Sensor cleaning "tutorials" and info

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.

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.

Brush Your Sensor - Link

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

http://194.100.88.243 …/a_Brush_Your_S​ensor.html

Hi

Had an hour to kill so I visited Fixation in London today 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

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

http://194.100.88.243 …/a_Brush_Your_S​ensor.html

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

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.

Has anyone tried cleaning the sensor with the "The Pixel Sweeper" method? Please comment if you have.

Thanks.

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/c​opperhill/image/429632​46. Now all I need is dust

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

wibbly wrote:
Hi

Had an hour to kill so I visited Fixation in London today 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 https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=77088 and i visit London alot so i will pay them a visit next time i go there.Many thanks

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.

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.

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

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.

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