Sensor cleaning.....

[FromtheBackofaHorse]

My Sony A300 sensor had a few spots on it and my want-to-be-helpful boyfriend made things worse by trying to use a cloth on it to clean it. Is my only option now to have it professionally cleaned? I am supposed to do a engagement shoot for my daughter next week and I am trying to avoid having my camera in for servicing.

[sk66]

You can get a cleaning kit and try it yourself...
I've cleaned mine with no ill effects.

[OeterB]

Unsure of your location, I can't speak for certain... but I know that my local Camera House in Newcastle Australia offers sensor cleaning in store. They have two staff members trained to do it, and they can do it on the same day/within hours (depending on how busy they are, when said staff members are working, and urgency/priority of other cleaning jobs).

I really think you should ring around and see if any local professional camera stores (i.e. camera shops, not your local JB Hi-Fi/Harvey Norman/Department store that sells cameras) do it. I would not recommend doing it yourself if your boyfriend attempted to clean it with a cloth --- with luck he did not do any damage (i.e. scratch it) and they'll be able to clean it properly. Or tell you if any damage was done.

[FromtheBackofaHorse]

Thanks for the imput. Here is a test shot after he "cleaned" it. I never should have mentioned to him that I was going to take it in for a cleaning. He is one of those who thinks that everything can be "Do-it-Yourself"



Guess it's going to the camera store.

[RexK_Cozumel]

Jesus you better check to make sure that he did not scratch the filter over the sensor. You should never try to clean a sensor with a normal cloth. If you put a scratch in the filter covering the sensor you are hosed, basically time to buy a new camera. There are sensor cleaning kits that you can buy if you do not want to pay to get it professionally cleaned.

[theArchitect]

I'd try to get it done at a camera shop - if they make it worse or anything breaks they'll have to cover the cost.

[Jim Bryant]

try a rocket blower...........

[OeterB]

Rocket blower? That sounds... explosive?

I was warned by my godfather (an ex-press photography editor) not to use anything that blows air into the camera, as the air normally contains minute amounts of water, which isn't good for the camera. By the looks of the photo you shared, it's not so much dust anymore, as smudges on the sensor. I really recommend getting it done professionally this time to fix anything your boyfriend did, then getting a self-cleaning kit if you want to try it yourself from now on.

[bradzo66]

I recently faced the same problem and bought a cleaning kit( containg blower and fluids for lenses ) and a very expensive arctic butterfly a statically charged cleaner for removing dust , neither has worked , to be honest I think its worse now and wished Id left it to a professional , as someone fairly new to all this I would say dont take the chance get it done properly until you have the experience and knowledge to do it yrself . Oeter may be right check with a camera store that does it and minimise time without yr baby .

[FromtheBackofaHorse]

Thanks everyone for all of your input. As this is my first real camera and since I've only had it 6 months, I think I will be stopping at the camera store with it on my way home tonight. Who knows, maybe I can convince them to get me a lesson or two in the proper care of this thing.