Sensor
Cleaning
Tips.
When people talk about sensor cleaning, they actually mean cleaning the filter in front of the sensor. As the two form a sealed unit, this is a technicality that is only of importance when talking about looking at the unit.
There are so many things that can go wrong and leave you with a repair bill, sometimes more than replacing the camera can cost.
Put the camera into sensor clean mode and hold it face down. Switch on the vacuum cleaner and get a friend, wife, passing stranger with a steady hand to hold the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner about an inch from the lens throat, at around 45 degrees to the camera. The idea is to create an area of negative pressure within the mirror housing.
Take the blower (NOT compressed air or the output from a domestic quality compressor) and carefully insert it into the throat so that the tip is about half an inch from the sensor. Squirt air at the sensor several times, moving the tip to cover the surface in stages.
I managed to make a fairly good job of cleaning my Canon 5D with this method but I can't stress how important care is. Don't point the vacuum cleaner nozzle straight into the lens throat, you could easily damage the mirror or shutter mechanisms. Make absolutely sure that the nozzle of the blower doesn't touch the sensor.
We found that, if we both leant our elbows on the window sill, we could hold everything steady for the ten to fifteen seconds the procedure took.
There are three functional components in the kit. Left to right in the above picture are the "Rocket" blower, the SensorKlear itself and the loupe. The blower is used as you would expect...
Tip the body down and be very sure that you don't place the tip of the blower anywhere near the sensor itself - gouging the sensor filter will not improve your shots!
Once you've done the initial blow out, it's time to deploy the loupe. It's rather clever in its simplicity, consisting of little more than a lens unit and a mount unit, the former being threaded into the latter.
Put the camera, face up, on a safe surface and place the loupe's mount unit on the camera's lens mount. For Standard SLRs, wind the lens unit out of the mount pretty much the whole way; for 4/3s cameras, wind it right in. Then switch on the lighting in the mount unit (you did remember to install the batteries, didn't you?)...
...and focus on the surface of the filter. If you see a coloured pattern, you're focusing below the filter and are looking at the sensor itself. Focus out until you see a brownish surface. Now look for dust specks. You'll probably need to rock the loup slightly to see them.
Once you have a general idea of how many specks there are, take the cover off the SensorKlear pen and tilt the end just a little. You want it as close to straight as you can get it for maximum control but not too straight either.
Then lower the pen carefully into the camera body, through the gap in the loupe mount, viewing your progress all the while. you want to make contact with the filter surface as lightly as a feather touches the ground and you really want the tip of the pen to be as flat as possible to the surface.
Once you've made contact, very gently glide the tip over the sensor surface for a very short distance, a few millimetres should be enough, then lift the pen out of the way and the speck should be gone...
Now pull out the pen and tap the body, NOT the head, sharply against a convenient edge, to dislodge the speck you've just removed. Find the next speck and start again.
If you find that a speck won't budge at the first wipe, just repeat as gently as before. I've found that you seldom need more than two or possibly three passes to remove the most stubborn speck.
I've seen allegations that Canon now uses the SensorKlear as standard. I wouldn't be surprised if this is true, as the process has certainly worked well for me.
* * * * *
When people talk about sensor cleaning, they actually mean cleaning the filter in front of the sensor. As the two form a sealed unit, this is a technicality that is only of importance when talking about looking at the unit.
Tip 1: Don't do it!
Seriously, unless you see defects on the final image, leave well enough alone!There are so many things that can go wrong and leave you with a repair bill, sometimes more than replacing the camera can cost.
* * * * *
Tip 2: Cheap and not Nasty
A lot can be done with a blower and your household vacuum cleaner. Caution: Don't try this on your own!Put the camera into sensor clean mode and hold it face down. Switch on the vacuum cleaner and get a friend, wife, passing stranger with a steady hand to hold the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner about an inch from the lens throat, at around 45 degrees to the camera. The idea is to create an area of negative pressure within the mirror housing.
Take the blower (NOT compressed air or the output from a domestic quality compressor) and carefully insert it into the throat so that the tip is about half an inch from the sensor. Squirt air at the sensor several times, moving the tip to cover the surface in stages.
I managed to make a fairly good job of cleaning my Canon 5D with this method but I can't stress how important care is. Don't point the vacuum cleaner nozzle straight into the lens throat, you could easily damage the mirror or shutter mechanisms. Make absolutely sure that the nozzle of the blower doesn't touch the sensor.
We found that, if we both leant our elbows on the window sill, we could hold everything steady for the ten to fifteen seconds the procedure took.
* * * * *
Tip 3: The Best Method So Far
If the previous idea doesn't work, it may be time to spend some money. I bought a SensorKlear package from the guys at Great Western Cameras. The kit comes with everything you need to clean a sensor safely and thoroughly....There are three functional components in the kit. Left to right in the above picture are the "Rocket" blower, the SensorKlear itself and the loupe. The blower is used as you would expect...
Tip the body down and be very sure that you don't place the tip of the blower anywhere near the sensor itself - gouging the sensor filter will not improve your shots!
Once you've done the initial blow out, it's time to deploy the loupe. It's rather clever in its simplicity, consisting of little more than a lens unit and a mount unit, the former being threaded into the latter.
Put the camera, face up, on a safe surface and place the loupe's mount unit on the camera's lens mount. For Standard SLRs, wind the lens unit out of the mount pretty much the whole way; for 4/3s cameras, wind it right in. Then switch on the lighting in the mount unit (you did remember to install the batteries, didn't you?)...
...and focus on the surface of the filter. If you see a coloured pattern, you're focusing below the filter and are looking at the sensor itself. Focus out until you see a brownish surface. Now look for dust specks. You'll probably need to rock the loup slightly to see them.
Once you have a general idea of how many specks there are, take the cover off the SensorKlear pen and tilt the end just a little. You want it as close to straight as you can get it for maximum control but not too straight either.
Then lower the pen carefully into the camera body, through the gap in the loupe mount, viewing your progress all the while. you want to make contact with the filter surface as lightly as a feather touches the ground and you really want the tip of the pen to be as flat as possible to the surface.
Once you've made contact, very gently glide the tip over the sensor surface for a very short distance, a few millimetres should be enough, then lift the pen out of the way and the speck should be gone...
Now pull out the pen and tap the body, NOT the head, sharply against a convenient edge, to dislodge the speck you've just removed. Find the next speck and start again.
If you find that a speck won't budge at the first wipe, just repeat as gently as before. I've found that you seldom need more than two or possibly three passes to remove the most stubborn speck.
I've seen allegations that Canon now uses the SensorKlear as standard. I wouldn't be surprised if this is true, as the process has certainly worked well for me.
* * * * *
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