D70, 20D, same techniques:
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/cgi-bin....#entry2

Thank you both for your replies and advice.

The brush seems to make the most sense. I'm not convinced that using fluid wouldn't do damage at some point down the road and hearing from experienced users verifies this.

I wonder if anyone will invent a CCD Sensor cleaning vacuum?

Thanks again.

As didger said, it's not the fluid that's an issue, it's the pressure. The fluid actually acts as a lubracant and greatly reduces the chance of scratching when using a swab.

Yeah, I think that dust shot thing and interpolation is just so that Nikon would be one up on Canon and be offering something where sensor contanimation is concerned, even if that something ain't much of a something.  At least it doesn't introduce a risk of scratching the sensor.

Just purchased my first Nikon DSLR, the D70 w/kit lens as well as Sigma 70-300mm one month ago.

Haven't taken it outside to shoot. Only indoors.

I'm incredibly shocked at how much of a dust magnet the CCD sensor is. I hear this is a re-occurring problem with all DSLRs.

I just took it in to have Nikon clean it (first time is free) and it's a real pain to get out to their head office. And there will be a $50 charge from now on.

I was told that Visible Dust's brush works great but the Nikon service rep mentioned they buy these products to test and doesn't recommend using anything but the hand blowers and to bring it in to them for cleaning.

Can anyone offer their experience/expertise on which kind of cleaning product/technique is best for the D70? I can't see myself trudging out to their office on a regular basis but I have huge fears of damaging the sensor.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated. Thank You.
Leesa

There's pretty universal agreement (including Michael) that sensor brushes work extremely well and at extremely little risk of sensor damage.  I scratched my sensor using Eclipse fluid and Pec pads, so I'm really glad that sensor brushes work so well.  There's been quite a few claims that they're a rip-off and that artists' brushes or make up brushes work (or should) just as well.  After spending a lot of money on various products I'm just glad that I've got something now that works easily and quickly, even if maybe the price is too high.  A scratched sensor is a really high price.

The manufacturers have to cover themselves so they're not liable if you scratch your sensor, but the notion of sending your camera in for cleaning every time it needs it is simply not realistic.  There's been several reports of cameras coming back from cleaning by Canon authorized repair centers with dirtier sensors than when they were sent.  You have to learn to clean your own sensor.  I find this necessary quite frequently

It's not the fluid per se, but the necessary rather hard contact of the swab against the sensor and the possibility of scraping some microscopic bit of abrasive material (common in air in natural and industrial environments) across the sensor.  It happens; it happened to me.  The brush grabs the particles and requires extremely little pressure to be effective.


If you want a good laugh, you can search the forum for my invention(s).  I tried all sorts of vacuuming related ideas in addition to the stuff I shared.  No go, I'm afraid.  The vacuum pulls in as much new dust as it's pushing out, unless you have a very good filtering system or you work in a clean room.  Same problem with simply blowing air into the chamber; you're just moving dust from one place to another, but not getting rid of it within the camera chamber.  Olympus' method of in camera ultrasonically shaking dust loose seems more viable and by various reports actually works.  I haven't tested the D2X method of masking dust particles on the sensor by letting you save a picture of just the dust on the sensor and then the camera interpolates around the dust.  I don't care for that one because you lose information with the interpolation and you could lose track of just how bad your sensor has gotten because you're letting dumb software get rid of dust spots for you, but at a cost.

For now, we have to deal with the contamination ourselves, with no help from Nikon or Canon.

And, it seems to me, you're going to have to take a 'dust shot' before and after each image shot.

Dust could move around, sneaky little bugger that it is....