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[OM] Re: cleaning sensors

Subject: [OM] Re: cleaning sensors
From: "Scott Peden" <scotpeden@xxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Tue, 27 Feb 2007 00:14:54 -0800
I need to mention here, this fella at the camera shop that blows this out
uses a hand blower first, second he uses some special canned air and gets
very little air coming out, nothing like I would. I tried the same can and I
got a LOT more volume, but I also didn't point it at the camera when I tried
it out!


-----Original Message-----
From: olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of Scott Peden
Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 10:58 PM
To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [OM] Re: cleaning sensors


The lens cloth is GONE! I got another one. I have camera lens cleaning
solution, but I took one look inside the camera and knew that I didn't know
what chemicals were Ok to use, much less if a micro cloth or brush was OK
either.

No, the whole camera together was under my shirt, not apart! It seems when I
turn the camera upside down or such is when  suddenly get this stuff on that
viewing screen.  Eight out of 10 of the pics I posted about Pine Mountain
and Buzzards roost was taken with a ton of crap on that viewing screen,
never hurt the photo's, if it had been a manual les I'd never had been able
to Focus it.

The camera shop that blew it out before, blew it out again for me tonight,
it was all just on that viewing screen. It never was showing up on the
pictures (fortunately!)

Static charge and plastic, makes complete sense to me. In fact that is a
relief as I was worried it would then start happening on the other surfaces.

Micro vacuum huh? They have a large hand blower that I'll pick up next week.
I'll see about getting a swiffer soon too.

This sounds like a way to go too, since I have other static troubles, it
being winter in the wet sunless redwoods (note the mini mountain tops I
visit to see the sky on occasion)
http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/methods.html

How much lint do you think I'll generate when I burn that (not) cleaning
cloth. Sheesh, I only had it in there once to try to dust the screen off and
it added 10 times more crap!

Thanks again!
Scott






-----Original Message-----
From: olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
Of Moose
Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 10:09 PM
To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [OM] Re: cleaning sensors

Scott Peden wrote:
> Chuck,
>
> #5 became real dirty all at once yesterday, lint and all sorts of crap on
> it, I see lint on the inside of the camera too and am not sure how to
gently
> get that out and I try really hard to be neat and clean, I rarely even had
a
> finger print on my other lens's, but this is a lint magnet.
>
> #2 is clean
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Single_lens_reflex
>
> So it only effects what I am seeing, not what the camera takes a pic of.
>
> What can be used to remove this stuff? Can the #5 matt focusing screen be
> cleaned with regular lens cleaner?
>   
How can I put this delicately - well, I can't. Based on what you have or 
appear to have done in your mirror box and surrounding areas, No, you 
should not try to clean the focusing screen with lens cleaner. The 
focusing screen is made of soft plastic and is easily damaged. I also 
don't know just want you mean by regular lens cleaner, nor what you 
would plan to use to apply it and clean it off.

If any of the stuff on there is the least bit abrasive, wiping it around 
would likely scratch the screen. And get rid of that lens "cleaning" 
cloth!!!! A microfiber cleaning cloth designed for the purpose is safe 
if kept clean and used gently. No proper lens cleaning cloth will leave 
lint!!!
> I know what probably started it was the cleaning cloth for the Tokina
Lens's
> give off lint all over the place, once any lens is clean then I have to
get
> the lint cleaned off.
>   
AGAIN - Get rid of that lens "cleaning" cloth!!!! It's a viper at your 
photographic bosom!
> I need something different than that cloth for sure! But that cloth was
> miles away when this happened yesterday. I think I turned the camera
> sideways inside my jacket to keep it dry and where ever tis stuff has been
> residing, landed on the matt focusing screen.
>   
Your camera body, without lens, was in your pocket??? NO!!!. I hope I am 
misreading what you said. If you need to have the body anywhere without 
lens, ALWAYS use a body cap.

You don't mention the other likely cause, use of "canned air" - contrary 
to the advise of the maker and any competent repair person.

Now some diagnosis. Worst case first, if only to scare you into being 
more careful about what you put in or near the open camera body and how 
you clean it. :-)

1. When you look into the mirror box, either directly at the focusing 
screen or by reflection in the mirror, do yo see all that dust, etc. on 
it's surface?

2. Is the dust, etc. you see through the viewfinder now more clearly 
focused than before?

If the answer to #1 is that you don't see as much on the bottom surface 
as through the viewfinder and/or the answer to #2 is yes, You have 
debris on the top surface of the screen. You see, the matte surface on 
which the image is focused by the camera lens and on which the 
viewfinder optical system focuses, is the top (inner) surface of the 
screen.

If so, your problem is probably primarily the result of blowing gases 
into the mirror box too forcefully. The presence of lots of debris in 
the mirror box from other sources would then be mostly contributory, in 
that there was more stuff to blow into deeper recesses of the camera. 
Cameras are not all that well sealed internally, especially not 
inexpensive ones like the E-500.

If that is the case, and you can't live with it, it's time to have a 
competent repair person, not someone who uses high pressure air in a 
mirror box, clean it up. On cameras with interchangeable focusing 
screens, like the E-1 and most pro cameras, this is possible for the 
untrained user. On the E-500, which doesn't have a user replaceable 
focusing screen, that is only an option for someone knowledgeable and 
competent in such tasks.

Best case:

If you find that most of the debris is on the bottom, exposed surface of 
the screen, you are lucky. Your puzzlement as to why the mirror is clean 
and the screen dirty is an easy one. The mirror is glass and the screen 
is plastic, and so much more prone to static charge which will attract 
and hold dust on its surface.

With that much dust on the screen, there is probably lots more around 
the mirror box, and it may take a few iteration of cleaning to get it 
under control. First, blow as much as possible off with a hand blower, 
ear syringe or Rocket Blower. Then clean the mirror box, You may try 
lint free wipes with alcohol, small pieces of Swiffer duster vacuumed to 
remove lint from cutting, a small vacuum or micro head, as recently 
mentioned, anything that will allow you to get the majority of dust out 
of the mirror box while avoiding touching the surfaces of mirror, screen 
and shutter.

If you happen to have a static eliminator gun, using it regularly as you 
go through the process should be a help. These were pretty common in the 
heyday of vinyl LPs and are not hard to find at flea markets, junk 
shops, or those few places still specializing in old audio gear. I found 
mine in the box of accessories for my turntable. They are also made new 
for other purposes, but more expensive that way. They use piezoelectric 
crystals rapped sharply to generate streams of positive and negative 
ions that discharge static electricity. They use no power source and 
last virtually forever. Here, a fellow created his own and shows a 
simple test to assure yourself that one is actually working. His image 
of blowing while de-ionizing looks good to me, although I'm not so sure 
about the wiping part, but we are working on the focusing screen here, 
while he is working on the sensor.

If a few rounds of this don't clean up the screen, you may need to 
gently dust it off. Use either a clean brush intended for lenses or a 
brush prepared as for sensor cleaning. Item 5 applies here and 6 through 
8 to other aspects of this work 
<http://www.cleaningdigitalcameras.com/methods.html>.

Finally, this level of dust problem isn't common. It seems likely that 
your technique in changing lenses and/or handling the camera needs a 
change. (Did I mention burning that lens cloth?)

Good luck!

Moose

> Scott
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx [mailto:olympus-owner@xxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf
> Of Chuck Norcutt
> Sent: Monday, February 26, 2007 1:33 PM
> To: olympus@xxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [OM] Re: cleaning sensors
>
> I wish I could see what you're talking about.
>
> Chuck Norcutt
>
> Scott Peden wrote:
>   
>> Switching lens's yesterday... all the crap that had been on the viewing
>> screen before, is back, there is so much it is hard to see if something
is
>> in focus, yet the mirrors that take the pictures are just fine, not a
>>     
> speck.
>   
>>     
>
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