danedit28 Posted December 18, 2012 Share #1 Posted December 18, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hi friends, My M9 has accumulated some dust/dirt on the sensor after about 12,000 shots... it's not a big deal but I'm trying to understand a couple things. I'm confident it is the sensor that is dirty as the same specks are showing up in the same spot regardless of the lens in place. What I don't understand is that the specks are clearly visible at f/8-f/16 but at wider apertures f/1.4-f/4 the small specs are completely invisible and the larger specs just barely appear. Also, the sensor is inverted in the vertical direction as it relates to a picture, correct? As in.. up is down and down is up? Just trying to nail down what areas to focus for cleaning as it seems I've accumulated a ring of dirt around the top half of my images... which would mean the bottom half of my sensor is quite filthy? Thanks in advance, -dan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted December 18, 2012 Posted December 18, 2012 Hi danedit28, Take a look here Trying to understand sensor dust.... I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
akiralx Posted December 18, 2012 Share #2 Posted December 18, 2012 Hi friends, My M9 has accumulated some dust/dirt on the sensor after about 12,000 shots... it's not a big deal but I'm trying to understand a couple things. I'm confident it is the sensor that is dirty as the same specks are showing up in the same spot regardless of the lens in place. What I don't understand is that the specks are clearly visible at f/8-f/16 but at wider apertures f/1.4-f/4 the small specs are completely invisible and the larger specs just barely appear. Yes, shooting wideopen or near it (as I tend to do) removes the visibility owing to the shallow depth of field. Try a blower (not canned air) first, this may well remove most of it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
adan Posted December 18, 2012 Share #3 Posted December 18, 2012 Yes, the aperture setting changes the "focus" of dust specks. With a wide opening, light is hitting the dust from a range of angles, casting a diffuse shadow on the sensor. With a small aperture, the light is all coming from a near-point light source, casting a hard-edged shadow. For that reason, when we do sensor cleanings at the shop, we shoot our test images before and after at f/16, to make sure we see all the dust clearly. And yes, the location of dust is upside-down relative to where it appears in the image. But dust on the right side of the image means dust on the right side of the sensor AS YOU VIEW it from the front, with the camera oriented normally (shutter button on top, base plate on the bottom.) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff S Posted December 18, 2012 Share #4 Posted December 18, 2012 More here, along with answers to lots of other questions. Jeff Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
danedit28 Posted December 18, 2012 Author Share #5 Posted December 18, 2012 I appreciate the responses. Thanks so much! I've already attempted the blower a few times to no avail so I've placed an order for the visible dust cleaning system. Thanks again! -dan Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
roydonian Posted December 18, 2012 Share #6 Posted December 18, 2012 I’m not convinced that a blower achieves anything. As an experiment, I left a lens uncovered on my desk for a week or so, until there was a distinct layer of dust on the front element. I then tried to remove this using a blower. No matter how hard I squeezed the bulb of the blower, or how close I let the nozzle get to the front element, most of the dust stayed in place. Best regards, Doug Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest borge Posted December 18, 2012 Share #7 Posted December 18, 2012 Advertisement (gone after registration) A dust blower, unless it has a dust-filter, will only blow MORE fine grained dust into the camera body... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjh Posted December 18, 2012 Share #8 Posted December 18, 2012 A dust blower is best used prophylactically to prevent hydrophilic dust from glueing to the sensor, but it is also somewhat effective to remove loose dust particles. If the dust stays in place then either you have missed to apply the dust blower when it would still have helped, or it isn’t dust (but oil stains etc.). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
wda Posted December 18, 2012 Share #9 Posted December 18, 2012 Not all dust is dry dust. I suggest you read the suggested reference and face up to alternative methods. Blowers redistribute much dust inside the camera.. Devices such as Arctic Brush work well if used properly. But stubborn oil droplets and other smears require careful wet cleaning. I find that once done, with careful use of equipment, I seldom have to do more than use my Arctic Brush. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjh Posted December 18, 2012 Share #10 Posted December 18, 2012 Blowers redistribute much dust inside the camera. That’s the point. Redistributing dust is good; leaving dust sitting at the same spot for a prolonged time is bad. You might think that getting rid of all that dust was the goal, but that isn’t a realistic proposition. There will always be dust inside a camera. (And be thankful if it’s just dust.) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted December 18, 2012 Share #11 Posted December 18, 2012 I use the green Clean vacuum cleaner to remove (most of) the dust Works well, and is essential in preparation of wet cleaning. You don't really want to drag a grain of sand across your sensor. Looking at sensor dust with a microscope, I find oil and grease are rare. Apart from the ubiquitous collection of rocks, twigs and fibers, the difficult spots are often Pollen or skin flakes. Small pieces of eyelashes are quite common too. Moral: don't hang vertically above your sensor when inspecting it for cleaning. Look at it from angles. Otherwise dandruff, skin flakes, pieces of eyelash and even minidrops of sweat or tears will fall in and stick to your sensor. Work in as dustfree an environment as possible. A good choice is the bathroom, especially after it has just dried out from somebody taking a shower. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
colonel Posted December 18, 2012 Share #12 Posted December 18, 2012 I appreciate the responses. Thanks so much! I've already attempted the blower a few times to no avail so I've placed an order for the visible dust cleaning system. Thanks again! -dan I would recommend you take it to your nearest Leica shop to have the Sensor cleaned (if you are lucky enough to have one near) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyalf Posted December 18, 2012 Share #13 Posted December 18, 2012 Anyone else observed this. When using the M9 at low temperatures (below zero) there seems to be accumulating more and faster dust. Due to different friction of shutter, condensation effects,...??? Its not only that dust is more visible in winterscapes, their more common. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest borge Posted December 18, 2012 Share #14 Posted December 18, 2012 Anyone else observed this. When using the M9 at low temperatures (below zero) there seems to be accumulating more and faster dust. Due to different friction of shutter, condensation effects,...??? Its not only that dust is more visible in winterscapes, their more common. I have no idea if this could be true, but, I used my MM for 3 hours and took about 150 photographs in -27 celsius a few weeks ago and I didn't see any visible dust build up because of that... The camera was extremely cold however, and a single breath towards the camera created a thin layer of ice on the metal parts. After my initial clean (about 10 sensor swabs, dust blower and vacuum cleaner) of my MM after about 1000 shots it has stayed dust-free. Leica shipped my MM with about $1000 worth of dustbunnies so it needed some extreme cleaning from day one... I don't change lenses however. I only use a 50mm lux asph. It is very important to clean the lenses to avoid sensor dust as well. Dusty lenses = dust on the sensor when the lens is equipped. Many people seem obsessed about keeping the camera and sensor dust-free but the backs of their lenses often looks like it has been in a sand storm. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheewai_m6 Posted December 18, 2012 Share #15 Posted December 18, 2012 just use sensor swaps and the chemical that it recommends. i've been cleaning my own sensors for years and i haven't had any problems with it. just follow the instructions carefully and be gentle. don't touch the swabs with your fingers or any skin. practise common sense and it'll be fine. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IWC Doppel Posted December 19, 2012 Share #16 Posted December 19, 2012 I have the Delkin scope on my Christmas list..... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonki-M Posted December 19, 2012 Share #17 Posted December 19, 2012 ahh, digital sensor and dust speck.. cant have one w/o the other Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter H Posted December 19, 2012 Share #18 Posted December 19, 2012 just use sensor swaps and the chemical that it recommends. i've been cleaning my own sensors for years and i haven't had any problems with it. just follow the instructions carefully and be gentle. don't touch the swabs with your fingers or any skin. practise common sense and it'll be fine. I would give you your choice of any one of my lenses if you could make that come true for me! I've been trying for years to clean my own sensors and unless the problem is extremely superficial, I can't do it very well at all. I've spent a fortune on various bits of equipment but none really work for me, but most frustrating and depressing of all, I've exercised every bit of care and patience I possess, and have always ended up with the same miserable results and the same conclusion: give it to the professionals. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
thighslapper Posted December 19, 2012 Share #19 Posted December 19, 2012 I would give you your choice of any one of my lenses if you could make that come true for me! I've been trying for years to clean my own sensors and unless the problem is extremely superficial, I can't do it very well at all. I've spent a fortune on various bits of equipment but none really work for me, but most frustrating and depressing of all, I've exercised every bit of care and patience I possess, and have always ended up with the same miserable results and the same conclusion: give it to the professionals. It's exactly like cleaning the floor..... Hoover up the loose crud (green clean suction or blower).... Mop it with a suitable solvent/cleaning solution. Using inadequate fluid just scrapes the dirt about .... and you need several passes, often with a rinsed mop (new swab) to get it clean. The last one needs to be a even wipe with enough fluid to leave a uniform clean film that dries everywhere at the same speed to leave no blotches or marks. A crude analogy but entirely applicable to sensor cleaning.... Simples Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted December 19, 2012 Share #20 Posted December 19, 2012 And make sure nobody walks his dirty feet on your sensor whilst it is wet... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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