So, there I was, taking in the beauty of Kerid Crater, when my camera begins to act a little snippy. Okay, I thought to myself, this has happened before. I wasn’t lying to myself– it had. I knew from past experience that sometimes my 18-55 mm lens would act up and not let me take any pictures. I was a little surprised, because it usually happened in bright, direct sunlight, and it was still a little cloudy, but that, too, wasn’t impossible. During the [Cinderella photoshoot] I had with my sister, the same thing happened. Luckily, I had my camera bag on me, so I switched out the lens to my 75-200 mm lens, which I have never had any problems with. Reset my battery, turned the camera on, and… still nothing.

It was definitely weird, and a little troublesome. However, my mom was waiting for me and other tourists were beginning to come up behind us on the trail, so I had to keep moving. I walked slowly, still fidgeting with my camera. Now it wouldn’t turn on at all. I started to panic, but then it flashed to life, and I sighed in relief.

And then immediately after, it shut back down.

My mind was racing– what was wrong with it? It was possible it had gotten wet at the waterfall, but it continued to take pictures and even had sat in the car and still took pictures when I had gotten out. Why would it be so delayed?

I begun to walk faster, passing my mom know, continually getting more and more stressed out. I could feel tears pricking at my eyes. How could this happen? I still had four more days in Iceland, but the whole trip seemed ruined to me. I told my mom I was going to go back to car to try and fix my camera, but that she should go down and explore the bottom of the crater. I would meet up with her after I fixed my camera.

I couldn’t. As soon as I got to the car, I was crying. Still fearing the reason my camera has stopped working as water damage, I took the camera apart and dried everything off with a towel. Put it back together, and still nothing. Every now and then as I fiddled with turning the camera on and off, resetting the battery, it would come to life for just a few seconds, then power back down. Something was definitely wrong.

And that was it for the day. Luckily, it was our last planned stop, but as we drove to the hotel in silence, I couldn’t help but still feel so overwhelmed. I felt like my trip was ruined, and then I felt worse because how stupid was it that this was ruining my trip? Couldn’t I just enjoy the sights without taking pictures? But I couldn’t.

As soon as we got to the hotel, I did more research. Another possible problem was the temperature difference– going from hot and dry to cool and humid, and while I didn’t really think that was a possibility, I was holding out hope. I ended up taking the camera apart and letting it dry overnight, hoping in the morning my camera would be magically fixed.

I woke the next morning, put the camera together, and voila!

Still broken.

There were a few options I had, and a few you have as well if you ever find yourself in this position.

Option #1

Your first option, and the most sensible in my opinion, is to get on with your trip. You got a few days worth of good photos, no use crying over spilled milk, etcetera etcetera. Continue on with your trip, and fill your head with good memories instead of your SD card.

This is the option most people would probably take.

Option #2

Okay, so you don’t want to just continue on with the trip with absolutely no photos. That’s understandable; you want to remember those special moments on your trip. Easy fix! Simply use your phone’s camera to shoot the landscape and OOTDs. It may not be quite as good quality as a DSLR, but you’ll get your photos and you won’t have to waste any time fretting or trying to come up with another solution. Another easily palatable solution.

Plus, most smartphones today have great cameras. Both Apple and many Android brands boast camera-like quality smartphone cameras.

Option #3

Option 3 has a few more facets. You’ve decided you can’t enjoy the rest of your trip if it means you can’t practice photography, and your phone just doesn’t give you the same impact you want. So, you fix your camera.

This is the option I initially went with. Since I needed a functioning DSLR to continue on my trip happily, I needed to fix my camera. First, I tried all the usual suspects (lens switching, recharging batteries or trying different batteries, letting the camera get acclimated to a drier, room-temperature atmosphere, etc.). When this failed, I did a little more research. The only viable option I was able to find and try out was letting the camera air out overnight. That still did not work, of course, so I was stuck with going to a shop.

If you’re in a rather populated area, you might be able to find a camera repair shop. However, make sure you look at not only price-point, but when you can expect to have the camera fixed by. If you’re on a trip for only a few more days, but it’s going to take 7-10 days, you’re out of luck. The camera repair shops in Reykjavik weren’t unreasonably far away (about 45 minutes to an hour), but none fit the time frame I needed. Plus, I wasn’t confident I could communicate about the issue clearly because of the language barrier. (Many people speak English in Iceland, especially Reykjavik, but the type of specialized conversation I would have to have wasn’t going to be included in the normal English crash course.)

Of course, there’s always option 4.

Option #4

Buy a new camera.

This isn’t going to be possible for everyone, and definitely isn’t the most palatable thing to do. In my case, while I’m fortunate enough to be able to buy a new camera or new camera parts, it was a difficult choice to make, seeing as how I didn’t even know exactly what was wrong with my camera in the first place. My worst fear was that the camera would be purchased, and then my old camera would wondrously start working again.

This is the option I ended up going with, however. Early on our fourth day in Iceland, we drove back to Reykjavik to a camera store, where both new and used SLR cameras were sold. My one requirement was that I be able to use both my lenses in the new camera body, and so I needed an EF/EFS mount. If this isn’t as big a concern to you, I suggest getting the cheapest body a single lens of yours will fit. Or, you can always go the direction of getting a point-and-shoot (though I might debate on the quality difference between a cheaper point-and-shoot and a smartphone camera).

We ended up finding a used Canon 60D body being sold for about $300 USD (slightly cheaper because of the conversion rate) that fit both my lenses, so that’s what I ended up using the rest of my trip.

I’m a little ashamed to say that getting that new body (and therefore functioning camera) worked perfectly– my good mood was restored and I looked forward to the rest of the trip. However, I’m not completely upset, as I was planning on getting a new camera body at some point, and the screen of the 60D is a nice change from the Rebel T5’s screen. My old body I have had now for about 6 years, so I’m happy I got the chance to switch it up, despite the distress the chance casued.

Remember, there’s always a solution. It might not be the perfect solution, but what’s perfect?

In my next post we’ll be continuing on with my Iceland journey. Until then!