Dust

[candleman]

what the heck! for the first time last night i noticed specks of dust on the periphery of my pictures. they are very faint and only noticable in very light/smooth pictures like this, in high contrast or with nice bokeh they arent noticable even when looking for them.
http://s294.photobucket.com/albums/m...N-JLUKE/PROOF/
(small size.. so they may not be visible)
you can see some at bottom left edges of frame

this is really strange as i've never taken my lens off since i put it on the camera on Day 1 of owning it.. the mounting of the lens was so careful and quick i dont think it was possible to get dust in. i havn't seen dust on any other pics before.
i cleaned the end of the lens and both sides of the uv filter.. but there was no change. still the same.
is it possible to get dust into the lens throught the lenses moving parts or is this a bit of a streach.

what other checks could i do?? i really dont want to clean it myself.. because i'm still not convinced its sensor dust.
and really dont want to get it sent off to nikon for cleaning.

if you cant see the dust i'll post a link to larger version

[anthonybeard]

if it DOES turn out to be sensor dust, there's no need to get it sent off.. you can take it to any reputable digital camera dealer and they normally do it for a small fee. i would make sure they are nikon certified.

[Mr Guy]

Looks very much like dust. Standard dust check is taking of the sky on a bright day at increasing apertures. Dust on the lens is more likely to be pretty constant, while dust on the sensor usually doesn't show up until the high apertures.

I wouldn't be absolutely shocked if dust managed to work it's way into an unsealed camera body, or even if tiny bits of the dust in the mirror mechanism managed to work free and fall onto the sensor. After all, there ARE moving parts.

[OsmosisStudios]

It is possible to get dust inside the lens aswell, provided it's a zoom or moves during focusing. While companies try their best to make the tolerances tight eough, its always possible to get some dust in it.

I couldnt personally see the spots, but hey.

[candleman]

uuuuughh.. not INSIDE the lens

yes, its an 18-135.. so it slides in and out when zooming.

heres a link to a larger version
http://s294.photobucket.com/albums/m...206_0079-1.jpg

[prrs4me]

I thought that dust inside the lens usually doesn't show up on pictures. Am I misinformed?

[candleman]

[QUOTE=Mr Guy;335181]Standard dust check is taking of the sky on a bright day at increasing apertures. Dust on the lens is more likely to be pretty constant, while dust on the sensor usually doesn't show up until the high apertures.
[QUOTE]

ok.. thanks for that, i'll test it out and post the results when i've had half a chance.

[OsmosisStudios]

Dust in a lens usually shows up as haziness or a light spot. Dust on a sensor is usually a black spot in an image that doesnt move.

[Samanax]

It does look like sensor dust but could you provide a full sized image?

Sensor dust/spots are gonna happen not matter what. It might not even be dust but possibly lubricant from inside the DSLR body itself. But dust happens.

Cleaning the sensor of a DSLR isn't that hard to do (but is it scary the first time you try it). I clean my own sensor using the Copper Hill Images method. It took awhile to get used to the idea of touching the sensor (actually the anti-aliasing filter is touched, not the sensor itself) and learning how to hold the SensorSweep just right so that it contacts the sensor properly took awhile to learn too. But now I clean my sensor about once a month and don't have problems with dust in my images anymore.

[candleman]

hmmm, well testing last night based on MrGuys tip revealed it IS sensor dust
which i'm very happy about.

why?
because i know cleaning it will be routine and its a common issue. it it was inside the lens i think i would be rather "annoyed" to say the least.
between f/11 and f/32 it is very noticable, and between f/8 and f/3.5 it tends to fade away. at f/3.5 its hardly visible.
i guess Mr Guy is correct, its a brand new machine, so its probably "wearing" or running in.

how the heck WOULD you clean it if it was inside the lens?

thank you all for your input, greatly appreciated.