Which sensor cleaner/brush for 40D? Ordering today.

I have a spot on my 40D that the blower would not get off. Guess it is time for sensor cleaning. It is my first DSLR and I am a bit nervous. I am going to Jamaica Tuesday, so I have to order today from B&H and overnight it. Which cleaner/brush should I get. I thought of the Arctic Brush 1.6 but there are several combinations. Some are just the brush and some are full kits. Any suggestions? Also, anyone with the time, what is the basic process like. I am as green as they come.

Dan

Anyone? Looking at the Arctic Butterfly. Any opinion on which brush/kit?

One spot! _ don't even sweat it unless your going to be shooting at f/22 a lot. I've got a spot on mine too (factory) but haven't seen a need for a cleaning yet.

If you don't see the spot below f/16 then forget about it and go enjoy your trip. The 40D sensor cleaning does work pretty decent but not on the stubborn stuff.

Lens Pen sensor cleaner...very portable, no need to carry any chemicals, works (provided that you use a rocket blower first). But like Tsmith said...just one spot? Don't sweat it.

It is only visible on the image, not viewfinder. I looked at mirror, blew with rocket, no change. Suspect it is on the sensor. I ordered Arctic Brush complete kit with 724 brush ($259 at B&H). Looking at the camera last night made me worry. What is the actual sensor? I saw the mirror, rotated it (and thick glass piece) up and saw a golden film like rectangle. Stop laughing. My first dslr. What is the actual sensor, or part I clean. Saw the video on Visible Dust website and it was useless. Did not show the sensor. Can't find pics or literature on what the actual sensor is. I am a bit nervous, but I have to learn sometime. Guess that time is at hand. Help? And thank.

If you go to the "Sensor Cleaning" menu option (p. 127 in your manual) and choose "Clean manually" the mirror will flip up and out of the way and the shutter will open, exposing the sensor, which you can then clean using your preferred method.

Jon,

Thanks. I will read on that when I get home. Can you tell me what the actual sensor is. Where is it?

It's behind the shutter. When you do a Manual clean, you'll see it in the back of the mirror box. The shutter is normally directly in front of it when closed.

I have the copperhill kit, and am very happy with it.

Jon,

Thanks! I opened (moved) the thick glass piece, and saw the mirror move up out of the way behind it when it moved. Underneath was a dark gold/brown rectangle. When I blew it with the Giottos Rocket blower, I could see it ripple, like a sheet with wind blowing lightly on it. Is that the sensor? Do I brush that? It seemed very delicate. Any insights appreciated (as always)

Dan

No. That would have been the shutter. For that matter, you don't want to lift the "thick glass piece", which is the first mirror. Use the Manual cleaning procedure on p. 127-128 of your manual and let the camera safely move things out of the way.

What is the shutter curtain? Is that the gold thing I see. Pehaps I am not looking at the sensor? Any help?

Did you touch the mirror to open it? A friend of mine did that with some bad effects. Use the manual cleaning option and it will all move away and expose the sensor!

If you don't know how to open the shutter and mirror, then you haven't used the blower properly either.

I can only emphasize, don't raise the mirror with your fingers or anything else other than the Sensor Clean on the camera's menu and don't dink with the shutter curtain. There is just too much opportunity for things to go terribly, terribly wrong.

Turn your camera on. Push the "Menu" button. Scroll through the menu items until you reach "Sensor Clean." I don't have a 40D, but I take it you can select "Manual Cleaning." When you do that, the mirror will go up and the shutter will open and it will stay that way until you turn the camera off. With the mirror up and the shutter open, use the blower. When you think you have gotten as much as you can to come loose, turn the camera off. The mirror will come down and the shutter will close. Don't forget to turn off the camera or the mirror doesn't come down, the shutter doesn't close, and the battery will be run down. Shoot some test shots. Clear sky is a good test subject for this. If there is junk still there, repeat the process, but instead of just using the brush, now would be the time for whatever sensor cleaning method you chose.

The thing you clean is not actually the sensor, but is a piece of coated optical glass in front of the sensor. Fortunately, the sensor is behind the glass, reasonably safe from our ham-fisted meddling. I sure wouldn't want to scratch that glass, though.

Jim,

You are a lifesaver. I did the manual cleaning as you suggested and for the first time saw my sensor. Pretty. Got the blower out and gave it a few puffs, and fixed the problem. The curly line I saw before is now gone. Flying to Jamaica tomorrow for my sister in laws wedding. Can't thank you enough!