Won't stay clean

I have been wrestling with my camera for some time now with the amount of spots that keep coming up in the exact same spot on my images, especially when using a small aperture. I try cleaning it, even though all i have is that Giottos rocket blower, and that normally works. When i look in the camera, everything looks really clean, I can't see the spots, but they still show up. So i'm guessing it would be best to have it cleaned. How much does that generally cost?

Do the spots stay when you change lenses? You can clean it yourself, there are instructions here, just do a search.

In all likelihood, you need to do a wet cleaning on your camera. Specks of dust get adhered to the point they won't puff away with a bulb blower, and there can be spots of oil on the sensor (actually the filter in front of the sensor) from the mechanisms in the camera. If you want to learn to do it yourself, go to http://www.cleaningdig​italcameras.com/ and start reading about it. The guys who maintain that site also sell the gear and supplies to do the cleaning, are major suppliers to the camera repair industry, and are professional repair techs themselves.

If at all nervous about doing it yourself, you can have it done by a local camera repair shop. Hard to say what it will cost... varies from place to place and depends upon what all needs doing.... probably not more than $50. Might be as little as $25. Where I live and at the shop I trust to do it for me, it's toward the high end of that range.

I see you are using 30D. Good little camera, but mine needed cleaning a lot because I often have to shoot in pretty dusty conditions. I avoided 5D classic largely because of this... they are sometimes called "dust magnets" but really I don't know if they are any worse than any other format camera, or if any dust on the FF sensor just tends to show up more in images. Later cameras such as 50D, 5DII, and pretty much every model Canon currently makes have improved coatings on the sensor to help reduce dust sticking to it (again, actually the filter over the sensor)... And they have a self-cleaning feature that "shakes" dust off the sensor every time you turn the camera on or off, as well as a sticky strip below the sensor to trap any particles. In my experience the models with self-cleaning sensors need less cleaning day to day, but still occasionally need additional attention.

When I change lenses, the spots are in different areas, but there are a few that stay in the same place no matter what i have on there. when I clean the lenses, I generally use a damp paper towel then clean it with the microfiber. I'll have to try making that wand they have on that site, i only use a blower inside because i'm afraid to do anything else. $25-$50 seems really good, considering prices i have seen have been at least $200 for it, which now looks rediculous.

What do the spots look like? Are they spots of color, or pure white, or pure black? Do they change when you change aperture?

Depending on the aperture, they're either a small heavy dot, or a medium sized opaque dot. Never different colors, only black.

I am all in favor of low tech solutions.... but honestly I would never use a damp paper towel to clean a lens. They are not that soft and too much dampness could create more problems then benefits.

What "wand" are you talking about trying to make yourself? Seems like you are the real do it yourselfer!

Break down and buy a 4 pack of these swabs (type 1,2, or 3 depending upon your camera model) for $20 : http://www.photosol.co​m …tegories.asp?id​Category=9 With careful use you can clean a sensor with 2 swabs so that is $10 per cleaning. My typical wet sensor cleaning cycle was every 2-3 months so this would cost $40-$60 per year to keep the sensor clean.

Or get some windex, a piece of paper towel, a used kitchen spatula and have at it.....

John

It's just sensor dust thst's adhered enough for the blower to not get it loose. You can follow any of the many tutorials for a DIY wet clean of the sensor. Or you can find a a local shop and have then do the clean. If you have a shop do it, I wouldn't pay more than $40 USD, myself.

John, Alan referred me to http://www.cleaningdig​italcameras.com/ above and I read through and they have a wand that cna be made to clean the sensor. But i'll have to check out these links and see what i can make up. I'm pretty frugal when it comes to this sort of thing, i would rather do it myself than rely on a shop to do it, especially since the shops around me charge a whole lot to do so.

All you need to know. google Copperhill Method.

Like I said buy a 4 pack and then you can save the plastic frames (or whatever you want to call them) and then you can make your own swabs with pecpads (not recommended by the company that sells the swabs, but some people use pecpads that way). The plastic is more flexible then a wooden tongue depressor or a kitchen spatula. You are lighly wiping the sensor not scrubbing it. Then you will need to buy some Eclipse fluid.... but it lasts a long time.

At least start out with a proven product vs a DIY version.

John

Yea that's a good point, to buy it first then go from there, i'll have to give it a shot. Thanks

mknabster wrote in post #12739857
I'll have to try making that wand they have on that site....

Before you attempt a cleaning, be quite sure to follow their strong suggestion to read all of the procedures you find there thoroughly and be confident you understand them completely. Canon also covers some aspects of sensor cleaning in the camera manual (you can download one from their website, if you don't still have the one provided with your camera).

There are some serious precautions you must take when cleaning. A key one is to be sure during cleaning that the shutter doesn't close or the mirror drop back down. If it does while you have a cleaning tool in there, you could end up with a very expensive repair. You need to have a full battery charge, or an AC power adapter, and be careful not to accidentally cancel the cleaning mode or turn off the camera while doing the cleaning.

You also have to be very careful what you use to do the cleaning. Cheap paper "lens cleaning" tissues are a no no... They can scratch. Also common cotton swabs (Q-tips) should never be used inside a camera... They shed tiny fibers that can jam fine, close tolerance mechanisms such as those inside a camera.

Spend the money for proper cleaning supplies, such as Pec Pads or Swabs and similar. Read thoroughly and follow the instructions very carefully. I'm frugal too (my Scottish heritage, no doubt) but this is a situation where being overly frugal might end up being very, very expensive if you do any damage!

A few years ago there was a rash of damaged sensor filter coatings on Canon models including the 30D, 5D classic, etc. I think cleaning fluids have been reformulated and are safe now, but it might pay to check the manufacturer's website for more info and to insure compatibility (there used to be two different versions of Eclipse, for example). You should not use most len cleaning fluids or, worse, household cleaning liquids. That would be risky!

Understand what you are cleaning and why it is delicate. You aren't actually cleaning the sensor itself, but a filter that sits directly in front of it. That filter has coatings on it, much like a lens but often more delicate than a lens'. The coatings serve to reduce reflections and, in some cases, discourage dust adhering to the surface. Many Canon cameras reportedly use a fluorine coating. The filter is called "anti-aliasing". This prevents or reduces a problem called "moire" that can occur. You've probably seen it on TV, when someone is wearing a striped piece of clothing and it causes weird effects in the image. Google for "moire" and "anti-alias" if you want more info.

The filter is high quality optical glass and the coatings on it are applied with a fuming process. The slighest flaw in the glass or coatings can and will show up in images. You cannot replace only the filter. It's affixed to the sensor, so you'd have to replace the entire thing. Best guess, it would probably cost around $300 to replace a sensor in a 30D. Might be more now, but in the past sensor replacements have ranged from around $250 to $600, depending upon model. Keep this in mind when choosing what you're going to use to do the cleanings and while actually doing the task. In a real emergency I have used a clean microfiber lens cloth folded over the end of a wooden coffee stir-stick (ala Starbucks) and dampened slightly with a drop of good quality lens cleaning fluid... But I do not normally recommend this!

I like to think of sensor cleaning as a progressive, step by step thing... Start with the least invasive or lowest risk, then step up to the next level only as necessary. At each subsequent step you are in greater risk, but can do things to help minimize that as much as possible:

1. First try a puff of air from a bulb blower. That often is enough. Note that you do have to put the camera into sensor cleaning mode, otherwise the sensor is hidden behind the shutter and mirror. It can help to have a vacuum cleaner running nearby (but not sucking strongly on the camera) to draw away dislodged dust specks. Also try with the camera held high and pointed downward, so that dislodged dust can fall out of the mirror box.

2. If needed, use a brush to dislodge more stubborn dust. There are soft brushes made specifically for this purpose. The brush must be kept clean and you don't want to contaminate it with any oil that might be on the sensor. Some brushes use static charges to help attract dust particles. Brushes can be carefully cleaned and reused.

3. Similar to a brush, there are "low tack adhesive" products such as Dust Aid, that are gently pressed on the surface to pick up specks and remove them from the camera. These are single use, good for one cleaning then toss them. For a single, stubborn speck, something like Speck Grabber which has a very small point might be useful. Speck Grabber can be cleaned and reused. You'll likely need magnification and illumination to see any individual speck though.

4. Oil or other smears can often only be removed with a proper wet cleaning. Either make or buy optical quality swabs for this purpose. These are single use (one wipe per side, then throw it away). You should try to have all dust specks off the surface, before wiping it. Dust specks can be mineral and might scratch. Be gentle with wet cleaning and use minimal amounts of cleaner applied to the swab, never dripped onto the sensor (too much and it might wick behind the filter and ruin the sensor).

5. Wet cleaning often leaves a bit of haze. Canon repair techs and others use a "lens pen" type of tool to polish a freshly cleaned sensor and remove this haze. Again, lens pens are only usable a few times, then should be replaced. It's even more important with lens pen type product that there be no dust specks on the sensor, you don't want to risk scratching with it. Actual lens pens have a round pad on the end... there are now sensor pens which are rectangular or square, to better get into the corners of the sensor.

At each step along the way, you might need to follow up by repeating #1, in particular, or any of the earlier cleaning procedures.

Helpful tools include a 5X to 7X loupe, preferably with built in LED lights. Magnifying type eyeglasses with lighting might also be useful. These are used to inspect the sensor by eye. It's not practical to be constantly snapping a photo and checking the image, to see if the cleaning has worked. A magnifying loupe makes the job a lot faster and more efficient.

There are work stands or vises designed to hold cameras, that can be useful to leave both your hands free.

Keep in mind that on the sensor the image is actually upside down and backwards from what you see in the viewfinder (or in an image/print). So, if you notice a speck appearing in the upper, righthand corner of your images, when looking at the sensor itself you will actually find that offending speck in the lower, lefthand corner.

Instead of a bulb blower, some folks use a blower that's powered with a foot pedal.

Some "don'ts": Don't use typical "canned air" as it often sprays out some of it's propellant (particularly if shaken or held upside down), which will leave marks on the sensor that are hard or impossible to remove. Also, the blast from canned air can be super cold causing condensation or too strong, forcing particulates deeper into the camera, even damaging more fragile parts such as the thin shutter blades. Similarly, many common air compressors shouldn't be used without a lot of precautions... The air from them needs to be run through several steps of filtration to remove absolutely all oil and moisture from condensation, and the strength of the blast needs to be very carefully controlled.

Be super careful to protect the mirror and focus screen (right above it). During the actual sensor cleaning the mirror flips up out of the way and covers the focus screen. Just don't be too tempted to try to clean the mirror or focus screen... any specks on them will not show up in images anyway and is merely a nuisance. The mirror is front-surfaced with aluminum and very high precision, but quite delicate. The focus screen is optical plastic and can be damaged by some cleaning solutions. Try to only clean these with a puff of air. Maybe take to a professional if you ever need them cleaned.

And there are some preventative steps you can take. Use some common sense and try not to change lenses in particularly dusty situations. Make lens changes reasonably quickly to minimize chance of getting dust inside. Try to hold the camera facing downward while changing lenses, so that dust would need to go "uphill" to get inside.

Keep the camera capped with a body cap or a lens on it all the time, to help prevent dust getting inside. Don't leave it sitting around without the front bayonet mount uncovered for any length of time. Keep your lenses clean and cap the rear when in storage. Clean out the inside of the caps occasionally, too.Wipe down the outside of the camera and your lenses occasionally, as needed. Also vacuum or clean out your camera bag occasionally.

GregoryF wrote in post #12740223
All you need to know. google Copperhill Method.

Agreed .. I also was initially very nervous to do this myself. But after some practice I got the hang of it. While the Sensor (or filter on top of sensor) is "sensitive", it is NOT that soft and actually take more pressure than you would initially think. Just take your time and learn the steps and you'll be glad you did. And of course avoid changing lenses in dusty or sandy or windy conditions (e.g, the Beach!)

Wow, thanks for taking the time to write all that Alan, it was very helpful. I'm definitly not going to rush into this, so this really was helpful