SX260HS sometimes has very dark screen, picture dark if taken, why unreliable? what do I do?

[lyn]

My PowerShot SX260HS recently started having a very dark screen and if a picture is taken when this happens, the picture is very dark.  It has been sporadic for the past two days of use and doesn't seem to be tied to turning it on and off or changing settings.  I'm leaving for a trip of a lifetime in 11 days and must have a reliable camera!  Please help asap!  Thank you!

[Skirball]

What shooting mode are you using?

Are you sure it isn't something silly, like the sleeves of your jacket covering the lens?

[lyn]

I was shooting in auto and P and scrolled thru the modes with no change to the dark screen, when it was sporadically dark.  Nothing blocked the lens because the screen and pictures that looked dark were not completely dark, some of the scene shot could be seen barely.

[csalz]

my camera does the same, dark screen, with no ability to change it, except for when I remove the battery and start all over.

[trockets]

Might try this as this may help as I don't know exactly what I triggered.

Select Menu then scroll through the options until "Review Info."  Note the selected option as I'm curious if this works for people and what the setting was.  I toggled through the three options and while doing that the screen brighten to normal.  I changed the option to Off and then turned the camera Off and On several times.  Before setting the Review Info to Off, the screen would be dark about 30 to 50 percent of the time (no actual statistical data).  After setting the option, the camera was turned off and on about 15 times and the dark screen did not re-appear.  Not saying that this setting was the problem, just my empirical findings.

Just an update:  It started happening again and this time was more careful to record the action and result.  It appears that just scrolling through the Menu items was enough to trigger the screen not being dark and returning to normal brightness.  No change in any setting was required.

[csalz]

tanks, I'll try it. no reason to spend 100 on a repair when a new one will cost 150

[bubbebaby2]

did that fix last? i've had some success doing that but it only lasts a shot or two.

[Tim]

Hello Lyn,

You may wish to check inside the Menu that the LCD brightness adjust it at a proper level.  It's inside the Tools (Set Up Menu).  If this does not work, then you may wish to hold down the <DISP> button for at least two seconds while in shooting mode.  This will activate maximum brightness. 

If you still find that the issue persists, we would recommend setting up a repair on our web site.  We would be able to evaluate the camera to determine if something internal is affecting this issue.

[lyn]

Thanks Tim.  I have sent the camera for repair because I require a reliable camera for an upcoming trip.  I was wondering if the LCD brightness was set very dark would pictures taken also be very dark and then could they change to look normal?

[emilycharlie]

Tim, I am having the same problem.  The camera had been working fine, then suddenly the screen went dark.  I turned it off & off; it worked for a few seconds & then dark again.  Though it is hard to see anything, I have tried what you suggested to Lyn & it is still dark.