it for over two years, lived on the beach almost that whole time, have taken it on several vacations, and probably taken at least 2000 photos with it. that being said, i have compassion for those of you dealing with said problem so soon after buying it.
best of luck
kelly
Whew! So glad I found these posts. Moderate hand whack (hitting the bottom of the camera onto a desk top) along with the pushing and pulling of the lens did the trick. Thought she was a goner!
Thanks Jim, it worked for me, as u said I smacked the camera 3 times and it worked. Thanks again…
Can’t believe it but this also worked for me – push/pull on the lens and 3 or so moderately hard wacks on the underside of the camera seems to get it working again. Any tips on ‘maintenance’ to try and stop this from happening again?
I have noticed that it struggles to focus – going to use some compressed air on the lens to see if that improves things.
Camera: Canon IXUS 80 IS
Thank you for posting that Leon because I just had that with my SD780IS CANON after the lens was locked in position extended and that worked. Thank you!
Ok I usually don’t post to these message boards but I need to echo all the other comments. It’s Dec 24th and I got the lens error message meaning no pictures of the kids on christmas morning. I was a little apprehensive about slamming the camera on a table thinking my hand would be good enough – it wasn’t. I worked up the courage to hit it on the table and like everyone else said and once I found the right amount of force it worked. Thanks Jim and merry christmas
Me too–I used the bang the bottom on the table method— (3 years later!) I missed Christmas pics but at least it will be working for our vacation on the 9th!!!
JIM THANK YOU!!!! I thought my camera was not going to work but i fallow as you said and now my camera is working 🙂
THANK YOUUUU!!!!
Batteries died while in use.
Lens cover did not shut fully.
New batteries (good lithium disposable ones)
Power up ->
# Motor 6 attempts to open lens (listen VERY carefully)
# 6 beeps
# “Lens Error. Restart camera”
Solution:
1. hold in right hand
2. with right hand press power button
3. while motors trying – smack base of camera firmly on heel of left hand
…took me two attempts
…You’ll know instantly when it works
Notice the lack of table-top bashing 🙂
THIS REALLY WORKS!!! I did it just a moment ago,tapped the camera against my hand a few times and it worked!!!! thankssss
after almost 4 months of not having my camera work due to this stupid “lens error”, I found your post, used a little compressed air and a hard WHACK on the floor… and tada! Working camera again. Thanks everyone for your comments and tips!
thank you every body, moderate whack it woks.
Best regards
jim youre the man! this happened to me the first night of my vacation and i thought it was broken for good but after i hit it on the table i could take pictures again!! thanks jim!!
The thigh hit worked just above my knee.. .was giving up.. took about five attempts… hold button on while doing it…
PING:
TITLE: My Top 9 Disruptive Conversations Blog Posts For Q1 2011 (They aren’t all from 2011)
BLOG NAME: Disruptive Conversations
With the end of a quarter of the year, I’m always intrigued to look back through Google Analytics and see what were really the top posts that people visited here on Disruptive Conversations. No matter what I may think are…
Thank you all for the excellent advice. A few whacks on the table and, voila, like new!
wOOOW .. thanks a lot that actually just saved me!
ugggggg my stinkn Nikon Coolpix S210 is not letting the lens out I have tryed every website people sudjusted and it is not working!!!!!!!!! Somebody please help please just give me strait info!!! no websites, PLEASE!!!!
Great solution !!! It worked with my IXUS 950 !!!
For a few moments my wife thought I was crazy. Now I’m her hero !!! 😉
Thanks a lot.
I never post on forums like this but I feel I should this time. Canon powdering 1300, same problem. Took your advice, banged it three times and my lens went back in:) camera works fine now:)
Thank you so much. I have a Canon PowerShot A590. I banged and also pushed on the lens. Very scientific, but miracle of miracles, it worked.
I got a SD780 IS and got the same error. Followed advise and now camera’s working again. Thanks.
i don’t believe it!! iT WORKED FOR ME TOO! i have a CANON SD850. toddler jammed his fingers in the lens. i thought camera was a goner for sure! i did wack it several times on my leg — did not help — after about 5 times on the hard floor (i basically reached the point where i figured i need to buy a new one anyway) IT UN-JAMMED…i am so impressed :)thanks
I had given up with this method after a few hard whacks and got so mad it was “try to smash it to destruction” on the table time – this actually worked to free the lens – although the gears now whine like hell.
How hard do I hit the camera? I haven’t had much luck at all. I just get the message Lens Error, restart camera. I don’t hear a motor engaging at all, just the 5 beeps and the message. I dropped the camera at the beach on some rocks. It got a little water in it. It opened fine but I haven’t been able to retract the lens since. Can someone tell me how hard I need to hit the camera?
Woo Hoo!!!!!!!!!
Thought my SD1100 was toast.
Couldn’t pull the lens in and out while booting… but I just rubbed back and forth on it… that did it!
It works!
Thanks posters!!!
tried whacking and pulling/pushing, but to no avail. glad it worked for some people.
the same happened to me but i dont want to smack it on the table to make it worse because i just got it yesterday and its broken now, its saying lens error restart, and i wont be going home for a few more days and i really wanted to take some good pics, should i give it a smack on the table? and how hard?
Eric Skiff … Thanx a lot. We built a sand tunnel and we thought it made sense to send the camera thro the tunnel and the damn sand got the camera stuck and we started getting the “Lens Error” …. I looked at your solution tried the same thing; push pull lens + tap on the back … Worked perfectly. U just saved me a bunch of $$ … Thanx dude.
I’ve had my camera for over a year and I got the lens error message and i was so depressed because I thought it was totally broke. Thank you so much for the whacking it off the table advice because I just did it and it totally worked! Thank you again! :]
Wow,Jim is the man lens out, camara working good.
hello every one if some 1 can explain to me in french language it would be nice thanks you (;
Btw my camera is a Canon SD 1100 if some 1 can help me pls.. thanks you (;
Mega-thanks Jim
Rapping the camera base on padded table-top,while pressing the “on” button, worked like a champ for a Canon HS 100. The lens had jammed half open when the camera accidentily turned on in my jeans pocket.
Thanks again
I was operating Camera as usual and suddenly the Lens got stuck and i see the error ‘ Lens error Restart Camera” . I restarted 4 times but it did not solve the issue. Thought the battery is weak and recharged it, that did not work either. I very gently pushed and pulled the lens and restarted the camera. That solved my issue.
Make Canon Model SD750
This forum rocks!! On vacation, and a walk on the beach with my kids then got this “Lens error, restart camera” (same symptoms) on my beloved little Canon. My daughter was using it and thought she did something…a dozen sorrys from the poor kid. Read these posts, a few push and pulls on the lens, whacks on a table, and it started to work. Thought I’d have to drop a couple hundred @ Ritz Camera! Thanks!
It’s never too late for advice that works. 🙂
My much-used Powershot SX200 has just now suffered this ‘Lens error’ problem while I am on a trip to India, Viet Nam and Thailand.
Thanks to your post, my camera lens will now extend and retract with a little forceful help. Hopefully, the camera will hold out for another week…until I’m back home to the States and can purchase another camera.
Thanks again!!!!
Hello you all, thanks to you! pulling the lens during startup fixed the error om my Canon Powershot A2000IS
3 and half years latter, the advice still works like a charm… I suggest hiting it at a softer surface so it won’t break (like a plastic mat) but making sure it gets a good shake. Hope it lasts for a while though.
Thank you JIM!! 🙂 I loaned my camera to a (responsible) 10 year old and the lens got stuck, she was all upset that she’d broken it, but your “magic trick” worked! 🙂
Thank you so much! I would be lost without my camera and your advice helped…by taping it by the battery while turining it on, I was able to glide the lenses out and it now works again! 🙂
Wow. Thanks fols. I did actually drop my Canon SX200 camera yesterday and it did not start this morning (lens error). Removing the battery several times did not work, so I decided that I had no choice but to try the “moderately hard whack on the table top” method and it did the trick. I love this camera and would buy it again.
I just did a this about a few seconds ago, smacked my camera on my carpeted floor and it worked just like you said. Thank you so much for sharing this information. I was so worried that I would not have been able to use my camera for a photojournalism class at school. Thank you again.
Read all these comments but doubted them as I couldn’t get the table tapping thing to work. Three days before my wedding and I have absolutely no time to go and get another one for my honeymoon. So I kept trying and what do you know, the magic three taps did it. WEIRD.
OMG i was going to cry thinking my camera was broken than i found this! i wacked it against my desk than it worked!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH!! cant believe that actually worked. i felt funny banging my camera against my desk at 8 in the morning lol. thanks again!
Jim – Thank you!! Worked perfectly!
Thanks! you are my personal God!
AWESOME – banged the camera on my desk a few times whilst holding the power button on and it works again! Thanks
It continues to amaze me that FOUR YEARS AFTER I WROTE THIS POST and probably 3 years after I stopped using my Canon SD1000 (switching to a Nikon D90), this post still gets a crazy number of visitors and seems from the comments to be helping people.
I would note that in the 4 years since the post was published, there have been a host of other websites and forums dealing with this issue. A notable one is this focused site:
http://www.e18error.com/
with repair instructions similar to many of the comments here (although the site doesn’t recommend whacking the camera hard as comments do here):
http://www.e18error.com/repair.html
This site has some info and pictures for those who are daring enough to take their camera apart:
http://www.fixya.com/support/t102982-e_18_problem
And this person has been trying to collect reports of all the errors:
http://e18.bitnet.cx/comments.php
Best wishes to all the Canon camera owners out there who are still experiencing this problem!
Jim, you’re awesome!!
I tapped the camera on the table while turning it on and the lens came back to life! Whoosh saved me some good change..thanks a million!
After the camera stopped working in the middle of Halloween with a “lens error restart camera” message, I just went nuts trying to find a “restart” button and found NOTHING. I did what you suggested and BINGO, the camera is workign again.
Thanks to all for your great suggestions. Searching was worth the try. 🙂
Thanks Jim,
It saved our camera!
Well. I have a waterproof camera ( not exactly mine ) so , I can’t get to the lens . It’s my dads powershot d10 waterproof camera . And if he finds out it’s ruined , i’ll be dead . So. I’m not sure what to do
Holding down the power and hitting the lens side of the camera worked. Sweet advice. Thanks!
Thanks very much for this! I thought a solid whack might do it but was a bit nervous until I read all these successes. Three solid taps on a piece of cork matting and it is working fine. Thank you!!
Wow I seriously read all these comments and thought my camera would still be a goner. Thanks Jim, held the power button down and whacked it once on a semi-hard surface and it’s working again. Life saver!
thanks your comments save my camera
Whacking the camera while holding the power button allowed me to at least get the camera turned on long enough to download the photos I had on the data card. However it wouldn’t turn off correctly and is now probably a goner…. Thanks Jim, at least I recovered my last photos!
Thanks so much for the tips – just fixed my camera!
Thank you so much!!!!! I was pushing and pulling the camera lense and holding the power button while hitting the bottom and it evuntually went in!!! Again, thanks so much!
Hahaha…. this is crazy, but it worked for my Canon Powershot A1200. I don’t think I had the heart to hit it as hard aas I needed to, so I gave it to my husband. He hit it with a bit more force and low and behold, it worked!!
Canon ixus 200 is lens error have tried all the tapping,pulling the lens etc anyone got any good idea!??! Am gutted it’s broken;(
I tried jamming mine on a table top but it didn’t work at all. My lens aren’t extracted (won’t come out at all). Help!
wow! just today my Canon IXUS 105, got the same problem and just did your advise…wow! it really works! thanks a lot… 🙂
Wow…amazing fix.. I did not tap on the table, rather hit the camera @ the bottom with pen… Worked like magic.. Thanks a ton!
Whew! After frying the picture card in the computer, I reinserted it a couple of times. Camera came on, couldn’t read it, etc. but when I turned it off, the lens was slow to retract. Put in a different card & got the dreaded lens error. Reinserted the card & battery several times & saw the above posts about whacking it on the desk: voila!! Worked like a charm! (I have a Canon SD1200IS that’s about 3 yrs old at least). Thanks so much!!
Did the compressed air, nothing.
Whacked it against my thigh, nothing.
Hit it against the fabric arm of my chair – kaching!
When it’s 5 1/2 years old and you’re pretty sure it’s dead, you have nothing to lose but hit it against something while pushing down on the power button. While I’d love to move up to a new mirrorless camera, ah, I don’t really have $1000 to drop on it right now.
Thanks Jim!!!
thank you, Jim! It just worked for me…camera is back to normal.
AMAZING, The Whack Manouver really works. Hit the bottom of the camera once on a book with moderate strength and the damned thing re-started. The mechanism seems to be very precise… Not. But what the heck, it worked. Thank you all. It takes a village…
Mine died,wont move at all now.
This tip still works in 2015! You are the MAN Jim!