help, how to get rid of this spot?

i tried using the rocket blower, but maybe im doing it wrong
i do see a few tiny dust specks on the mirror or glass thing inside the body
is even a few tiny specks bad?
but i only see 1 main visible one in my pictures..
i also tried using the incamera sensor cleaning thing.
does this require me taking it to canon? or bestbuys?

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you have a few options:

1) try harder with the rocket blower.
2) get a sensor cleaning kit and do it yourself (do a search for copperhill method on this forum for more info)
3) send it to Canon for some cleaning.
4) go to a local pro shop in your area and have them look at it.
4) just agree to live with it and clone it out in PS.

whatever you do, don't take it to best buy, they will not know what to do with it...

btw, sorry if it sounds stupid but how did you clean the sensor? did you go to the clean sensor function and followed the instructions or did you just removed the lens and used the rocket blower?

Looks like you have more than one spot on the sensor there.
You need to go into a room free of dust and use the clean sensor function remove the lens and blow with the rocket blower.
DO NOT TOUCH THE SENSOR GLASS with your fingers , or blow with your lips it will make it worse !
Just face the down , blow with the rocket blower , turn the cam off put lens back on then test ya camera again

Like this!

(Photoshop clone tool)

Seriously though, the dust you see on the mirror will NOT appear on your photos. The mirror flips up out of the way when taking a photo.

You have to remove the lens, enter sensor clean mode (the mirror will flip up and the shutter will open allowing access to the front of the sensor) That is where the dust is - now try blowing with the rocket blower. Make sure you have a charged battery in the camera as you don't want the shutter closing when you have the rocket nozzle inside.

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If that spot is in the same spot on all images... and can become clearer at small apertures (F22) then you're looking at a spec on your sensor.
Dust on your mirror will have no effect on your images. It gets in the way to reflect light up into the viewfinder so you can see through the lens. When you actually take a shot, the mirror flips out of the way to allow the light to hit the sensor.

When the mirror is flipped out of the way, you will be able to see the shutter curtains that cover the actual sensor. Don't touch the mirror to move it. Your camera has a sensor cleaning option that can be used to flip the mirror out of the way and open the shutter curtains.
** make sure you have a full battery to avoid the mirror flipping down into any tools you may have in the cavity.

If you're looking at the sensor, you'll probably be able to see the spec of dust. You could try using a blower to get it out, but you can easily get more dirt on the sensor in the process.

There are various methods to clean your sensor, or you can send it in for a cleaning. From my Canadian experience, sending it to Canon doesn't guarantee you'll be dust-free when you get it back anyway. Truth be told, as soon as you get it clean, you're just in for more dust down the road anyway.


(I love it when you load several pages and by the time you get in to be the first to respond to something, you post only to find you're like 7th in line. DOH!)

I'm a newbie with digital SLR's myself (after 25 years with my Minolta X700). My first experience with a spot on some of my photo's turned out (after buying a rocket blower and sensorpen) actually a couple of bits on the rear glass of the lens itself. You must have very good lighting (a flashlight works too) and hold the glass at a severe angle (almost parallel to your eye) to see the specs. Once you have confirmed there is some debris, clean it off (rocket blower first of course as it's the least likely to damage anything). Be careful and good luck! Let us know what finally fixes the problem. Happy shooting!

RAitch wrote in post #3938197
** make sure you have a full battery to avoid the mirror flipping down into any tools you may have in the cavity.

My 300d won't let me enter sensor clean mode if I don't have enough battery. Do the newer models do this as well?

I'd be a lot more worried about the blue ring. But that's just me.

If the rocket blower doesn't work, gently swipe over the sensor with a q-tip and then use the blower again. Sensor cleaning equipment really has gotten out of hand...it isn't that difficult.

JaertX wrote in post #3938342
If the rocket blower doesn't work, gently swipe over the sensor with a q-tip and then use the blower again. Sensor cleaning equipment really has gotten out of hand...it isn't that difficult.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't listen to this advice!!!!

Never use a q-tip on a sensor. worst advice ever.

dekalbSTEEL wrote in post #3938321
My 300d won't let me enter sensor clean mode if I don't have enough battery. Do the newer models do this as well?

pretty sure they do

dekalbSTEEL wrote in post #3938321
My 300d won't let me enter sensor clean mode if I don't have enough battery. Do the newer models do this as well?

Not sure... I normally have near a full charge it seems with my 30D. Just remembered reading that in either my old XT or my 30D manual.

blonde wrote in post #3938403
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't listen to this advice!!!!

Crashoran wrote in post #3938566
Never use a q-tip on a sensor. worst advice ever.

Neither of you have tried it, have you?

I have (on two different 5D's, a 20D and a D200), I know quite a few other photographers who don't use anything but q-tips and Kodak lens cleaner. You have to be careful, for sure, but it works and costs pennies for each sensor cleaning.

Crashoran wrote in post #3938566
Never use a q-tip on a sensor. worst advice ever.

Why would that be? Cotton is just about the softest fibre known to man - and it's not even man made - probably made in Texas.

Personally, I've use name brand cotton Q-tips (hint) with never a problem. They are not only very soft, they are sterile.