Dusty CMOS Sensor

[JudyKay]

There is all kinds of information in the internet about cleaning cmos sensors (Canon D30). I don't know what to trust. Have any of you actually tried doing it successfully? I live in a part of the world where fancy kits and access to dealers is not readily available--and sensors have lots of access to dust. Using my little squeeze blower as suggested in the manual is not enough.

A couple friends suggested a clean stick and regular lens cleaning tissue is ok--just be very careful and very patient. They say the sensor (actually the little glass filter plate in front of the sensor) is in fact fairly tough. But for me that is like trying to jab my finger to get blood for biology class--I build up courage and suddenly jab, but at the last moment my muscles freeze and there isn't even a prick. Just can't make myself go through with it!

What do you advise?

I hope this question is OK for this forum, but if anyone knows it will be you folks!

JK

[Guest Techman1]

JK,

I have a Canon 20D and 10D camera. I've used the Copperhill cleaning method for several years now with excellent results. You just have to be careful when cleaning any sensor.

Here is the link to the Copperhill site that has the items I've used and the documentation on how to clean your sensor.

Copperhill Link Here

If you are very uncomfortable doing this, then I would recommend sending in your camera to Canon for cleaning.

Good luck,

Fred

[Flying Scotsman]

Hi JK, I have a Nikon D70 and got some dust grains on the low-pass filter. My local photographic store recommended and sold me the SpeckGRABBER which is a stick with some very fancy stuff (copolymer plastic, whatever that is) on the tip which means you clean off the muck without applying pressure and it will not leave any deposits - the instructions tell you not to touch the tip with fingers as you will contaminate it. You get alcohol preparation pads to clean the tip. I have used it twice and it works very well indeed. Made by Kinetronics who have a website. Hope this helps.

[jimlarkey]

Good luck Judy Kay,

I cleaned my Canon 20D using Eclipse solution wet-method. I tried the statically charged brush.....just relocated the specs on the sensor. I tried the Giottos Rocket....wouldn't budge the specs.

Finally tried the Eclipse E2 solution with swabs, as described at: http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/methods.html

Got down to one small spec, near the edge of the sensor, and called it good enough. The kit I bought was the DIGI-KIT4-F at http://www.micro-tools.com, for $23. The Giottos blower was another $10. I have no affiliation with Micro-tools.

Good luck; various people have reported varying degrees of success with both wet and dry methods. Probably depends somewhat on what you have on the sensor.

Cheers,

Jim

[jfa]

G'day JK

I have had Canon digital SLRs since the begining of digital photography and have needed to clean dust from the sensor on some of the cameras on several occasions.

Like you I felt very worried about touching the sensor with anything, and after much research found the best way was to use a common "puffer brush".

Remove the head of the brush so you are left only with the rubber bulb and use this to blow a puff of air to remove the dust specks.

This has proved very effective for dust, hairs and fluf on the sensor and best of all you don't touch the sensor with anything other than clean air.

Don't use a pressure pack of air for this job as the propelent can be sprayed with the air from the can at times.

Hope this helps,

[alrobin]

John,

This is what I have been using, too, with my nikons, and have found it to be quite effective so far. I can appreciate that under certain conditions of humidity, or high static electricity, though, the dust could be difficult or next to impossible to remove without special equipment. I find it almost impossible to keep the sensor perfectly clean, and so have reconciled myself to having to do a certain amount of retouching to the images after a shoot, especially to the sky or other areas of minimum texture.

I have heard that with some digital projector designs, dust can accumulate on the chips to the point where the only option is to send them to the dealer for cleaning. Of course with digital projectors, there is another factor in play - that of high temperatures.

[JudyKay]

Thank you all for your help. My challenge is that I don't often get to a place to buy such kits--maybe not for for several more months. I did obtain a makeup brush, will boil it and try to charge it by blowing air on it. Unless someone tells me I am crazy. What risk do you think their is in simply using (very carefully) a swab and some very clean lens tissue with regular lens cleaning fluid?

Probably no one is enthused about doing it that way...but has anyone tried it?

[Urmas]

Sensor brush works excellent for me. (http://www.visibledust.com/)

[alrobin]

Thank you all for your help. My challenge is that I don't often get to a place to buy such kits--maybe not for for several more months. I did obtain a makeup brush, will boil it and try to charge it by blowing air on it. Unless someone tells me I am crazy. What risk do you think their is in simply using (very carefully) a swab and some very clean lens tissue with regular lens cleaning fluid?

JudyKay,

I wouldn't try that if I were you. I won't even touch one of my lenses with those brushes they sell in camera stores - they tend to pick up dust and/or grease over time, and transfer this onto the lens. Unless it is a specially prepared applicator for pc sensor chips, I would not take a chance. The blower bulb that comes with those brushes is fine, and that is all that I use, except that for lenses, I also use special lens-cleaning paper to remove grease, etc., from the lens surface. Not for sensor chips, though - they are very delicate and difficult to clean.

[Conflow]

Cleaning CCD Lenses

I would like to endorse the advice that Al Robinson has just posted, Al is quite correct "don't mess around with CCD Image Sensors" unless you really know what you are doing, and in particular don't use non-descript Brush Cleaners from your Photo Store for this job. There are 'approved' tools to do this !

Modern CCD Sensors are usually protected with a Lithium-Nitrile form of ultra high-purity optical glass and this is usually coated with some form of Bayer Dye Filter for colour correction, delicate stuff indeed.

The materials used are extremely strong but brittle but are easily scratched by dragging a brush across the surface within which is entrapped a partical of silica dust from concrete (it get in everywhere) ~ dont do it !

If you are looking for an approved product ~ Approvals from Fuji, Kodak and Nikon and in fact used by Nikon Service Centres the 'Link' below will illustrate the Lens Swab used by Nikon ~ however do get your hands on the Instruction CD before you attempt any such work

AT YOUR OWN RISK.

http://www.logix-usa.com/PhotoSolutions_main.html

The 'Link' will give you lots of information about this daunting task and I might add that we use the 'Swabs' on the optics of Infra-Red and Laser Depth Meters and their CCD Signal Sensors which are not too far removed from Photography.

Brian.Conflow.

[JudyKay]

Thank You all. That is why I asked...you are the folks who really know. I will just stick to the puff-of-air method till I can get a kit to do it right.

Thanks You all very much.

JK

[JJPN]

Judy -

I just got my 8 week old 30D back from Canon for sensor cleaning and firmware upgrading. I am convinced that the camera came new with lots of dust since I only used a new 50mm L lens and shot about 200 pictures (never removing the lens)- the dust was evident on the first pic I took at f/22. I tried the method in the manual to no avail, got on the phone with a Canon tech and tried it again to no avail. They then agreed to clean the sensor and upgrade on a "one time n/c basis" - so much for the limited warranty. The camera is now free of any dust or other particles. I was able to get a senior technical guy on the phone to try to find out precisely what they did (we talked for about 1 hour) that I could not. According to him, they only use a rocket blower made by Giotto. He claims they don't use brushes, swabs or chemicals - a questionable statement at best. Apparently "technique" is the key. Firmware upgrades can be downloaded from their site under the appropriate model. The balance of the conversation focused on lenses. Fixed are least likely to draw in dust and particles whereas zooms are the worse - so much for buying a brand where you already have lens that fit.

Finally, I asked about what they charge for sensor cleaning and firmware upgrading for potential future incidents. The cost is $30. plus shipping/insurance - total about $45 depending on where you live and method used to return the camera.

As you no doubt know, www.copperhillimages.com is loaded with information about self cleaning and offers an array of products from $32. to $100.

Had I known what I know now, I probably would have purchased one of the other two cameras that have a "cleaning" mechanism built in.

Jack

[jimlarkey]

I agree with the above poster's caution on using just any brush. I followed Petteri Sulonen's advice regarding brush selection. He has a very informative web site, and his photos are outstanding.

http://www.prime-junta.net/pont/How_to/a_B...sor.html?page=4

Cheers,

Jim

[wildscenes]

I clean my CCDs regularly on my Nikon D2X and D2H using a Eclipse fluid, a 100% lint-free cloth (Pec-pads I think) and a spatula I made from a plastic fork from which I cut off the tynes and filed the edge down. If I wrap a pad around it, add three drops of fluid, give it one wipe - hey presto! Clean as a whistle. You can't damage the CCD as there's an anti-alias filter in front of it and the Nikon Technicians assured me that it's all they do anyway when I spoke with them at a Nikon day the other week (they were cleaning the Nikon bodies free on the spot for people so no complicated equipment there).

I did buy a copperhill spatula but it's too narrow so you have to do two wipes, my patented plastic fork is exactly the same width as the sensor so one wipe and it's all over.

If you do use a blower (and this will only remove some dust particles), make sure you turn the camera body so that the lens opening is facing downwards so that the dust blows out and not just around if you see what I mean

John

[Conflow]

John,

For those of us 'experienced' in cleaning techniques -all's well and fine- its good advice given by you.

However we must appreciate that we are Posting to a very large Forum ranging from the rank Amateur

to the Professional Photographer with Cameras from $100 to those costing $5000 and more.

Within that Camera range we do indeed have Cameras with 'Anti-Alias Filters' bonded to the CCD Sensor.

I have no problems with that ~ However there are many New Cameras fitted with Electronic Bayerian Filters

which in essence are active electronic LCD Filters (ie: semiconductor) driven by the internal Photo-Optic Circuits

within the Camera. One 'scratch' on these and it's all over for the Camera.

I am making the point:-

There is no single 'Universal Method' of cleaning Cameras that suits all Camera Types available today.

As I said before in a previous Post there are a selection of 'Professional Tools' available for cleaning

various types of Camera's ~ these are not cheap ~ but reference to the 'Link' below will give some data

on the various cleaning methods used by different Manufacturers/and/or Models in use.

http://www.logix-usa.com/PhotoSolutions_main.html

Brian.Conflow.