View through viewfinder is dark, looks like dark sunglasses over lens. 24mm lens indicates fE E on lcd code. Shutter will not function or lens will not automatic focus. Switch to 70-300 lens, view finder still dark same, but press button & lens focus function causes lens to go out then back-does not stop. Took some photos & they were all blurred-F8 on lcd display does not change regardless of light exposure. Lens not new to camera-both lens have been used numerous times in past.

First, the "r06" message is NOT an error code. It indicates the number of shots remaining in the internal memory buffer, before the camera must prevent additional shutter actuations so that it may transfer those images already in the buffer to the memory card. This "r" number will decrease with each shot taken in rapid succession until it reaches 0. The shutter release will no longer work until the buffer is transferred to the memory card, then shooting may continue again.

As far as not being able to even see through the viewfinder, it sounds like something may be obstructing the light from reaching the meter and viewfinder. The problem is most likely the position of mirror inside the camera body. With the lens off the body, the mirror should be plainly visible at about a 45 degree angle to the opening. A side view drawing of this is below. The solid red line is the mirror in the normal position. The red dashed line is the up position of the mirror when the shutter is released.



When the mirror is in the "normal" position, the light from the lens is projected on a screen so that the image is visible in the viewfinder for composing and can be metered. When in the "up" position (when the shutter release is fully depressed), the light from the lens is projected on the camera's sensor for as long as set by the manual settings or program; based on ISO, aperture, etc. At the end of this time, the mirror returns to the "normal" position.

If your D100's mirror is not in the lowered 45 degree angle position, the image seen in the viewfinder is inside the camera - not that which the lens would project. Hence, the dark viewfinder, long exposure times and - I'm guessing - severely overexposed pictures because way too much light is striking the sensor because the meter is only seeing darkness.

If the mirror is ok, with the lens removed from the body, look for the aperture lever as shown in the yellow circle in the picture below:



By default, the aperture is at minimum. The camera moves the lever from this position to full open (and anywhere between) as needed. You should gently move the lever to the other end of its travel to open the aperture to maximum. Point the lens away from a light source but preferably at a light colored background. Look through the lens. There should be no obstructions and be clear. Next, look at a dark colored background to find the same results. If you want, you can even allow sunlight to shine through the lens onto a sheet of paper (like a magnifying glass). The result should be a bright circle with no obstructions. Obstructions in the lens will prevent the meter in the camera from getting accurate information about the scene and if significant enough, prevent viewing through the viewfinder.

You may wish to have the camera & lens professionally cleaned and serviced to repair a mirror or lens issue.

If this was helpful, please rate it as such. Good luck!

The Nikon D5000 must be set in "Live View" mode before you can use the rear monitor to take photos. There is a button that says "LV" to the right of the LCD screen that sets Live View to on or off.

Is there a filter on the lens? remove the filter and try that. What mode are you shooting in? Switch to "P" for program and the camera will balance the light meter to a correct exposure. When looking through the camera viewfinder yes things will look darker then the scene because of all the glass and stuff the light is traveling through to get to your eye. Sort of like looking at something then putting a pair of sunglasses on. That part is normal. Also the faster the F stop the brighter the viewfinder will be. So lets say your 18-55 is an F4 lens. A lens that is an F2 will be a stop brighter and a lens that is F1.2 will be even brighter then that. You might not be paying attention to the light meter in the viewfinder which for correct exposure the needle needs to be in the middle between the - and + symbols.

Besides the auto-flash mode, you can select fill flash, flash off, self-timer, and nighttime-view with or without flash.
Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON until the desired indicator appears on the LCD PANEL.
Fill flash and flash off modes remain selected after you take the picture. To cancel the selection, press the mode-selection button or close and reopen the lens cover/flash to return to the auto-flash mode.
Fill flash
When bright light indoors or outdoors comes from behind the subject (backlighting), dark shadows (especially on faces) may occur. Use fill flash to lighten these shadows.

1. Open the LENS COVER/FLASH to raise the flash and to turn the camera ON.
2. Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON repeatedly until the FILL-FLASH INDICATOR appears on the LCD PANEL.
3. Frame your subject within the VIEWFINDER EYEPIECE.
4. Partially depress the SHUTTER BUTTON. When the FLASH/CAMERA-READY LAMP turns off and the fill-flash indicator on the LCD panel stops blinking, fully depress the shutter button to take the picture.

Flash off
When you do not want to use the flash, especially indoors where flash is prohibited, such as in theaters and museums, or when you want to take twilight scenes or distant subjects that are beyond the flash range, or capture the ambiance of existing light, use the flash-off feature. Use a tripod or place the camera on another firm support, and use high-speed film because the shutter speed in these situations will most likely be slow.

1. Open the LENS COVER/FLASH to raise the flash and to turn the camera ON.
2. Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON repeatedly until the FLASH-OFF INDICATOR appears on the LCD PANEL.
3. Frame your subject within the VIEWFINDER EYEPIECE.
4. Press the SHUTTER BUTTON to take the picture.

Self-timer with auto flash
Use this feature to include yourself in pictures.

1. Use the TRIPOD SOCKET to attach the camera to a tripod or place it on another firm support.
2. Open the LENS COVER/FLASH to raise the flash and to turn the camera ON.
3. Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON repeatedly until the SELF-TIMER INDICATOR appears on the LCD PANEL.
4. Frame your subject within the VIEWFINDER EYEPIECE.
5. Press the SHUTTER BUTTON. The SELF-TIMER LAMP will glow and then blink during the last three seconds of countdown.
   • To cancel the self-timer selection before the shutter releases, close the flash.
   • The self-timer automatically turns off after the shutter releases.

Night-view with flash
In this mode, the camera balances the flash and existing light exposure so you can take beautiful pictures of people at sunset or at night. Use a tripod or place the camera on another firm support, and use high-speed film because the shutter speed at night will most likely be slow.

1. Open the LENS COVER/FLASH to raise the flash and to turn the camera ON.
2. Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON repeatedly until the NIGHTTIME-VIEW INDICATOR with flash appears on the LCD PANEL.
3. Frame your picture in the VIEWFINDER EYEPIECE.
4. Press and hold the SHUTTER BUTTON for 12 seconds without lifting your finger. Note: If you remove your finger from the shutter button before 12 seconds, the shutter will time out immediately.
   
5. After 12 seconds, release the shutter button to take the picture.

Night-view without flas
In this mode, you can capture the natural existing light of city-night scenes or fireworks at night. Use a tripod or place the camera on another firm support, and use high-speed film because the shutter speed at night will most likely be slow.

1. Open the LENS COVER/FLASH to raise the flash and to turn the camera ON.
2. Press the MODE-SELECTOR BUTTON repeatedly until the NIGHTTIME-VIEW INDICATOR without flash appears on the LCD PANEL.
3. Frame your picture in the VIEWFINDER EYEPIECE.
4. Press and hold the SHUTTER BUTTON for 12 seconds without lifting your finger. Note: If you remove your finger from the shutter button before 12 seconds, the shutter will time out immediately.
   
5. After 12 seconds, release the shutter button to take the picture.

Yes, it is normal. This is a reasonably old DSLR, and it's designed for you to look through the viewfinder (it's more accurate anyway as it's looking through the lens). You'll find if you keep one hand under the lens and one hand on the shutter, it'll feel quite comfortable to look through the viewfinder.

You can still view photos you've taken after you've taken them though.

Because this camera does not have a Live Viewing option like all smaller point and shoot cameras have. To give you a live view on the LCD would require the shutter to be open constantly. Only some DSLR cameras offer this function which requires a second sensor in the camera. You are best using the manual viewfinder anyway as it will result in better pictures and you can determine focus better too.

That would explain the darkness if the lens is stopped down. It would seem the aperture control is faulty on the camera body. Normally, the aperture remains open until you take the picture. It is only closed down while the shutter is open.

Yes, the error is due to your lens not being set to highest F number. Solution : set lens to the highest number ( f 16 or f 22 ) and lock it in ( on the lens ). Your camera will work find now.

Sounds like a lens diaphragm problem ( lens stays closed down to F16 and that is why you have a dark viewfinder ). Remove lens and see if you can activate the aperture mechanism via the activator which protrudes from the rear of the lens. You should get nice and brisk action from the aperture . If the movement is sluggish or the lens stays fully closed then your lens needs attention.

Some digital SLR camera have a mirror lock and others have a viewfinder shutter In each case this will be a knob in the region of the viewfinder that turns. Check that this model has it and it has not be inadvertently turned. Then come back