Repair a Sticking Digital Camera Lens Cover
It can happen to anyone: you turn your digital camera on and your lens does not protract, or you turn your camera off and the lens does not retract. Either way, it can be frustrating, as well as potentially damaging to your camera. The two most common causes of camera lens malfunction are foreign debris lodged between the camera and the lens mechanism, and shorted circuits or a misaligned lens mechanisms caused by accidentally bumping your camera against another object.
Instructions
1. Inspect your camera to determine whether or not your camera's lens is properly aligned. If there is a gap between the camera and the lens mechanism, you can readjust it by holding your lens mechanism between your thumb and index finger and applying gentle pressure in the direction required to realign the mechanism.
2. Reset your camera in case the problem stems from a glitch or short in the electronics. Turn your camera off, remove the batteries and memory card, let it sit for several minutes, then replace the batteries and memory card. Turn your camera on.
3. Point your camera's lens towards the ground and, using the eraser of a pencil, gently tap the extended lens. If a particle is lodged between the lens and a camera, a light tapping may dislodge it.
4. Slide a piece of paper between your camera and the lens mechanism. Point your camera lens towards the ground and slide the piece of paper back and forth in order to dislodge any foreign particles.
5. Spray compressed air into the crack between your camera and its lens mechanism. Spray at an angle to avoid lodging the particle even deeper into the crack.
6. Insert your extended camera lens into a clean vacuum cleaner hose. Turn your vacuum cleaner on low and gently shift your camera back and forth so that the lens mechanism lightly taps the interior of the vacuum cleaner hose.
7. Place a piece of paper between your fingertips and the lens shutter of your camera. Point your your lens towards the ground and gently rotate the lens in the direction that it would normally turn.
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