When I turn on my PowerShot A75 - the Led screen is just gray. When I move it side to side it appears to have some kind of a lighted image, but nothing identifiable. If I try to take a picture, I get nothing.

Hi,
It is ccd imager chip failure problem in your Canon A75 camera and ccd imager chip will be replaced to get live view in camera screen to take fresh pictures.
Canon offers free of cost ccd imager chip replacement including both way shipping.
Click Canon Support CCD Imager Advisory for details.
Hope these info will help you.
Thanks.

Hi,
Canon offers free of cost repair for ccd imager problem in A75 camera including both way shipping so it sounds worth fixing.
Click Canon CCD Imager Advisory for details.

Hi,
Its is problem of bad ccd imager and this part will be replaced in your Canon A75 camera.
Canon will repair A75 camera free of cost.
Click Canon CCD Imager Advisory for details.

This sounds like it might be a defective CCD imager. If so, Canon should fix this for you for free, including free shipping both ways. This is regardless of your camera's warranty status. Please check the following two links for more info:

http://camerarepair.blogspot.com/2007/11/canon-digital-cameras-showing-black.html

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=PgComSmModDisplayAct&fcategoryid=225&modelid=13390&keycode=2112&id=29819

Applicable cameras include:
A40, A60, A70, A75, A80, A85, A95, A300, A310, S1 IS, S60, S200, S230, S330, S400, S410, S500, SD100, SD110, IXUS V2/300/400/430/500, IXY Digital 200a/300a/400/450/500

Hello,
Your Canon A75 camera has problem of bad CCD Imager and this part will to be replaced.
Canon offers free of cost repair of such problem in A75 models. Click Canon CCD Advisory to see details.
Thanks.

This sounds like a defective CCD that Canon is repairing free. Go here for more details: http://www.imaging-resource.com/badccds.html

Only for the brave, on a warrenty expired camera.

Buy a set of jeweller's screwdrivers.

Make sure it is off, with the lens retracted, and remove the battery and SD card.

Remove the 11 screws holding it together

The metal shell is in two halves that can be pulled apart. The rubber socket cover flap has to be removed once one half is off. A rubber gasket round the eypiece lens may drop off - it is easily replaced.

Hold the inner chassis by the edges.

The lcd screen is held by one screw, half hidden under the wiring to the flash - remove it.

Push the wiring to one side just sufficiently to enable you to hinge the lcd screen up on its flexible printed circuit wiring loom.

Underneath you will see the back of the ccd pod, with a flexibe printed circuit wiring loom pinioned under a metal plate with two Y shaped holes filled with brown gunk, and held down by a torex screw locked with some holt melt adhesive, and two further screws inaccessible under the metal chassis to the right.

I hypothesised these were the contacts that become detatched in hot conditions, and (1) tried to shift the flexible printed circuit minutely from side to side using the hole in it (it didn't move appreciably)and (2) pressed down quite hard in the centre of the metal plate, having supported the chassis from below so as not to damage the lens.

I reassembled the whole thing and it worked immediately, with just a faint light smear down the left hand side of the image (the whole image had been completely smeared, then dark, before) which was only noticeable when photographing in dark conditions.

So I took a gamble and it seems to have worked. If it hadn't I was going to break the glue seal on the Torex screw and unscrew and then screw it up again.

Obviously doing this is on your own responsibility.

THE PROBLEM IS THE CCD

Could be the tube[backlight] has blown. Can you see any image on the screen if you angle it around to the light? Check the Manufacturers Web site- tech support If it is a young camera they may offer a refurb on in exchange if you are out of warranty

It sounds like the focus element in your lens is not functioning properly. Does the lens retract completely when you turn off the camera? When you push the button does the camera attempt to focus the image? If you do not see any change in the image when you push the button, and do not hear any sound - then your focus motor is either jammed or malfunctioning. David Millier Advance Camera Repair