Keep Your Camera Safe

Digital Camera Safety

Use Your Photography Equipment Safely With These Tips

By Kyle Schurman, About.com Guide

As pieces of electronic equipment, digital cameras carry some inherent risks, if not used or maintained properly. Damage to the electrical components or accessories with a digital camera could lead to a fire or to a malfunctioning or broken camera. Use these tips to properly maintain, use, and protect your digital camera.

• Only use an AC adapter or battery charger that is designed specifically for your make and model of camera. Substituting electrical equipment made for other camera models could void your warranty and cause damage to the camera. It also could end up causing a fire, as the incorrect equipment could cause the battery to short-circuit. 

 

• Only use rechargeable batteries that are specifically recommended and approved for your camera. Using an ill-fitting or overly powerful battery pack could cause damage to the camera, or it could, again, cause the battery to short-circuit. 

 

• Make sure any cables you use with your camera -- AC adapters and USB cables especially -- are free from nicks and cuts. A damaged cable could cause a fire. 

 

• Do not try to fix the interior components of the camera yourself. Simply opening the camera case likely will void your warranty and could result in permanent damage to the camera. 

 

• Remove the batteries from the camera if you will not be using the camera for a week or more, especially if the batteries are empty. Fully discharged batteries are more likely to leak acid, which would damage the camera. 

 

• When carrying batteries for your camera, make sure that you don't have multiple batteries in one location, where they could come into contact with each other. If the terminals on the batteries remain in contact with each other, they could cause a short and a fire. In addition, if the metal terminals come into contact with some sort of metal, such as keys or coins, the batteries also could short out, so be careful with the batteries when transporting them. 

 

• If the camera does not charge properly or seems to "start and stop" when charging, consider sending in the camera in for repair. You may have a short inside the camera, which could cause damage to the camera. 

 

• Do not expose the camera to extreme temperatures or water, unless your particular model of camera is designed for harsh conditions. In addition, avoid exposing the camera to sudden changes in temperature, especially in high humidity conditions, which could cause condensation inside the camera body, leading to damage to circuitry or the LCD. 

 

• Never remove the battery from the camera when the camera is in operation or is storing photos. Suddenly removing the power source while the camera is working could cause damage to data or could damage the camera's circuitry. 

 

• Avoid storing the camera for extended periods of time in areas exposed to strong magnetic fields or electromagnetic radiation. Such exposures could damage the LCD or affect the camera's circuitry. 

 

• If you own a DSLR camera that you won't be using for a few weeks, remove the lens from the camera body. Replace the caps on both ends of the lens, as well as on the camera body, to protect all of the components during storage. Clean the lens before storing it, just to make sure it'll be ready for use. 

My Thoughts

 

These are straightforward tips.  Simple enough to follow-if you want to follow.  Why wouldn't you?  You spent well-earned money on that camera.  With that camera, you have accumulated hundreds, if not thousands of memories.  You've burned calories because of those photo walks.  You're FB profile is not the boring space of emptiness.

Better take care of that camera.  It's not just a gadget!