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Cleaning your digital single lens reflex camera “sensor” with a SensorKlear pen is a relatively
simple process. When you are removing dust from the sensor, you are actually cleaning an
optical glass plate or a glass filter that covers the electronic sensor, and not actually the sensor itself.
Unfortunately, the sensor is in an awkward location situated behind the mirror and shutter. Working
here, you must exercise care not to damage the shutter with the SensorKlear pen (or any other
sensor cleaning products.)
Read your camera manual carefully and follow the manufacturers directions to make sure you
know how to raise the mirror and lock it up and the shutter open before attempting to clean the
sensor. Be sure to use fresh batteries or a freshly recharged battery pack to keep the
mirror and shutter from closing prematurely.
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Click HERE to download a PDF of this article
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After using your digital single lens reflex camera for some time you will begin to notice annoying
spots, squiggly hairs and blobs on your digital images when viewed in Photoshop or other photo
browsers when viewing them at 100% (actual pixels). If there are only a few small spots on your
image, these can easily be cloned away in Photoshop. The best cleaning technique for
eliminating a few dust specks on the sensor is to simply blow them off with a rubber
blower ball (sometimes called a rocket ball.)
Be judicious with your sensor cleaning beyond simply blowing dust of the sensor periodically.
Avoid compulsive cleaning of the sensor (like some photographers do to their lenses) and wait
until the sensor is relatively dirty before cleaning with a SensorKlear (or any other cleaning tool.)
Use these following steps to determine how dirty your sensor actually is, and then decide if it is
time for a more thorough cleaning other than simply blowing the dust off the sensor with the blower ball.
- Take a test shot of a full-frame featureless sky or a full-frame plain white sheet of paper using
the following method: Place a lens on the camera, turn off the autofocus, and set the aperture
to f/11 or f/16. Set the exposure compensation to +2 (or two stops more than the camera’s
reading.) (or 2 stops over exposed) Take your test shot of the sky or white paper—focusing is
not necessary. You want to create a bright blank image to determine the location of the dark
dust spots on your sensor.
- Plug your flash card into your computer, download the blank "image" and open it in Photoshop.
You can do this working in RAW or Jpeg format. Click on "Actual Pixels" or 100% magnification
and examine the image. Use the “Hand Tool” to move around on the enlarged image to see all
quadrants. You will likely see an unsettling amount of dust in several locations.
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| Tools needed to clean sensor: blower ball, micro fiber cloth and SensorKlear pen
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If you have a lot of dust spots on the image it may be time for you to clean the sensor.
But here
is something helpful to know in advance: The image you see on your computer screen in
Photoshop is a flipped and inverted representation of where the dust particles actually are
on the sensor. So if you see spots on the upper left side of the image on your computer,
in actuality the dust spots are on the lower right
side of your sensor as you look into it
from the lens mount side.
To clean the sensor with your SensorKlear use the following procedure:
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| Lift camera mirror for sensor access using instructions in your camera manual
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- Remove the lens or camera body cap.
- Raise the mirror so you can access the sensor using the camera manufacturer’s directions
found in your camera manual. Remember to use fresh batteries!
- Hold the camera firmly in your non-dominant hand and point it so the opening on the camera
faces downward 15–30 degrees. By doing this any dislodged dust particles will fall out of the camera during step 4.
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| Tilt camera downward and blow out dust using blower ball
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- Use a large blower ball to thoroughly and carefully blow loose dust off the sensor. Do not insert
the tip of the blower ball into the front opening of the camera and do not jab inside of the camera
with the tip of the blower ball.
- Remove the cap from the SensorKlear to reveal the triangular cleaning tip. (There is a relatively
useless brush on the other end of the pen that should never be used on the sensor or inside the camera.)
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| Remove cap from SensorKlear and tap excess cleaning compound into the micro fiber cloth
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- Since part of the cleaning compound is graphite, flick the barrel of the SensorKlear pen a couple
of times near the triangular tip to dislodge any loose graphite particles that may be present on the tip
OR dab the tip a couple of times into a clean micro fiber cloth to eliminate loose graphite particles.
(The pen manufacturer says this step is not necessary as any graphite particles will be blown out of
the camera in step 9 of this procedure.)
- Hold the camera, again, in your non-dominant hand about 12 inches (30cm) away from your body
at about chest height. The opening in front of the camera should be facing you. Do not hold the
camera close to you where loose clothing fibers, flaking skin, eyelashes or hair could fall into the camera.
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| Insert SensorKlear and clean sensor using instructions in this article
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- Insert the triangular tip of the SensorKlear into the camera and place it in the center of the sensor.
Begin to rub the tip of the SensorKlear back and forth on the sensor. A little pressure is fine, but do
not scrub. The glass over the sensor is not delicate. Work from the center to the edges paying
attention to those areas where dust spots were prevalent on your test shot. (Remember the photo
is flipped and inverted.) Finish by going around the edges and into the corners with the specially
shaped tip.
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Repeat blower ball procedure to remove dislodged particles from sensor. Turn off camera and replace lens or body cap
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- Repeat step 4 using the blower ball. Replace the lens or body cap and turn off the camera.
You may wish to repeat the test shot to see if you successfully removed all the spots from the
sensor, but usually this is not necessary.
If the sensor is still very dirty after your use of the SensorKlear or if you have one or two prominent
and stubborn dust spots that resist your best efforts, it is most likely that you have neglected
cleaning your sensor for too long and the dust has become “welded” to the sensor. In this case
use an approved “wet cleaning” method or send the camera to the manufacturer’s service center
for cleaning.
SensorKlear is a highly recommended tool for cleaning CCD/CMOS sensors, but Joseph
Van Os Photo Safaris, Inc. and Parkside Optical assume no responsibility for any damage
to the camera and sensor during the cleaning process.
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