When trying to take a picture the lense moves back and forth trying to focus. When it finall stops the subject is out of focus. There is a grinding sound as it tries to focus. Some times the picture will be taken -delayed. Most of the tiime no picture can be taken. Help!!

Lenses have a limited 'closeness' at which they will focus. That is, unless it is a macro lens, you cannot focus closer than a yard or so (it is different for each lens). look on the barrel for markings or easier yet, move your camera back until the subject is in focus.
If you have to be back 3 feet - take the shots and then crop to make them appear larger.

There are several possible causes for blurry pictures.
1) Camera motion. If everything is blurry, it's most likely because the camera moved while the picture was being taken. Make sure your shutter speed is fast enough if you're handholding the camera (longer lenses require faster shutter speed). Alternatively, put your camera on a stable surface, such as a tripod or a tabletop.
2) Subject motion. If the subject is blurry but the background is sharper, then the subject may have moved while the picture was being taken. Use a faster shutter speed. Raise the ISO if needed. There are limits, of course. If you're trying to photograph a fast-moving object in the dark, you probably won't be able to.
3) Improper focus. If the subject is blurry but something else in the picture is sharp, then the camera probably focused on the wrong object. Move the focus selector to the subject you want in focus. Alternatively, center the viewfinder on the subject, press the shutter button halfway to lock focus, then reframe and shoot.
Without any more specific information as to what and how your pictures are blurry, I'm afraid the above is all I can give you.

If you're right "on top" of the subject - then, yes - it should indicate "macro". Macro focusing is for "very up close" photography and is exactly as you describe. You simply physically move the camera a little closer to or further from the subject to focus.

Not all lenses are capable of macro focusing. The vast majority of these non-macro lenses are required to be at least a couple (or more) feet away to focus. Macro lenses on the other hand can usually get just inches away - which is a great capability.

Enjoy your macro lens!

It sounds like the circuit board flex has gone bad, It folds back and forth when you zoom the lens, And needs to be replaced by a repair shop and readjusted. Tony

no it's not, the lence does tend to move around abit when in auto focus

Hi, there are many reasons why a camera may produce less then sharp pictures.

1) Dirty, oily or damaged lens: Check for dust and fingerprints.
Clean lenses with extreme caution, using dry lens paper.
Use only minimal pressure and gently wipe from the center
outwards, NEVER in circles.

If the lens is really dirty, ask a professional photo dealer to
clean it for you as a free courtesy.

2) Check to see if the auto-focus is working correctly, this could
be an electronic or mechanical problem requiring servicing.
Focus the camera on sharp image at various distances,
to see if it responds by moving the lens.

3) Can you focus the camera manually?

4) Can you focus by moving the camera back and forth
in regards to the object of interest?

5) Is the auto-focus feature somehow disabled in the menus ?

6) Are the batteries up to snuff, they may be strong enough to
turn on the camera, but too weak to move the focus motor.

7) Is the subject you are trying to focus on out of the
focus range of the lens: i.e. too close ?

8) Is the subject you are focusing on too bland, with insufficient
detail to activate and lock the auto-focus.

9) Do you have enough light for the auto-focus to operate.

10) Does the flash unit project an red pattern to help with
focusing.

11) Are you mistaking sharpness (focus) for depth of field.
In low light conditions, the lens iris opens wide, just
like your eye, to let more light in.

This results in a loss of focussed depth of field. This
means that focusing becomes much more sensitive
and critical, such that (when) the main subject is in focus,
everything behind and in front of the subject is not.

This is a theoretical limitation of all optical lenses:
The greater the focal length and the greater the aperture,
the shorter the depth of field.

This can actually be very beneficial when shooting a
portrait: Focus on the eyebrows, blur the background,

or it can be very detrimental: When trying to magnify
a butterfly on a tulip in low light conditions, getting
everything in focus is impossible.

12) Are you mistaking motion blur with lack of focus,
due to slow shutter speeds.

13) Are you shooting in very low light conditions,
causing the picture to become more noisy,
due to the way the digital camera sensor works.

14) I you come up empty on all these suggestions,
you probably have a defective camera and it is
warranty time:

a) Defective electronics
b) Defective auto-focus mechanism
c) Defective lens, loose internal elements
d) Detached sensor chip
.... etc

Try to isolate the problem. Try to manually and
automatically focus on a wide range of subjects,
at various distances, in bright daylight conditions.

If you are still unable to focus the camera,
it is probably defective and requires replacement
or servicing

BTW
Quick review of the internet, indicates that
this particular model is notorious for high battery drain
and battery connection problems. This may be the cause
of poor auto focus as indicated above.

Also this camera has insufficient internal memory, and
and an add-on memory card is required. It is possible
that without the memory card, the camera is defaulting
to a very low pixel resolution, in order to save memory
space, thus creating the appearance of poor focus.

The nominal resolution of the camera = 7.2 Mega Pixels
is respectable for such a low cost camera, but the
reliability reviews are not good.

Martin

I remember reading a review of the K100D that mentioned that it had poor low light performance. I know mine has a really hard time focusing in low light situations. It does the sweeping back and forth & most of the time never ends up taking a picture. (Even when it bursts the flash to try to focus.)

I've just started experimenting by using a flash light aimed at the subject I want to focus in low light situations, and the camera seems to be able to focus & take a shot more reliably.

If this works, I'm going to rig up something to hold the flash light underneath the camera so that I can use it more often.

I will post an update if this works!

Take Care & Happy Imaging!
Glen
:)

The camera is most likely a nikon... but the model may make a difference.

Possible internal damage in the gearing.

Possible also to try to reset the camera settings, that may or may not help in this case.

probably the lens inside is damaged or the mechanism which moves the lens is damaged. Focus works with a moving mechanism which moves the lens back and forth.

There are two components to a camera lense. One adjusts the final lense distance from the CCD imaging chip the other adjusts the distance between the lenses in the assembly (which zooms the image in and out). It sounds like something inside the lense came loose and when you zoom the lense the focal lense is moving with the rest. The lense will probably have to be replaced if it cannot be taken apart. Odds are something is broken inside anyway. This could be something you might be capable of, I have no way of knowing. If you do not think you are up to the task, have a reputable repair shop do it. Cost should not be excessive. I would think less than $100 US plus the cost of the part. Good luck.