Sensor cleaning "tutorials" and info

[RJSorensen]

This section is for gear, evaluations and reviews et al. I have been having MAJOR stress with the little dirty specks that have been showing up on some portions of my photographs. I read regarding the Copper Hill method of sensor cleaning here and it seemed as though many of you have found it to your liking. I ordered up a full kit and it has been on my office shelf for about a week now . . . I have been afraid to use it. What in the world do I know of 'cleaning sensors?' I don't even like to take off and or change lenses. I once thought of leaving on the 100-400 all the time. ;)

Today I read and then re-read the instructions on the net (link attached) and those that came with the kit. I looked at my early morning shot today and just could not take it any longer. I had to face up to the challenge, and do so today. I have attached a before and after, although not taken from the same place, they are high f/stop with plenty of blue sky. My method of looking for this 'bane' of digital shooters.

I am pleased to announce and provide the before and after shots and to say that it was VERY easy and I worried for nothing. The worst that happened is I saw a Nik*n in the web instruction sheet, lol. After a few practice strokes to get a feel . . . I got most of the dust on the first swipe. I still have some little ones on the lower right, (I think this is the top right of the sensor?) but will leave it for NEXT time. After the good experience with this product and the nice instruction sheet. (Follow it.) I can say that as best I know, this is the product I will use until they come up with self cleaning unites in a few years.

I thought that those of you whom are like me, a tad timid would benefit from my stressful experience . . . for nothing. Get it and use it.

http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/ccd_cleaning/

[JusSmith]

Well done, I'm embarking on the same task tomorrow night, I hope I get the same results as you did!

[lomond]

I know what you went through. It took me months to build up the courage.
When I finaly did it I thought " That was easy, what was I worried about?"
I clean the sensor every 1 or 2 months now. :)

[Maureen Souza]

Thanks for the input....I saved that link for future reference.

[MarkoPolo]

Brave man RJ! I went through the same angst. It really isn't as bad as the instructions make it sound, I'm sure they are just being cautious--CYA--. I'm not sure, but I think it is inverted as in a dental mirror, upper left is the lower right.

[Ogrt48]

Yup, marko is right. upper left is lower right

[tim]

There was a HUGE discussion/argument about this a couple of months back, the guy who is responsible for the copperhill method even got involved (after I asked him to give his opinion). It came down to which way you were looking at the camera from, the details are near the bottom of this page (http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/image/20980695).

[griff2]

MarkoPolo wrote:

but I think it is inverted as in a dental mirror, upper left is the lower right.

As the sensor sees it yes, but as you look at the sensor, from the front of the camera, upper left becomes lower left and vice versa.

Just got my first dust bunnies, so it's time to order that Copperhill solution..

[cricket]

Thank you, Thank you for this post!

I just noticed my first specks last night, so it's time to do it!

[OceanRider]

have noty done it yet but have the pec pad et al.....Canon cleaned mine PERFECT so I am dont for a while. I ahte checking with blue sky coause I KNOW I am going to see something and then it will naw at me!! Thanks for the post to calm my nerves!!!

Cheers

[RJSorensen]

Your are welcome Cricket and et al . . . lol. Some good needs to come of my stress for naught . . .

Lets get out and clean them their sensors!

[Sicily1918]

I noticed a smuge-like thing on my sensor last night... if you shine a flashlight on it you can tell there's a part not quite as reflective. Blowing on it does not get rid of it...http://forum.e46fanatics.com/images/smilies/mecry.gif

Interestingly enough, last week I thought to order this kit, thinking I'd use it "someday". The kit'll be here tomorrow, and after reading this thread, I don't feel quite so apprehensive about doing it...

[robertwgross]

Yes, I think the bright light helps in locating dust pieces.

I have one very bright overhead light, so I can sit under it and open up the camera with it pointed straight up at the light. When staring at the sensor with the right angle, I can instantly see a dust speck. Without the bright light, I am only guessing.

---Bob Gross---

[Sicily1918]

Yes, I think the bright light helps in locating dust pieces.

I have one very bright overhead light, so I can sit under it and open up the camera with it pointed straight up at the light. When staring at the sensor with the right angle, I can instantly see a dust speck. Without the bright light, I am only guessing.

---Bob Gross---Yeah, it's amazing just how much dust is in there. Shining a nice light only serves to highlight how dirty they get :(

[ron chappel]

An excellent post for those worried about sensor cleaning !

[Joytek]

Just clean the damned thing...!!!

it is NOT so delicate as the companies will have you believe....you can do it NO probs!!!!

I clean my sensor (1D mkII) almost every time I change lenses....

dust is a b*tch and it happens a lot if you change lenses.

w.

[RJSorensen]

LOL, Yes I clean mine anytime I see a spot big enough to have to clone out. I don't clean it for fun . . . but as noted above, it is not going go 'break' into pieces either. Follow the instructions, don't use too many drops of cleaner, only one use per pad . . . piece of cake.

I change between my Canon 100-400 and 17-85 as needed, once I shot around the lens change . . . did not want to get dust you know. LOL. Just shoot and clean as needed and get back to having fun, don't stress over the cleaning of the sensor.

Kind regards to all and good luck with your sensor cleaning.

[paulhillion]

Apoligies if this link has already been posted. Makes interesting reading!

http://194.100.88.243/petteri/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html

[wibbly]

Hi

Had an hour to kill so I visited Fixation in London today http://www.fixationuk.com (http://www.fixationuk.com/). They're a Nikon Official Service Centre and Canon Professional Service Centre & do a walk-in sensor cleaning service. They also sell Sensor Swabs, DigiPads and, shortly, VisibleDust brush kits. And CO2 canisters, some bags, tripods, loadsastuff, etc., etc. I spent half an hour with one of their staff getting free advice on wet sensor cleaning technique. I guess this is just the experience of one guy - albeit he does this day in and out. Ok, one guy talking, but Fixation do however seem to have an excellent reputation overall. Anyway, my take-aways were:

1. DO be careful to clean the camera/mount first. No point in having dust you know is easy to remove close to the sensor when you're trying to clean it! Bottom of the mount is where it tends to collect. He reckoned there's value in the technique of leaving some double sided tape on the inside of the body cap to have lose dust stick there rather than anywhere else. I wasn't so convinced.

2. They use a pure alcohol mix they can't/don't sell, not Eclipse. He claimed what they use evaporates quicker. Despite this he advocated gently blowing into the sensor area as you wipe to increase the evaporation speed further. Popular wisdom is that it's a no-no to use your breath, as this is adding more muck from your breath. I guess it works for him.

3. He uses wipes (they buy from Nikon in bulk he said) wrapped round a narrow wooden spatula for cleaning. He was picking out the wipes from a cardboard box using his fingers. No tweezers here. Maybe this was just a demo box of wipes? I didn't want to criticise his technique! I did notice the part of the wipe that ended up on a sensor wasn't an edge/part he'd touched. The way he wrapped it round the spatula was simple and crude (to me anyway!) - he mentioned they wrapped it several ways depending on the type of tip they wanted. In this case there was some wipe floppy at the end so it could be used a bit like a small paint brush.

4. He said not to worry too much about pressure. Just don't be stupid. I saw just a little flexing of the shaft of a DigiPad when he was using it.

5. He was quite complimentary of the effectiveness of the VisibleDust system. He said it really does get virtually all lose dust off easily.

6. He was less complimentary about even no-propellant CO2 air canisters. He mentioned they still from time to time get reports of muck being sprayed on the sensor. He's happy with a hand ('Rocket' style blower). He mentioned they used cleaned compressed air in the workshop. All interesting in the context of blowing on the sensor with your mouth when cleaning it?!

Despite the contradictions above I was left with the feeling that these guys nonetheless know what they're doing - experience counts for a lot. I think I would be happy to have them service my camera/lenses if needed. I think they handle many types of in-warranty repairs too.

The VisibleDust brushes ARE expensive (~£60), but in the context of the price of Sensor Swabs (especially if you wind up using more than one at a time), I guess they're not so bad. I think I might be more comfortable using the VisibleDust brushes more routinely than a wet clean, and it should reduce the need for wet cleaning too.

If you get to London (near Vauxhall station), I suggest you visit. They seem a nice helpful bunch and good to know about 'just in case'.

J

[robertdrake]

Apoligies if this link has already been posted. Makes interesting reading!

http://194.100.88.243/petteri/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html

The guy keeps refering to "size" and how important there is no "size" in the brush. What the h is he talking about?

[Jon]

Sizing is essentially a starchy material which is worked into fabrics, etc. to add stiffness. Just what you don't want grating on your sensor - a nice, stiff, bristly brush. So he makes them without sizing.

[thanhda]

Has anyone tried cleaning the sensor with the "The Pixel Sweeper (http://194.100.88.243/petteri/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.html)" method? Please comment if you have.

Thanks.

[lancea]

Not yet, but since Copper Hill has such a good reputation you might be interesting in the assurance of getting their new "SensorSweep" brush. It's reasonably priced so I got one. See http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/image/42963246. Now all I need is dust :)

[thanhda]

Thanks for the link....
I'll probably get this one :)

[Trumper]

Hi

Had an hour to kill so I visited Fixation in London today http://www.fixationuk.com (http://www.fixationuk.com/). They're a Nikon Official Service Centre and Canon Professional Service Centre & do a walk-in sensor cleaning service. They also sell Sensor Swabs, DigiPads and, shortly, VisibleDust brush kits. And CO2 canisters, some bags, tripods, loadsastuff, etc., etc. I spent half an hour with one of their staff getting free advice on wet sensor cleaning technique. I guess this is just the experience of one guy - albeit he does this day in and out. Ok, one guy talking, but Fixation do however seem to have an excellent reputation overall. Anyway, my take-aways were:


If you get to London (near Vauxhall station), I suggest you visit. They seem a nice helpful bunch and good to know about 'just in case'.

J
WOW ,Thanks for that, ive been looking for sensor cleaning advice in the UK http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=77088 and i visit London alot so i will pay them a visit next time i go there.Many thanks

[Mossman]

I've just chanced on the CDPF, so forgive me if I've missed bits of the post. What doesn't seem to have been covered is macro work which uses silly-small effective apertures such as f/72 and reveals specks (depth of focus) that are not visible at all for 'normal' apertures. They are very consistent, perfectly circular doughnuts 50 microns across -- that's about 7 pixels on a 1Ds Mk II, super-crisp against a diffraction-softened image -- with a pale centre plus a pale halo. Andrew Stagg of DSLRClean was most helpful, suggesting they were diesel particulates, but unfortunately dry cleaning methods smear them into oily streaks. He recommended wet cleaning, e.g. minimal Eclipse alcohol (just to moisten) and e.g. Digi-pads (or lint/dust-free tissue wrapped carefully and stuck to a half-inch glue-spreader with double-sided tape). The first cleaning took many many goes to de-smear, more tears than alcohol, but now is simple and routine. I'd NEVER use dry for this reason. I guess that birders with long lenses and wide apertures never see this dirt, but it's ruination in macro work.

[Ianfp]

When we all refer to cleaning the sensor, what we are really doing is cleaning the glass window that is mounted in front of the silicon. The potentially delicate thing is the coating on this glass window. If not for the coating, it would be very difficult to damage it.

[rickyjones24]

Can any one suggest an online seller of copperhill in the UK,I'm strugling to find one, google just takes you threads like this!

Thanks for any help

RJ

[claudermilk]

Its just the pbase site--should be the first hit on a Google search. You can probably find the parts locally, at least the Eclipse.

[Mathiau]

bookmarking :D

[Crashoran]

Bookmarked.

[ViciousCircle]

Just wanted to mention that I just used the copperfield method...wow... seems I have a perfectly clean sensor now! And, it was quite easy as well!

[Winzzy]

I am a little irritated because my 40D which has a sensor cleaner has spots.... guess I will have to give it a try as well.

[canonman78213]

Just to chime in, I had posted a new thread earlier today asking about sensor cleaning and was referred to this thread by another member. I read all the posts and decided to head down to my local camara shop here in San Antonio. the folks at the Camera Exchange were VERY helpful and I got a complete Delkin kit. It has the lighted viewer, swabs, solution, even a UPB-powered vacuum (only for use in the camera cavity but NOT on the actual sensor itself. I had a $200.00 giftcard in hand from Christmas, so I figured why not? It came to $130.00 there retail in the shop, but I'm sure it can be gotten online cheaper.Anyway, I got it home, followed the very simple instructions, and now have a SPOTLESS sensor! The battery-powered lighted viewer is great because you don't have to go out a shoot the sky at f22, check the shot in photoshop, etc. You'll know right then and there if you need to swipe some more. I even did this all lying on my bed with the camera faced down. Hey, didn't want to risk actually adding dust! Anyway, I'm glad I finally got up the nerve to do this. I'll be cleaning the sensor on a regular basis myself instead of paying someone to do it.

[Jim_T]

Great info.... Thanks for posting!

[Josh_30]

Nice! Maybe this will cut down on all of the recent sensor cleaning threads.

Do we need a sticky FAQ or How-to on sensor cleaning? (Maybe there is one already, and I just missed it)

Edit: I just found it in the general sticky FAQ thread. I thought I had seen one somewhere before.