Dusty sensor out of the box?!

[azruial]

Hey guys, it's been a while since I posted here!

I just got a new 40D yesterday with a new 17-40mm f/4 L lens. I have really enjoyed shooting with this combo all day, but when I got home to review my images, sure enough I had dust on a bunch of images. I was using a flash to light my subject against the very bright sky, so my shutter was limited to 250, I had to crank the aperture, making the dust easily visible. I did some test shots against a white wall and then took a look at the sensor, and sure enough, clearly visible dust specks. I can only assume that it was like this when I got it since all I have done is unpackaged the camera, then carefully attached the brand new lens... it was only open for about 2 seconds total.

Is it common for a camera to ship with dust on the sensor already? Personally I find that pretty upsetting, I didn't think I would have to worry about that at all for at least 6 months, especially with the new cleaning system. Should I go complain to Calumet and try to get it professionally cleaned for free, or just suck it up and buy some brushes? I admit I'm a bit scared to try cleaning it myself...

 

[Josh66]

Unfortunately, that's fairly common...

The store may give you a free cleaning, since it's brand new (it's worth trying). If not, it's not that hard to do yourself.

 

[azruial]

Alright, if it's a common problem then I don't want to bother them about it, I guess it's time to learn to clean my sensor.

Thanks for the quick reply.

 

[Anubis]

I cleaned my sensor for the first time yesterday. Bought myself a rocket blower for £7.50.

All you do is pop off the lens, set the mirror lock in the menu, click the shutter to open in and give a few sqeezes on the blower to remove the dust. Easy as pie.

A.