Cleaning Digital SLR Camera Sensors

Transcription

1 Cleaning Digital SLR Camera Sensors

2 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 1

3 Disclaimer Cleaning your sensor may void the warranty of your camera. If you are hesitant at all, do not attempt! If you damage your camera sensor while attempting to clean it, Charlottesville Camera Club, the author of this presentation or any other entities are not responsible. You are responsible. 2

4 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 3

5 Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Single Lens Reflex (SLR) cameras have removable lenses which allow for foreign material to enter the body of the camera. If your lens cannot be removed then you can t clean the sensor. Even though the shutter is not open when switching lenses, particles can enter the body and migrate on to the sensor when the shutter opens. 4

6 Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Oil from the shutter can splatter onto the sensor. Difficult to clean off. Dust in the air and on the back of a lens can migrate into the body. Particles, such as sand, in the wind be very harmful. If you are extremely dirty, cleanup before changing lenses. 5

7 Darn Sand Gets Everywhere! Cocoa Beach, Florida After Hurricane Frances (September 18, 2004) 6

8 Darn Sand Gets Everywhere! Cocoa Beach, Florida After Hurricane Jeanne (September 28, 2004) 7

9 How Bad Can Sensor Damage Get? Not only can particles build up They can do serious damage. It is best to avoid hazardous situations. 8

10 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 9

11 Sensor Dust Dust on sensors shows up mostly in skies and in non-detailed portions of images. The smaller the aperture the more impact sensor dust has on an image. Very much like floaters in the eyes. Floaters and spots typically appear when tiny pieces of the eye s gel-like vitreous break loose within the eye s interior. Shadows from these floaters are cast on the retina as light passes through the eye. 10

12 Dirty Sensor Examples Scene Shot at F/4 Scene Shot at F/22 11

13 Dirty Sensor Examples Scene Shot at F/4 Scene Shot at F/22 12

14 Dirty Sensor Examples Scene Shot at F/4 Scene Shot at F/22 13

15 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 14

16 Overview of Cleaning Options Sensor Swipe or HomeMade Swab and with Pec*Pad and Eclipse Wet Swab & Dry Swab Sensor Cleaners Sensor Cleaning Brush Arctic Butterfly 15

17 Overview of Cleaning Options Blowing Scotch Tape (Ugh!) Sucking SpeckGRABBER 16

18 Overview of Cleaning Options Built-in camera sensor cleaning. Ultrasonic, vibrating dust cleaning system that keeps the sensor clean. Some say that this works great, others say not. Professional cleaning. Not only for the leery but sometimes you need to do it if the sensor is really dirty. Pro Camera on Forrest St. and Preston Ave. will clean a sensor for $45. Do not clean your sensor with canned air! This could damage your sensor or shutter. See and click on methods for a more exhaustive list. 17

19 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 18

20 Showing Dust on the Sensor Use computer screen with full screen notepad application Make sure cursor is out of view, otherwise it will appear as dust on the sensor If you have dead pixels on your screen you might want to find another test target, such as a clear sky. Make sure that your lens is clean. 19

21 Showing Dust on the Sensor Camera settings Auto white balance Manual mode Smallest aperture (i.e. F/22) Shutter speed set to good exposure Lowest ISO (i.e. 100) Autofocus off No tripod is necessary. 20

22 Showing Dust on the Sensor Point camera to white portion of the screen and take picture. Transfer image to computer. Adjust image in your favorite photo editor to exaggerate sensor dust. Contrast Equalize Curves 21

23 Blank Notepad 22

24 Dirty Sensor (Some Contrast Adjustment) 23

25 Dirty Sensor (High Contrast) 24

26 Dirty Sensor (Curves Adjusted) 25

27 Dirty Sensor (Equalized) 26

28 Using High Contrast on Image 27

29 Using Curves on Image 28

30 Get Ready to Clean Be inside. Have a clean environment. Turn off any fans in the room. Have a fully charged battery. Learn how to expose your camera s sensor for cleaning. 29

31 Exposing the Sensor for Cleaning 30

32 Before We Continue Cleaning your sensor may void the warranty of your camera. If you are hesitant at all, do not attempt. If you damage your camera sensor while attempting to clean it, Charlottesville Camera Club, the author of this presentation or any other entities are not responsible. You are responsible. 31

33 However The sensor is not fully exposed when the shutter is open. There is an infrared filter over the sensor. That can get scratched but is not an exposed CMOS or CCD substrate. This is similar to cleaning glasses. You don t want to clean glasses with steel wool or an ice pick. 32

34 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 33

35 Cleaning: VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Internal motor used to spin the brush to build up static electricity. Much like rubbing a balloon on your hair. Spin the brush 3 times for 5 seconds each. Gently sweep the brush across the sensor from one side to the other. Brush is not spinning. You may want to use a flashlight or bright light to inspect the sensor for dust. Most people should be comfortable with this method. 34

36 Spinning the Arctic Butterfly 35

37 Cleaning: VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly 36

38 Arctic Butterfly Results Removes most of the dust. Repeat process if dust is missed. If dust does not come off then another technique should be used. This can potentially be oil-based. 37

39 Arctic Butterfly Results 38

40 Arctic Butterfly Results (High Contrast) 39

41 Review Dirty Sensor (High Contrast) 40

42 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 41

43 Cleaning: Pec*Pad Wipes & Eclipse There are kits at camera stores that have disposable sensor swipes and cleaning solution. The swipes can only be used one time. The swipes can be flimsy. A home made swab with Pec*Pad and Eclipse solution is a good alternative. Swab made of small trimmed down rubber spatula. Pec*Pad wipe is wrapped around the trimmed down rubber spatula. 42

44 Small Trimmed Down Rubber Spatula Trimmed Down Spatula New Spatula 43

45 Pec*Pad Wipes & Eclipse Solution 44

46 Wipe Wrapped Around Spatula 45

47 Cleaning: Pec*Pad Wipes & Eclipse Edge of wipe doused with Eclipse solution. Do you use alcohol. Use only solution intended for cleaning sensors. Gently sweep the doused wipe across the sensor once from one side to the other. You may want to use a flashlight or bright light to inspect the sensor for dust. Remnant liquid will need to dry. This requires much patience. Many people will not be comfortable with this method. 46

48 Douse Solution at Edge of Wipe On This Edge 47

49 Cleaning: Pec*Pad Wipes & Eclipse 48

50 Wipes & Eclipse Result #1 49

51 Wipes & Eclipse Result #1 (High Contrast) 50

52 Wipes & Eclipse Result #2 (High Contrast) 51

53 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 52

54 Removing Dust from a Photo Clone Tool Healing Brush Tool Spot Healing Brush Tool Dust removal software is available. Nikon and Canon include software with current DSLR cameras that provide this function. ImageDuster Pro PhotoTeKNiK ( for $50. Search the Internet for more options. 53

55 Agenda Why do SLR Sensors Get Dirty? Dirty Sensor Examples Overview of Cleaning Options Getting Ready to Clean the Sensor Cleaning with the VisibleDust Arctic Butterfly Cleaning with Pec*Pad Non-Abrasive Wipes and Eclipse Removing Dust from a Photo Taken with a Dirty Sensor Questions 54

56 Questions 55

57 References ds.html

58 One Month From Today (October 23, 2009) Be sure to watch the Monk episode Mr. Monk and the Dog on October 23 at 9:00 on USA Network. The episode was written by my sister, Beth Armogida! 57