Sensor cleaning

[wwulfsohn]

I just went to clean my sensor on my new m8 with a sensor brush. In the process, I noticed small smudges on the sensor (while looking at it in bright light). I have never before cleaned or touched the sensor. It must have been delivered this way.

Should I buy a sensor cleaning swab kit or leave it? I have not noticed any distoritions in my image.

[msendin]

Sorry.... what are smudges?

[wwulfsohn]

Looks like finger prints (but they aren't).

[nikonhswebmaster]

You have heard the old saw... "if it is not broken, don't fix it"


There have been reports of goo on photo.net coming from the shutter.

Leica should clean this, if it is lubrication from the shutter, your camera is toast, and should be serviced or exchanged.

[wwulfsohn]

It doesn't look as heavy as a lubricant. Just a faint surface pattern which you can only see in bright light.

[msendin]

Sooner or later I imagine you will have to clean the sensor with a swab kit. ( I just did it today for the first time).
Honestly, If I where you I would clean it with a good quality swab kit. If they dissapear look again after some camera use. If they do not go away or appear again I would get my camera serviced by Leica as fred sugests. But I would try wet cleaning first.

[wwulfsohn]

Tnanks - any swab kit recommendations?

[msendin]

I have only used "Sensor Swab" from "Photographic Solutions Inc." in both the M8 and the D5. Have no other experience in others but for me it has worked very well.
Please let us know the results.

[DaveB]

Just a faint surface pattern which you can only see in bright light.

Are you sure you're seeing some contaminant on the surface and not the normal diffraction or interference pattern that the sensor manifests when directly illuminated by a light source?

[wwulfsohn]

I just cleaned the sensor with a dual swab (wet and dry) system from Green Clean. The sensor is now looking great and perfectly clean.

Thanks for the help.

Bill

[Philippe D.]

Tnanks - any swab kit recommendations? Yes, "Eclipse 2" with "Sensor Swabs".
I clean at least ones a month now (M8 with over 5000 picts).
At the beginning, the shutter throw a lot of grease onto the sensor, i had to clean ones a week, but it calms down after many shots.

[msendin]

Good, I am sure you will check after some shooting. If they come out again (hope not) the shutter must be spraying something. In that case I would not touch it any more and send it to Leica (if your dealer does not exchange it).

[RML]

I clean my R-D1's sensor with q-tips and alcohol ketonatus, after blowing it off with a bulb blower.
Much cheaper and simply just as effective.

See here for my experiences: http://shardsofphotography.blogspot.com/search?q=sensor+clean .

[chuckcars]

http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/

Use the wet method. Make your own swabs with a pec pad and use Eclipse for the cleaning fluid.

[jaapv]

if it is lubrication from the shutter, your camera is toast, and should be serviced or exchanged.

Sorry, with respect, that is utter nonsense. All M8 shutters produce a few oil drops in the first 500 or so shots, so do many other digtal cameras that use shutters. A simple sensor swipe with Eclipse 2 will clear it. About half a minute work. Any digital camera owner must learn to clean his sensor. It is virtually impossible to damage it using the right technique.
Dust and dirt and fluid drops is a fact of life for photographers since the beginning of time. Whether you have to clean your negative holder on your enlarger,try to blow dust from a static negative or remove grit from the filmguide in the camera to cure tramlines on the negative (remember those beauties!:eek: ) or blow or swipe your sensor makes no difference at all.
We are lucky nowadays that oil splatters and dust are far easier to retouch in photoshop using the clone or healing tool that the dust, scratches and water/chemical drops and drying rings on our chemical photographs with retouching pencil, paint and scalpel.

[telluridestock]

Yes,
I had some specs on my sensor (saw them on the images not on the sensor) its new out of the box and used an Eclipse cleaning kit to remove them.