thinking of ditching my barely used 5D due to it being a dust magnet.

Yup you've got to pay to play!

tonylong wrote in post #7300786
Exactly. People get various results from the self-cleaning thing, and it was never even around 'till '07, I believe. The dust on the 5D sensor will add up on the average to 2.56x the amount of dust on a crop camera. Viewfinder dust may add up to more as well because it's larger. But, it is a fact of photo life!

perryge wrote in post #7299753
*facepalm*

Do people really think the sensor cleaner does anything significant? My mark 3 has way more dust than my 5D does, both on the sensor, in the viewfinder, and on the body. Does it matter? No. 1 blow with a rocket blower >>>> 10000 passes of the "sensor cleaner".

Dunno whether it is down to a redesigned filter or the cleaning system, but my 5dII certainly keeps cleaner than the old 5D.

+1 to rocket blower and I also really recommend the SensorKlear - from the guys who do the great LensPen range. These little things have stopped me having to wipe fluid across the filter - highly recommened (though do use the Rocket first to clear non-sticky bunnies).

yeah, I cleaned my 5D once every other month on average. My 5Dii has been in service since 12/4 (so 2 months) and no dust so far. My 40D was in service for ~8 months and ~8k shots and never once needed cleaning. My 1Dii (prior to the 40D) was in service for 2 years and 10k shots and was the body that forced me to get the copper hill kit.

My thinking on this is the bigger the sensor the more dust it'll attract. Also, the cleaners lessen the frequency you'll need to clean a body, but NOT eliminate it. That said, 8 months and 8k shots w/o needed a single cleaning on the 40D was impressive to me. I did own the 1Dii 3x as long, but has similar shots through it where it needed significantly more cleaning.

So for me the cleaners are nice to have just because I don't enjoy wet cleanings (paranoid about messing up the sensor/filter) and if they reduce the frequency that ALONE is worth some $$ to me.

$.02
YMMV

i found the built-in sensor cleaner doesnt help much. i still have to clean it manually with a copperhill method. so, i jsut turn off the power-on sensor cleaning now.

If you want to ditch it because it's a dust magnet, feel free.. I'll take it off your hands

I shoot a lot of birds-in-flight, so I have a lot of images with large expanses of clear sky, ideal for showing sensor dust. With the XT and the 30D, I had to clean the sensor on a regular basis (probably once a month on average). I would not normally even notice the dust in images of other subjects, but with BIFs, it was difficult to ignore. I don't think that the amount of dust was excessive, and removing it was not a problem, but it was there.

I have had the 40D for over a year now. I am still shooting BIFs a lot. However, I have not once seen evidence of dust in any of these images. Not once. As far as I am concerned, the sensor-cleaning system works just as advertised.

TXClark wrote in post #7299507
I don't use it much, just over 1,400 actuations and it just returned from Canon service for it's first cleaning. Removed from package and installed clean EF 24-70mm L glass. Looked clean and I put it away (camera bag zipped up and stayed in my home) 2 weeks later I use it finally and there is a bunch of stuff in the view finder, drives me nuts! It was clean now dust stuff again and I don't want to send it back again, was a major hastle for me dealing w/Fed Ex because they require signature but I work evenings so no one is home to receive it.

Thinking of selling it and going with a 50D, the 5D mKII is too much for me and the use it'll get.

Is there a way I can clean this myself or is it a major job getting that stuff cleaned out? My images look good, just one small dust bunny but man I can't stand looking through the viewfinder and wonder if it's on the lens or sensor or else where.

Why bother owning a 5D when you don't use it much? What was the reason you bought it in the first place? Dust is a fact of life - your statement makes as much sense as saying that you'd sell your 4-wheel drive vehicle because it gets dirty every time you take it off-roading.

Would you buy a new car every time your "old" one gets dirty - makes as much sense as selling a 5D because it gets dust on the sensor. Learn to clean your sensor yourself and be done with it.

My 5D had a dirty viewfinder too... know what I did? Took the focusing screen out and rocket-blew it. Done. Good as new

5Dmaniac wrote in post #7302571
Why bother owning a 5D when you don't use it much? What was the reason you bought it in the first place? Dust is a fact of life - your statement makes as much sense as saying that you'd sell your 4-wheel drive vehicle because it gets dirty every time you take it off-roading.

Would you buy a new car every time your "old" one gets dirty - makes as much sense as selling a 5D because it gets dust on the sensor. Learn to clean your sensor yourself and be done with it.

Synenergy52 wrote in post #7302833
My 5D had a dirty viewfinder too... know what I did? Took the focusing screen out and rocket-blew it. Done. Good as new

My 5DC came with a hair in the viewfinder and added more dirt, dust and particles up there as I used it. No amount of blowing worked, even after removing the focusing screen. It usually made it worse. I know you can disassemble it more for cleaning, but (the current owner will be happy to know) I never did it (I always end up with extra parts).

Other than the annoying dirty viewfinder, I never cleaned the sensor with anything but the blower, and that maybe once a month.

TXClark wrote in post #7299507
I don't use it much, just over 1,400 actuations and it just returned from Canon service for it's first cleaning.

Why on earth would you own an incredible body like a 5D if you don't use it much?!?! And a 24-70L?!

Are you a trust fund baby?

I shoot at dusty dirty horse shows every weekend. When my 5D sensor gets dirty I take 10 minutes and clean the sensor with the Copper Hill system and I am good to go. Once a year I send it in and it gets a good cleaning.

I also have a 40D backup. I turned the sensor cleaner off. It is little more than a marketing gimmick.

I had the same problem with my 5D. I had dust in the viewfinder which didn`t affect the images but I tried everything to get the dust out and nothing worked. Finally I took it to Canon and they took a lot at it and confirmed it is the viewfinder.

So I got an estimate of $200+ to have it cleaned?
I got the hell out of there

Synenergy52 wrote in post #7302833
My 5D had a dirty viewfinder too... know what I did? Took the focusing screen out and rocket-blew it. Done. Good as new

How do you take it out?

TXClark wrote in post #7305014
How do you take it out?

This goes a little further than just the focusing screen but:
http://www.ascent-design.com/photo/Clean​5D/

bacchanal wrote in post #7305114
This goes a little further than just the focusing screen but:
http://www.ascent-design.com/photo/Clean​5D/

oh wow, not sure I want to tackle that or not. Would hate to cause additional problems

Yeah I just did the first step, easy as pie. I had specks in my view finder and this took care of it. I don't know exactly where the specs were, but they were there and now gone