Dirty Sensors Or Overreacting?

[jdag]

My son and I both have D7000s. They are about 2 months old, purchased the same day and used approximately the same amount.


Recently I noticed spots on a number of shots he took at f22. So I decided to evaluate both cameras at similar settings, using the same lens, etc. His obviously has many more spots than mine.


Amy I overreacting to this? Should I send the cameras for cleaning? Will there always be some spots? The spots are only noticeable above f11 or so.


My sample at f22

My son's sample at f22

Thanks in advance, John

 

[Tomasko]

Amy I overreacting to this?

Yea, a bit.

Should I send the cameras for cleaning?

If those spots bother you, you have 3 options - forget about spots, send camera for cleaning, clean sensors by yourself. It all depends on how much it really bothers you. Do they ruin your images? Are they difficult to remove in PP? You need to answer these questions for yourself...

Will there always be some spots?

If sensor isn't clean, sure.

 

[molested_cow1]

This can easily turn into a game in the off-topic forum... "Who's got more spots?"

My sensor looks clean visually but spots do show up when shooting even colored backgrounds. No big deal, I just photoshop them out.
I will clean my sensor when there's dust on it, with a blower first. If that doesn't get the dust off, I will then use the fluid. I try not to touch the sensor as much as possible.

That said, if you got some kind of sticky stuff on your sensor, like grease spots, you better clean it soon. Leaving it there may just make it harder to clean later.

 

[jdag]

Thanks for the input. I don't see them as much of a bother (I rarely if ever shoot beyond f11). And I would anticipate that if I do get the sensor cleaned, checking again in 2 months would likely reveal similar spots.

 

[EPPhoto]

The spots are oil. The D7000 is known to throw oil from some moving part in the camera. You can clean it...but it'll just come back.

 

[jdag]

The spots are oil. The D7000 is known to throw oil from some moving part in the camera. You can clean it...but it'll just come back.

Actually, that's the reason I don't want to bother sending it in to Nikon. it will only recur.

 

[bazooka]

I found a local shop that does a full sensor and cavity cleaning (that sounds awful) for $60. They even show you a before and after shot. But alas, after a year, I've got more dust. But I change my lenses a lot so no suprise.

 

[tirediron]

Sensor-cleaning. It's easy to do and should be considered routine maintenance. Spending $50 - 75 for something that takes, literally five minutes, is foolish IMO. Do it yourself, save time and money, just be careful!

DON'T be scared of cleaning your camera! All you need are the right tools. I'll repost this just for info:

Contrary to popular belief, cleaning your own sensor is easy, and difficult to screw up. You should have a few tools though. My preference is for the Visible Dust line of products, in particular the Arctic Butterfly; it's a little pricey, but worth it.

Get a Giottos rocket, DO NOT use one of those cheap blower bulbs with a built in brush. They're dust/lint traps. Remove the lens, and holding hte camera at a 45 angle with the lens opening pointing down, thoroughly blow out the mirror chamber. Now, lock up the mirror and clean off the sensor. Once you've blown off the "big chunks" use the Arctic Butterfly to clean off the small stuff following the instructions provided.

If that doesn't work, then you'll need to go to a wet cleaning system, which is a still easy to do. In ten years of digital photography, I've never had to use a wet cleaning system on any sensor.

Remember that you're not actually cleaning the sensor, you're cleaning the low-pass filter in front of the sensor which is usually made of mineral glass or other very tough material. It's actually quite difficult to scratch or damage. It is easy to get streaky if you **** up with a wet-cleaning system, but that's not permanent.