While using one of our digital cameras a few weeks back a strange message popped onto the screen. I had just turned the camera off and noticed that the lens had not retracted. I thought that the battery had died. So i charged the battery and popped it back into the camera. Powered on. In the lower right hand corner the screen read “E18” in white text on a black background. After some searching I found that this is a common error for the Canon Powershot cameras. Ours had lasted about 4 years.
I decided that I should try to fix it since having it repaired professionally would cost more than just buying a new one. I decided to follow the instructions found here. They really helped in getting the camera apart. I got the camera apart and cleaned out the tracks to make sure it was clear of all debris. i greased the tracks to give it a little more slide so the transitions would be easier. Getting the lens assembly apart was considerably difficult. After cleaning it all up and dealing with the tiny parts I found that this thing is like a jigsaw puzzle. i’ve decided that any instructions that are this complicated and say “reverse the instructions” to put something back together are complete bunk. The issue isn’t that I can’t reverse the instructions, it’s that the insttuctions aren’t 100% accurate in the tiny details. i’m not totally sure some thing go where they go. As for now i’ve just got a big pile of camera parts. i’ll need to tackle this when i’m more rested… and I can find my magnifying glass.
