As an avid DSLR video shooter I am often shooting under very low light which means a wide open aperture, or close to it, and a very shallow depth of field. Occasionally I venture outdoors and end up shooting at something like f16 or f22 and there have been times when I’ve noticed dark spots or blotches on my footage. If these spots appear on the same part of your video, in different shots and with different lenses, then you dust on your sensor! (Well, to quickly clarify, it’s not actually on your sensor but on a filter or glass cover over the sensor).

The first step in cleaning your sensor is to actually be able to visually identify how dirty the sensor is, and my favorite way to do this is with a sensor loupe from VisibleDust. With your choice of 5X or 7X magnification and built in LED illumination, it’s easy to spot the offending particles.

My next step (and this is something I do before each wedding I shoot) is to use an air blower such as this Giottos Rocket Air Blower.

I personally don’t like to use the compressed air blower canisters as there is a risk of spraying moisture into your camera (if you do use one, give it a short burst of air before beginning cleaning, and also make sure to keep the canister upright during cleaning). Dust is attracted to your sensor with static electricity, and one way to combat this is with this new Zeeion Blower from VisibleDust, which claims it’s unique compound reduces static charges.

The next step would be a dry cleaning method such as the Arctic Butterfly. Here is a manual with details on the cleaning process, but basically you gently clean with one uniform pass and then make sure to remove the brush and keep it away from the camera before turning on the spinning bristle cleaning function.

If your sensor is extremely dirty you may need to resort to a wet cleaning methods such as those offered by DustAid or Photographic Solutions. Here is a video from DustAid on cleaning the sensor of the Canon 5D Mark II.

For more information on sensor cleaning, I recommend two articles: one from Luminous Landscape and another one on the Thom Hogan website.

If you maintain yours differently, I would be interested to hear from you in the comments section below.

Happy cleaning!
Vlad