D7100 sensor dust

[BackdoorArts]

The canned answer is not clean it and get over it.
My first two 7100's were replaced due to thier issue!!!!
So yes, it was a REAL ISSUE!
If you have not had this issue, that is great.

I hate to say it, but yes, the answer may just be get over it.

Here's what we don't know...

• How clean (I mean, really, honestly and truly) is the environment you keep your cameras in?
• When you lay your camera down, how is it oriented - lens up, lens forward or lens down?
• When you shoot outside:
  • What do you shoot?
  • Where do you shoot?
  • Is there grass and trees and dirt and pollen?
  • Do you face the camera up and shoot at the sky?
  • Do you wipe your camera down when you come back inside?
• How long does it take you to swap lenses?
• When you take the old lens off, what do you do next, and how quickly? And what about after that?
• Where do you keep the back cover when it's not on a lens?
• How dust free is the environment that you "clean" your camera in? Do you have forced hot air or air conditioning running when you do this (moving dust particles around)? Is your camera lying face up on the table after you're done with no body cap for anything more than a second? When you blow out the chamber are you holding the camera face down to allow the dust to actually escape using gravity to pull it away?

It seems like you are doing your best to take care not to introduce dust into the equation, and that's great. But, a) the D7100 has been around for a while with no reported symptomatic issues such as what you're seeing, and b) you're on your 3rd camera, so at this point given the 2 factors mentioned I would say that it's got as much or more to do with camera use (and be clear, I'm not saying improper use) than the camera itself.

Could there be a dusty box of cameras that went to a Best Buy near you? It's not out of the realm of possibility. But I wouldn't put my money on it.

I'm not trying to place blame on you. I'm trying to assess, or at least get you to assess the conditions under which these 3 cameras have been used.

 

[Geoffc]

I'm going on holiday at the weekend so I decided to check our two D7100s and one D800 yesterday. I'm normally not very bothered about dust but it seemed like a good plan given the holiday. At F22 the 800 was the worst by a long way. I wet cleaned and blew them all, using light room's spot removal/visualise spots tool to check the results. After much cleaning I decided that I would never have a perfectly clean sensor but I'm happy to fix in post where it shows up. At F13 and below it's much less noticeable so I'm not too bothered as I never use F22.

One thing I noticed during all this was that I could take several test pics in succession and the dust was moving around. I guess it's just one of those things.


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[Lscha]

I shoot the sky with f/22 and check out the dust particles. Pollen is sticky and stays in the same spots. You can see them well when you zoom. I cleaned the sensor with the Visible dust swab and there is no trace of spots. I found if my spots move around, the dust is on my lens or filter. Seems I only have to do this once a year (spring). I am careful changing lenses tho and do a lot of outdoor shooting.

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[BackdoorArts]

I shoot the sky with f/22 and check out the dust particles. Pollen is sticky and stays in the same spots. You can see them well when you zoom. I cleaned the sensor with the Visible dust swab and there is no trace of spots. I found if my spots move around, the dust is on my lens or filter. Seems I only have to do this once a year (spring). I am careful changing lenses tho and do a lot of outdoor shooting.

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I much prefer shooting down at a piece of white paper in a well lit room, focus set to manual and dialed back to the closest distance and aperture as small as possible. Shooting outside and up invites all that outdoor dust and pollen to fall flat onto your sensor when the mirror opens. Yes, shooting the sky works. But if you're worried about dust on the sensor, shouldn't you always work to minimize it?

 

[John P]

I guess I just use, and care for this camera differently than all of the dslr's I have previously owned.

 

[Lscha]

I much prefer shooting down at a piece of white paper in a well lit room, focus set to manual and dialed back to the closest distance and aperture as small as possible. Shooting outside and up invites all that outdoor dust and pollen to fall flat onto your sensor when the mirror opens. Yes, shooting the sky works. But if you're worried about dust on the sensor, shouldn't you always work to minimize it?

Good point. I just opened the doorwall to shoot the sky. My camera goes with me on all my hunting trips, outdoor trade shows and most of my shots are outside in the wind and storms so cleaning the sensor once a year is pretty good. I have 19000 shots and have cleaned the sensor twice. I'm hard on equipment but my D7000 is a workhorse.

 

[BackdoorArts]

I guess I just use, and care for this camera differently than all of the dslr's I have previously owned.

And as Marcel pointed out in the beginning, this camera's sensor is different from all your others as well. An unadvertised byproduct of more pixels is more electrical charge running through your sensor, which means that charged particles are more likely to stick to it. Have you ever seen one of those gadgets to eliminate dust in a room by creating a charged field on a plate, so the dust just gets attracted to it and sticks to it? ...

Think of your sensor as a mini one of these, and your D7100 being a more powerful version than what you've had previously.

 

[John P]

Yes, i understand all that.
I use and love my 7100.
I was just trying to point out that I did have a couple with issues from the same store.
Confirmed by the store manager, and thier Nikon rep.
The one I have now is doing it's job.
I just hate to see a possible issue written off so easily.

 

[BackdoorArts]

What we're writing off is the repeated attempt to categorize of what sounds like normal dust as something systemic - and after reading and rereading the OP there's no reason for me to believe it's anything else. I've seen someone else's paranoia get into a person's brain, and before you know it they've gone through 3 cameras and switched to Canon, where they likely experienced the same thing.

 

[Kaye]

I hate to say it, but yes, the answer may just be get over it.

Here's what we don't know...

• How clean (I mean, really, honestly and truly) is the environment you keep your cameras in? I store this camera in a backpack in the same room/spot that I have stored all my cameras begining with the D50 many many years ago.
• When you lay your camera down, how is it oriented - lens up, lens forward or lens down? Lens forward or down.
• When you shoot outside:
  • What do you shoot? Any and everything from hummingbirds to family to landscapes.
  • Where do you shoot? Everywhere.
  • Is there grass and trees and dirt and pollen? If outside, one or more of those things will be everywhere.
  • Do you face the camera up and shoot at the sky? Yes, but also did this with my d50, d80 and d90.
  • Do you wipe your camera down when you come back inside? No, and i'm trying to be honest with my answers.
• How long does it take you to swap lenses? 2-3 seconds at most. I usually have someone standing by me with the new lens (cap still covering but not on tight) to help me do this without neither lens being exposed to the elements. They are ready to cover the lens removed as soon as we make the exhange.
• When you take the old lens off, what do you do next, and how quickly? And what about after that?
• Where do you keep the back cover when it's not on a lens? I keep a few back covesr in my bag but to be honest I usually exchange the back cover with the lens I am exhanging to and from with the new lens I mounting.
• How dust free is the environment that you "clean" your camera in? Do you have forced hot air or air conditioning running when you do this (moving dust particles around)? Is your camera lying face up on the table after you're done with no body cap for anything more than a second? When you blow out the chamber are you holding the camera face down to allow the dust to actually escape using gravity to pull it away? I always change my LENS inside, never outside or in the car. Yes, the AC is sometimes running. My camera never lays anywhere face up with or without a lens on it. When I use the rocket blaster the camera is always facing down, sometimes even on a tripod.

It seems like you are doing your best to take care not to introduce dust into the equation, and that's great. But, a) the D7100 has been around for a while with no reported symptomatic issues such as what you're seeing, and b) you're on your 3rd camera, so at this point given the 2 factors mentioned I would say that it's got as much or more to do with camera use (and be clear, I'm not saying improper use) than the camera itself. I am on my 3rd camera and considering I never had this issue with any of the other Nikons that I have owned, I was naturally concerning and confused as to why so much dust would get in the d7100 so quickly. When I picked up my third one at best buy, the young saleman and myself mounted my new 35mm on the camera. Not a dust spot to be seen at f/32 testing on white paper in the store. The next day I used the camera for a few hours and that night, four dust spots. So yes, I did find this odd.

Could there be a dusty box of cameras that went to a Best Buy near you? It's not out of the realm of possibility. But I wouldn't put my money on it. My issue is not so much that the camera will eventually have some dust spots, but when you clean it and then EVERYTIME you use it (for one hour or five hours) there is dust again.

At this point I wish I had not even started this thread. Those of us that would like some answers are doing just that looking for answers. I've stated that I love this camera and will just have to learn to clean it, but that doesn't mean I am the type of person that just blindly excepts "it just is", especially from someone from people that don't even list they own this camera. If I didn't own one, I would wonder why I'm having a problem also, because my d90 has been worked HARD over the years it needing cleaning maybe twice. (also checked it and it has one tiny tiny dust spot and has not been cleaned in years.) ..I only wanted to be informed and understand why this happens every time I use the camera. And some of the "talking down to" or "degrading remarks" are not necessay. We came here for help and to try and learn, not be ridiculed by some (not everyone, some of you have been extremely nice and tried to help us understand).

I'm not trying to place blame on you. I'm trying to assess, or at least get you to assess the conditions under which these 3 cameras have been used.

Thank you.

 

[PapaST]

Sorry I haven't had the time to read the entire thread. But owning a D7100 I figured my $.02 could be relevant.

Last time I used FoCal to map my dust spots I showed more dust on my D7100 than my D600, go figure. I've "survived" the D600 dust hysteria, buying all the tools, swabs, loupes, brushes and blowers. I learned a great deal about cleaning and care. Now that I've been hit with the prospect that my D7100 might actually be worse I'm not really worried about it. I know how to do a decent job cleaning and never has dust been a factor in ruining or affecting a shot for me. It is something I keep an eye on but it's just not something I obsess over. I think I've found a happy middle ground for me and my cameras.

Good luck with your endeavors.

 

[Geoffc]

Sorry I haven't had the time to read the entire thread. But owning a D7100 I figured my $.02 could be relevant.

Last time I used FoCal to map my dust spots I showed more dust on my D7100 than my D600, go figure. I've "survived" the D600 dust hysteria, buying all the tools, swabs, loupes, brushes and blowers. I learned a great deal about cleaning and care. Now that I've been hit with the prospect that my D7100 might actually be worse I'm not really worried about it. I know how to do a decent job cleaning and never has dust been a factor in ruining or affecting a shot for me. It is something I keep an eye on but it's just not something I obsess over. I think I've found a happy middle ground for me and my cameras.

Good luck with your endeavors.

That's exactly my view after similar experiences

 

[Marcel]

Sorry I haven't had the time to read the entire thread. But owning a D7100 I figured my $.02 could be relevant.

Last time I used FoCal to map my dust spots I showed more dust on my D7100 than my D600, go figure. I've "survived" the D600 dust hysteria, buying all the tools, swabs, loupes, brushes and blowers. I learned a great deal about cleaning and care. Now that I've been hit with the prospect that my D7100 might actually be worse I'm not really worried about it. I know how to do a decent job cleaning and never has dust been a factor in ruining or affecting a shot for me. It is something I keep an eye on but it's just not something I obsess over. I think I've found a happy middle ground for me and my cameras.

Good luck with your endeavors.

+1 for me. I feel exactly the same way.

 

[voxmagna]

I've still had a permanent problem since I bought my Nikon D750 and I'm wondering if other Nikon cameras have the same issue? I never changed the lens for 3 months and kept seeing 'dust'. Then I discovered it wasn't dust, but fibers coming off the mirror box lining, plus anything else the sensor attracted. I am displeased with Nikon for introducing a material inside the camera that in my case isn't stable. Before convincing yourself you have a dust problem to which most DSLR owners will say 'That's normal', have a close look inside your Nikon camera mirror box and see if it has an anti reflective lining like my D750. When you do the f22 shoot the sky test, have a close look at the spots. If they look at all like curly like fiber strands it isn't dust! Don't accept that anything on your sensor is dust which came in from outside. If you are DIY cleaning the sensor be aware that not only can fibers detach from their black lining but it can also grab fibers from tissue and micro fiber cleaning cloth.

A traditional SLR camera design fed film across the gate from the roll and wiped it clean before each shot. The DSLR replace the film with a fixed high resolution sensor which is going to capture every single spec of anything falling on it. If anything inside the camera body detaches itself (which includes lubrication oil) you have a big problem. I was curious about Nikons bundled software which post corrects spots on the image, but I now think it's there to cover over the issue of internal contamination caused by the choice of materials used in the construction of the body. I prefer to try and clean up shots manually with PS because batch correction of spots can be a disaster if some shots have image detail and not plain sky.

https://nikonites.com/d750/37784-d750-unable-clean-dust-off-sensor-3.html?highlight=dust+sensor

 

[Patrick M]

Try using a good air blower without lens and holding the camera looking down. That way any loose dust, fibres etc if they're loosed will fall out.


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[voxmagna]

Thanks Patrick. Yes I do that and I also use a sensor magnifier. It's when I removed some 'foreign bodies' from the sensor surface and looked under a microscope that I found I wasn't just looking at 'dust' but also black curly filament fibres which could only have come from the blackout lining inside the mirror box. Then the penny dropped. You increase sensor resolution using a traditional dslr body and it becomes impossible to keep fine particles off the sensor to the extent you pick up your camera and can confidently shoot using all apertures without blemishes on pictures. It's worse when it comes from inside the camera body, because reducing lens swaps doesn't help. Mirror slaps each shot do what the Nikon sensor clean option tried to do in reverse - shake up particles and fibres then dump them on the sensor.

I think present high sensor resolutions are now at the limit for open sensors unless dust ingress and careful use of materials used in camera construction is considered in future designs. DSLRs have always used sensor resolution as their USP but I think higher sensor resolutions will only be used in cameras with a sealed sensor and a glass or prism interface which can be more easily kept dust free.

I've now got quite good at shooting sky at f22 and panning around in the preview zoom mode. But it doesn't solve the problem because you still have to remove a lens in an inconvenient place, remove the problem or move it somewhere else only for it to return.

 

[Danno]

I'm more than willing to learn to clean it myself. Just have read so many opinions on how to clean it from the new Gel Stick, Wet Cleaning Kit, Sensor Swabs, to VisibleDust.

That being said, I was just wondering if mine was a bad batch or the norm for this certain camera. I will own one, just needed some opinions on if mine was a bad one or if others experience the dust issue as bad and it's normal.

I never use f/22 as a rule. Just a mistake that first day and then I got paranoid about it. Especially with it being brand new.

Welcome, to the forum. I have a D7200. It gets some dust but stays fairly clean. I did buy a gel stick from Photography Life. I really like it and it is easy to use. It seems to be a really good tool.

Here is the link.

https://photographylife.com/product/sensor-gel-stick/

 

[voxmagna]

I've used all the different methods for sensor cleaning/particle removal. Nobody wants to recommend this or that for fear of somebody ruining their sensor which I can understand. I've just ordered a gel stick, but I suspect it will work no better than Blu-Tack on a cocktail stick, which is so cheap it's use once and discard. The slightly wet full frame stick wipes work well to if the rocket blower doesn't move them first. Although I prefer a method that tries to remove spots from the camera rather than move them about inside the body. If you calculate the physical pixel size of a 24Mpix sensor in microns, we should agree you can see a pixel error on a large print or hi res TV monitor and you appreciate just how clean a camera sensor has to be.

F22 is only used to identify the foreign bodies more easily. Even at F11 they can still be seen on your shots in plain areas or sky, they are just larger and more diffuse. I can shoot a plain wall indoors lit with tungsten with the highest ISO. Blemishes or foreign bodies on the sensor show up even over the noise and grain. On the top third of landscapes with sky, you see them in the same place on all similar shots during post.

 

[Horoscope Fish]

Sensor dust/crud is always going to be something that needs to be dealt with. I clean my sensor every so often but I don't fret about it being absolutely immaculate because even if it is one minute, it won't be the next; it's tantamount to chasing your tail. Sensor spots are easily removed during post-processing and such a minor nuisance that mucking about trying to remove them, I think, invites more trouble than it's worth most of the time.

In short, if I have to go LOOKING for sensor spots, I don't have a sensor spot problem to begin with, and I leave the sensor the f' alone.
....

 

[Blacktop]

Sensor dust/crud is always going to be something that needs to be dealt with. I clean my sensor every so often but I don't fret about it being absolutely immaculate because even if it is one minute, it won't be the next; it's tantamount to chasing your tail. Sensor spots are easily removed during post-processing and such a minor nuisance that mucking about trying to remove them, I think, invites more trouble than it's worth most of the time.

In short, if I have to go LOOKING for sensor spots, I don't have a sensor spot problem to begin with, and I leave the sensor the f' alone.
....

This about sums it.