D80 LCD issues

[davinche]

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My boss just gave me his broken D80 because the LCD screen looks like it is in negative mode if there were such a thing. Has anyone else had this happen to them?
I plan to use it regardless because it is not everyday that someone gives you a camera, especially a DSLR. I also need a recommendation for a good multi use lens in the $200-300 range as he kept his lenses because he bought a D300. I have a 6 month old so I will be taking lots of pictures of him and the family since it is the holiday season. Any help or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

[compuwar]

Check with Nikon to see what a repair would cost, or if it's covered by warranty. Nikonians often has folks selling kit lenses as they upgrade, might be worth a check. Also, the 50mm prime is cheap and excellent.

 

[davinche]

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The camera is no longer in warranty and they quoted me $450 to replace the LCD but wouldn't guarantee that would fix the issue as the problem might not be with the lcd itself but something else internal. They want $120.00 to diagnose the issue. With the diagnosis and the lcd replacement if that is the issue I'm almost at a new D80 body. I found the lcd itself for $90.00 through Nikon parts.
I'm thinking about trying to replace it myself. It would be 30 bucks cheaper than having the diagnose the issue. Has anyone done this? I'm pretty technical and have been building computers for years, but I have never taken a part a camera.
I will check Nikonians and also look at the 50 prime. Thanks for the help.

 

[ab2650]

Just how bad is the LCD? You said it looks like it's in "negative mode" but are there any cracks or odd lines on it as well?

I dunno about the D80, but maybe if this is a software issue (i.e., not a cracked LCD) a firmware upgrade may be useful. Just a thought.

 

[davinche]

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The menus are not bad but the preview of pictures looks really weird. There are no cracks or anything like that. I will try the firmware update, it is already running the newest firmware but I will reapply it.

 

[RevToTheRedline]

You don't need the LCD anyway, get out there and shoot

 

[davinche]

You don't need the LCD anyway, get out there and shoot

I know I don't need it but as someone who is still learning the art of photography it would be nice to know what the colors look like in the photos as I take them so I can get better at making adjustments to the settings on the fly, instead of seeing the color in the photo after I download the files to my computer.

 

[SLC Flyfishing]

Learn to read a histogram, the colors aren't going to change with settings, what you need to worry about is the exposure. As long as you can still read the histogram you're in business. Any color issues are going to have to do with white balance, if you shoot RAW like you should then white balance isn't an issue anyway since you apply it in post processing. But like I said earlier, learn to get a good exposure with the histogram and you'll be well on your way to getting good images.

SLC

 

[ab2650]

Learn to read a histogram, the colors aren't going to change with settings, what you need to worry about is the exposure. As long as you can still read the histogram you're in business. Any color issues are going to have to do with white balance, if you shoot RAW like you should then white balance isn't an issue anyway since you apply it in post processing. But like I said earlier, learn to get a good exposure with the histogram and you'll be well on your way to getting good images.

SLC

I agree, but not having an accurate LCD is defeating the purpose of digital (well, one of the purposes; Instant gratification.)

I certainly wouldn't tear down the camera to try and install a new LCD, unless the LCD is really that bad. If I at least have an idea of the composition and histogram, I'd stick it out for a while - You'll be getting another DSLR body in no time They're that much fun!

Edit: And if you set it to shoot raw rather than jpeg, you won't have to worry about what your WB is doing and you can correct minor exposure mishaps. It may be very useful in your case.

 

[davinche]

Agreed

I have decided to just leave the LCD alone. I am also going to look into learning how to read a histogram. Thanks for all the help everyone.