I had originally tried the useless Visible Dust Arctic Butterfly SL700, which did nothing but move the dust around. I decided to try "the CopperHill method" and purchased the CopperHill Mega Kit. Image #1 is of the sky at f22 (it wasn't a clear sky), prior to doing any wet cleaning. All of the images have had "autolevel" applied in The Gimp to bring out the contrast. The originals of these pics are pretty large, but if you want to view them at 100% they are available here. I recommend just viewing them at medium or large size though since the state of the sensor is readily visible at those resolutions.
To Nicholas' (of Copper Hill) credit, he has stuck with me through this fiasco and has given me many tips and much assistance, and has even offered a refund and sent me a bottle of Eclipse to try instead of the E2, all on his nickel. I know that he really wants me to be successful at this, and has supported me above and beyond the call of duty. That said, I am of the opinion that wet sensor cleaning is just not something I can do properly. I have cleaned this sensor over 20 times in two weeks and it still looks pretty bad, considering. I know lots of folks report fantastic results with this method... I wish I could.
UPDATE: Nicholas at CopperHill has issued me a full refund, even though I didn't ask for one and don't feel one is necessary. Oh well, he's a helluva nice guy who really cares about his customers.
UPDATE2: I got a Lens Pen Sensor Klear, and it removed the E2 mess. After dusting it with the charged Sensor Sweep brush, I am declaring success. See pics #17, #18, and #19.
#1: Nikon D80 sensor prior to cleaning.
#1: Nikon D80 sensor prior to cleaning.
Camera: Nikon Corporation (Nikon D80) |
Original size: 3872px x 2592px |
Current: 400px x 268px |
filename: beforewet |