What is this?

Hi!

I have a Nikon D70S...Recently this black thing has been showing up

in my photos. I thought it was dust and cleaned my lenses really

well and even used a syringe and blew air into the inside. However

this thing is still there. I thought it was maybe a scratch on one

of my lenses but it's there no matter what lense I use..any ideas

what it is and how to get rid of it?

 

Thanks!

Laurie

A huge piece of dust on the sensor. If you stop way down it should sharpen up.

Ash Wednesday, at least to me that's what it looks like.

A lot dust or scratches on or in a lens may degrade the image a little if there are a lot of them, but they won't show up on the image like you're seeing. It looks like dust on the sensor. You'll have to get yourself a "sensor cleaning kit" (and the courage) and clean your sensor. http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/index.html

Definitely dust. It looks like a big piece, so you might be able to take a blower and blow it

out. I doubt it's actually stuck to your sensor. However, please use caution when cleaning

your sensor, as you can potentially get more smaller specs of dust on it from using a

blower. Whatever you do, don't use canned air. If you choose to clean the sensor yourself,

make sure you read up on it, there are some kits that are absolute crap and can damage

your sensor. If you know someone who has experience in cleaning their sensor, I'd go to

them for guidance, otherwise go to a professional.

I was afraid of that! I took it on a field trip with a class of third graders. We went to a nature trail..lots of dust and grit. I read up on how to clean my sensor and frankly it scares me to death...but it sounds like it might be really expensive to have a professional do it...Thanks everyone!

 

Laurie

 

P.S. Yeah it does look like "ash Wednesday"..maybe I should sell the photos on ebay to pay for the cost of getting the sensor clean! hmmmmm..theres an idea!

Sensor cleaning is really quite simple. I would try the syringe/blower first, with the shutter open of course.

 

If that doesn't do it move on to the brush. You can get a cheap nylon bristle brush in a cosmetic department of Walmart for under $2 that will work fine. Just make sure it is absolutely clean first. - Test it on a multicoated filter with multiple swipes of the brush to make sure it doesn't leave any residue. If it does, clean it with mild soap and rinse well. Keep cleaning the brush until nothing shows on the filter before using it on your camera. You can buy brushes sold just for this, but you pay a lot for this particular peace of mind. Then put a mild static charge on the brush (to attract the dust) by blowing it for a few seconds with canned air. Then brush off your sensor. That gets almost everything, but you may have to try it several times to get it all. Test by shooting a blank wall with the lens far out of focus, and the aperture stopped all the way down. Look for dust in the image.

 

If that fails, use a wet method. Pure alcohol and lens tissue on tweesers works well, but there are commercial products.

Laurie, I've used the sensor swab/pec-pad thingies before on my DSLR 's sensor without any

trouble. It's a little nerve-wracking at first, but it was fast, simple and effective. Come to

think of it, I need to do it again. It's been two years since the last clean and I'm seeing spots

again.

Here's the wet method well illustrated:

 

http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/ccd_cleaning

 

and here's a lot of great advice on using brushes:

 

http://www.prime-junta.net/pont/How_to/a_Brush_Your_Sensor/a_Brush_Your_Sensor.pdf

Laurie,

I used the same method as the previous poster. (copperhill or whatever it is called from the pbase website) I have used this on my 10D, 20D and now my 1D MK II. Actually easiest to use on the 1D because of the larger sensor, but it works well. Just follow the directions, don't apply too much pressure and check it out. You may have to do it a couple of times but it does work.

Thanks everyone!

I feel like a dork but I realized that I didn't have the mirror locked up! (Still a beginner so take it easy on me!) I was just blowing air into the chamber...SO as I started reading I realized my mistake and followed the instructions..As soon as I locked the mirror and peeked inside I could see the little culprit with my naked eye..HE's history! :-) I do see some other spots and I've ordered some products...But I'll be reading up a bunch more before I actually try it!

 

Thanks again! I love this site!

 

Laurie