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[Bryan Young]

I have noticed that my digital camera seems to be losing a little sharpness and clarity recently. (A Canon S50). If you can spare the time to troll back through my earlier pics it seems evident to me that a degree of sharpness has been lost. Do digital cameras suffer from a form of electronic degradation? The camera, although well used, is only about 4 years old. I appreciate that battery power can affect a picture. My "film" Pentax lasted for many years without a hitch. Is this a "built-in" problem with Digital cameras? BY.

[PSSHIPS]

Make sure you have got a clean lens. if not, they can loose pixel definition or however it is spelt over time. So I have heard anyway.

[Ghost in the shell]

bri, my little slim thingie used to have clear shots then they went slightly fuzzy, I used baby-wipes for the lens, seems to have cleared it up

[Colin Bishop]

Could be moisture inside. Check this out: http://www.fixya.com/support/t141894-powershot_focus_problem

[dougal99]

As far as the camera industry is concerned I suspect that 4 years is regarded as quite old.  :(  When my daughter rang the manufacturer of my last camera, which was just about 2 years old, to enquire about an additional lens she was told that they didn't support a camera 'that old'. 

I have since upgrade my camera, but my son has the old one which still works perfectly.


I believe they call it built in obsolesence - bit like me really 

Doug

[Bunkerbarge]

I am not aware of any form of degredation that can affect a digital camera over time unless, as has already been mentioned, there is a cleaning issue.

An S50 should only be affected by dirt/moisture etc on the outside of the lens so a good inspection and a good clean may well be the order of the day.  I use computer screen wipes for a lot of cleaning purposes but warm soapy water on a well wrung out cloth will be just as effective.  Another good cleaning tip is to use one of the micro-fibre cloths.  They are very efective.

[swordfish fairey]

Hi, check if you have a low pass filter, this prevents dust and dirt gtting onto your camera's picture element and causing fuzzyness and distortion. There may be a way your camera will self clean the element. I have a Nikon D-80 and it will self clean up to a point..Just a word of warning..DO NOT manually clean the element, you WILL damage it, take it to a Canon agent and get them to clean it, It should not cost the earth. I have come across a few digital cameras with this loss of sharpness and it is invariably down to the picture element being dusty....Hope this is some use .....Smudge

[Bunkerbarge]

Hi, check if you have a low pass filter, this prevents dust and dirt gtting onto your camera's picture element and causing fuzzyness and distortion. There may be a way your camera will self clean the element. I have a Nikon D-80 and it will self clean up to a point..Just a word of warning..DO NOT manually clean the element, you WILL damage it, take it to a Canon agent and get them to clean it, It should not cost the earth. I have come across a few digital cameras with this loss of sharpness and it is invariably down to the picture element being dusty....Hope this is some use .....Smudge

The Canon S50 is a compact, you can't gain access to the camera or the sensor so if somehow that has become dirty then it will have to be sent away.  I don't think any camera of this type has a self cleaning capability bit I suspect the lens may be worth looking at.

[Ghost in the shell]

as these compacts are usually sealed, save for the battery compartment, a screen wipe or baby wipe, (same thing only cheaper from tesco), will do the job, thats ALL my camera had

[HS93 (RIP)]

Problem with some baby wipes is that they have lanolin on them ,or some type of moisturiser same as a lot of tissues so your nose is not rubbed on a course tissues as they are becoming,  normal tissues will scratch as well ( even good ones) you need to get a lint free cloth designed for lenses and cleaning fluid that will not take coating of.

Peter

[RickF]

Not strictly related only to digital cameras, but for many years I have always fitted mine (SLR, digital and video) with a "neutral" UV filter from new. This protects the lens, is easy to clean and, in the event of damage, cheap to replace.

Rick

[Ghost in the shell]

always a good idea, a 20p v £200 lens, no contest!

[swordfish fairey]

When was the last time you bought a filter....20p??   But I agree with your principle, better to save a valuable lens for the sake of a few quid.....Smudge

[Bunkerbarge]

The S50 is a compact camera, you can't fit a filter to it.