Sensor

[YoungPic]

i had to clean my camera the other day and when i cleaned the sensor, i used the brush they told me to and it looks like the sensor got scratched, then when i took a pic there were like white, see thorugh blobs, or lines, but its not on all my pics, i thought it was just on slower shutter speeds but it just seems to pop up every now and then, i looked at the sensor and there is some visual damage, i have a pentax istdl, how much would it cost to replace the sensor or is it possible to get it repaired?

 

[xfloggingkylex]

hmm, how hard were you pressing to damage the sensor?

Take the pictures at a high aperture (f16+) to see any marks more clearly.

As for replacing the sensor, depending how the low pass filter is designed, you may only need to replace that, but if it is build from the factory with the low pass already attached to the sensor, it is going to cost a pretty penny

 

[YoungPic]

thats the odd thing i wasn't pressing hard i just swept it lightly to get a little spec off, i knew it was sensitive but thats just ridiculous, i could be that it was a cheap brush but still the fact that it affected it so much, and i tried the aperture, anything over about 14 or so i can see evidence of the scratches but anything below that theres nothing on the print

 

[xfloggingkylex]

were you using a brush with bristles on it? like a lens cleaning brush?

if there is no evidence of scratches on anything below f14, I wouldn't bother replacing it. The ist DL is such a budget camera (my dad has the one I started on) that it probably wont be worth the money to fix it.

 

[YoungPic]

it may be a budget camera but since im so young i dont have a giant budget to go and sell this one for what i can get and buy a new one id rather keep this one for a few years thats why i may replace it can you ballpark what it might cost to replace the sensor?

 

[hazzayoungn]

do you have a picture of what the lines look like? if its not too bad, you could probably learn how to use the clone stamp in photoshop to fix it if youre shooting over f16

 

[YoungPic]

heres a pic of it, its pretty bad but anything under like 14 or so is fine no sign of it

http://i167.photobucket.com/albums/u148/JJgolfer/Photography023.jpg

 

[shorty6049]

i dunno... those dont look like scratches to me, but i really dont know what scratches look like.... maybe someone else has a better idea of what that is though... it doesnt seem like there would be scratches in all different directions like that

 

[xfloggingkylex]

i dunno... those dont look like scratches to me, but i really dont know what scratches look like.... maybe someone else has a better idea of what that is though... it doesnt seem like there would be scratches in all different directions like that

the only reason is seems like a scratch is because it obviously isn't something solid, else it would show up as a dark spot. That looks like a gouge in the glass.

I'd estimate the cost of the repair anywhere from 300 dollars and up, and I think that is shooting pretty low. With a cost like that 3/4 of the cost of the camera new, it really isn't economically a sound idea, and the older your camera is the truer this becomes, because other things will eventually have problems too.

The only reason I said just ignore it is because at 300 dollars you are halfway to an upgraded camera (K100D), and really the only thing you loose is small apertures. Sure that sucks if you want everything in focus, but you can still take most pictures just fine.

You really need to decide if you want to drop a large amount of money to fix a camera that costs just slightly more than the repairs (and it honestly may cost the same if not more to repair it, depending on what they charge to replace the sensor, and the time spend to do such a delicate job.

But, if you want to get a better idea of the price, call pentax yourself, and they may need you to send it in to get the price quote, just dont be surprised if it is as expensive as the camera itself.


EDIT: were you using a brush with bristles? If so what color are the bristles? To make sure it isn't something that can come off, get a bulb blower and try to blow those blobs off.

 

[Alex_B]

if you did not press hard, those monster-sized thingies look not like scratches to me.

looks more like residue of whatever horrble thing was in the brush.

you might try a wet cleaning following copperhill or buy a speckgrabber and try to remove the specks with it. but remember only to pressthe speckgrabber onto the sensor and then lift it off again at a site where you expect some dirt to be. it is a tedious task, but if you can remove some of the specks with it, then you know it is not scratches ... and then it is just a question of patience and training

 

[Alex_B]

oh, missisauge? once stayed there for a week or so . bet it looks different these days.. you still got beer rock?

 

[Alex_B]

oh, did you by any chance blow onto the sensor with your mouth? that could explain some of what I can see on that image.

 

[YoungPic]

i blew on it a bit but not much, and the brush i did you was a bulb blower brush, so your saying its not scratches its just some reisidue from the brush it self

 

[ksmattfish]

i could be that it was a cheap brush but still the fact that it affected it so much,

I wondered what the differences between the very expensive, sensor cleaning brushes, and the relatively cheap ones at my local art supply store were too. It turns out that the difference is in how clean they are. I don't think you've scratched your sensor; I think you've just left crud and residue (oil, wax, glue...) on it from the cheap brush. I did the same thing! I had even tried to clean the brush. Now you have to learn to wet clean your sensor (don't worry, it's scary, but you can do it). It may take a couple of tries to get all the stuf off.

 

[YoungPic]

thanks truly for all the help, advice and views, i was really scared when i saw this and since ive only had this camera for about a year i was freaking out, im not comfortable cleaning the camera myself, so ill think ill take it to my local henrys and see what they can do for me, my dad is a great photographer but hasn't been active for atleast 20 years, so he has no experience with digital or else i would ask him to help me out, once again thanks