Little Red Pixel

maman · Mar 12, 2010

Hi all,

I've noticed that all of my shots are starting to come out with a bright red pixel in the same place on every picture.

I'm guessing this is a 'stuck pixel'. But, I'm not sure if it's on my camera or on my memory card, or where the hell it is!

I do need my sensor cleaning and have had some serious dark blotches on there for a long time (since my trip to dusty Cambodia, but this is different).

The only place that I know it isn't is on my monitor, cause as soon as I close down the pics it is gone.

Does anyone have any experience with this, or know how to get rid of it?

Thanks.

F1addict · Mar 12, 2010

I had the same issue with my old Canon Powershot. Never did bother to figure out the reason behind it because I soon replaced it with my Sony A300. But a quick fix was always to just go into photoshop or a similar program and edit it.
Pretty sure it was just a stuck pixel on the sensor or something like that

ann · Mar 12, 2010

how old is the camera? if under warranty i would send it back as it is a dead pixel on the senor.

You could also check to see what it will cost for repair if the above does not cover the repair and decide ; to fix or just remove the pixel when editing as you are doing with the dust (or , i am assuming your removing the dust spots from your photos)

Hamtastic · Mar 12, 2010

I think every DSLR I've ever owned either came with or developed a stuck pixel or two over time. When you are dealing with anything in the millions you are bound to get a defect.

I solve the problem by shooting raw and the default chroma noise reduction in Adobe Camera Raw eliminates them.

Most DSLRs have software fixes that will eliminate it in-camera. The information for this may be in your camera manual, or check the manufacturer's website for their recommendations.

Garbz · Mar 13, 2010

Were the pictures taken with a similar shutterspeed / iso? Does the stuck pixel show up with faster shutterspeeds?

Camera sensors while activated with fail in deterministic ways. That is for any given iso / shutter speed combination the same set of pixels usually fail for any given image. This is why long exposure noise reduction works so well in removing them. I get upwards of 4 bright pixels at ISO800 at more than 2 seconds exposure. Or at ISO100 more than about 5 min exposure.

If this starts happening at faster shutter speeds and lower ISOs then start to worry. Many cameras such as Olympus point and shoots and SLRs have a pixel mapping features which permanently deactivates problematic pixels. See if your camera has this option if it's affecting your day to day photography.