I cleaned the sensors on my digital cameras

[Iron Flatline]

Hi.

This is really more of a public service announcement:

After years of being a digital photographer, I have finally cleaned my sensors.

IT IS NOT A BIG DEAL!

I had bought into all the hype, and all the warnings, and all the hand-wringing. I used to go to two specific places (one in NY, one in SoCal) to get my sensors cleaned, or I used to just deal with the spots in Photoshop.

I am of normal technical competency, which means I should not be allowed near the Space Shuttle, but I can exchange a lightbulb.

There were so many products, and lots of people "doing it" that I said to myself: "Self, this can't be that hard."

I researched various products, and apparently there are many that are good. I will tell you what I used, but please don't see it as a product pitch, I'm sure there are competing products that are just as good.

I used a bundle from a company called Visible Dust, they had swabs sized for my cameras' sensors, the appropriate liquid, and they have a brush called and Arctic Butterfly. I also used my trusty Giotto Rocket, which is a little air blower (not compressed) and looks really cool - like a 1950s rocket. I hide it from my sons, or it would land in the bathtub.

In one simple attempt per camera, I cleaned the sensor of my Leica M8, and my Canon D5, two extremly fancy cameras.

It was very easy. Do not be unduly intimidated.

The sensors are behind glass. Use common sense, do not push down on it like you're crushing margarita ice, but rest assured it's doable.

Anyway, I'm just posting this to take people's fear down a notch, and because I wish someone had posted this for my reading benefit.

Below is a link that helped me a lot, from a source I respect:

The Luminous Landscape, sensor cleaning

...and although I don't want to pimp a product that I have no stake in other than actually liking it, here's a quick review of the updated product.

Oh, and finally one quote from Michael at LL:

Don't spend your time being neurotic about dust. Clean it when it gets bad. Don't spend your life worrying about the odd spec of dust. Learn how to use the Spot Healing Brush and Clone Tools in Photoshop. Photographers have been dealing with dust on their negatives for 150 years. Just be glad that you don't have to "spot" every print, the way we used to.

 

[Oldfireguy]

Thanks for the post. I've often wondered if it was as bad as it sounds.

 

[drgibson]

Good post I guess I should clean the sensor on my S2 it's only 4 years old.

 

[fmw]

I clean mine all the time. To me it just like cleaning lenses or mirrors. It isn't something that needs to be done often, but it needs to be done. No big deal at all. Mirrors are far more delicate and difficult to clean because the silvering is on the front of the glass rather than back like all the other mirrors. Glad it went well for you.

 

[Garbz]

That glass is the low-pass filter. Providing you don't scratch or get any liquid or dirt on that it'll be fine.

 

[Aquarium Dreams]

I've heard that when people first started buying televisions, they believed that cleaning the screens would be bad for the set-- that it would short circuit or cause electric shock, or something like that. Some people went decades without cleaning their screen, and were shocked to come home one day to discover how bright the tv programs looked, after some kind friend or family member cleaned it for them.