Dust (?) on the sensor?

[Stradawhovious]

I started to notice some dust spots on my photos. No big deal, right? Well, I got out my trusty bulb blower thingy, and went to town. Took some test photos, and no dust spots on the images. Mission accomplished. The thing is that there appears to still be some schmutz on the sensor. Tiny tiny spots that won't come off with the bulb, and dont seem to have any impact on the image. Should I be concerned about these, or just let them go since they don't show up on the images? I could take it in for a professional cleaning, but really don't want to spend the cash if there's no need to.

 

[nahtanoj]

if it's not affecting the image, i wouldn't worry too much. you can also clean the sensor yourself, it's pretty easy to do. there are 'how to' videos on youtube.

 

[mwcfarms]

If its not broke don't fix it.

 

[Stradawhovious]

Did a bunch of test shots at f/13 since that's the highest I've ever shot, and saw a little dust, and a big chunk of something or other. The blower got the dust, but not the big speck. I carefully and sucessfully removed that with a dry swab, and when looking looking at f/13 again the image was clean.

Then I went to f/22

Whoa Nelly! There was a hundred thousand and seven dust specks that wouldn't come off with the blower. (well, maybe not that many, but there were a few....) Even though I don't ordinarily (or ever) shoot at that aperature, I wanted it cleaned since I'm getting my engagement pics done soon. (My friend, who is an accomplished photomaker, has his Canon in for an overhaul and will be using my gear instead due to time constraints.)

I figured this cleaning was out of my league with my present experience and lack of proper equipment, so I dropped it off at the local Camera doctor with a $50 bill and anxiously await its return.

I have learned a valuable lesson about changing lenses and other regular procedures though...... I need to change my evil ways to try to avoid that kind of dust in the future. That seems to be WAAAAAAAAYYYYYYY too much junk on the filter for a months worth of use.

That, and scaring the hell out of yourself into thinking you scratched the low pass filter of your new $1,000+ camera is a sure fire way to end up in the hospital with failure of one major neurological system or another.....

(No worries, the pictures show NO sign of anything other than dust....
Even at 100% viewing at f/22.......


Thank God)

 

[tirediron]

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.

 

[doziergraphic]

I paid I think less than $20 or $30 to have mine cleaned at Roberts Imaging in Indy - fortunate to have a shop in town - and they did a great job. I'd rather pay a couple bucks and have someone to blame if they scratch it or screw it up. Can't blame myself, it would spoil my streak of being perfect :lmao:

 

[Stradawhovious]

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

-snip-

......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.

You must have this saved in a word document or something, because seeing it pasted in about 3 different threads on this board is what talked me off the ledge when I though I had scratched the filter. I don't mind attempting clean it myself, but I need to have the proper tools first. Right now I don't have the time to wait for the stuff to come in the mail, so I took it in. Next time, I will be prepared, have the right tools, and dive in head first. :thumbup:

 

[tirediron]

You must have this saved in a word document or something..

Matter 'fact. :er: It's one of the things that bugs me; camera companies, esp. Nikon make sensor cleaning sound like something akin to black magic, and suggest that you'll likely ruin your camera for life if you so much as look at the sensor. If someone wants to pay to have it done, or doesn't have the time/tools to do it, fine, but I think people should know that it's simple and straight forward, as long as it's done carefully.

 

[orb9220]

Links from my blog to learning to do it yourself.
Hope something there is helpful.

Yep scary the first time.. But really is easy once you have the right tools.
Everyone has dust spots on their sensors. Many don't notice it because they are shooting in f1.8-f8 range where most dust is invisible to the sensor. It's only when shooting at f11-f22 that it rears it's ugly head.
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