Dust on Sensors: How Big is the Problem?
How often do you have problems with dust on your DSLR sensor? In some conversations with other photographers, some use my dust mitigation methods (below) and still have problems with dust on their sensors. For some it seems to be an almost ever present problem, while others not at all. In discussing the issue, it seems there may be an indicator on whether you may have a problem. Some lenses are not sealed, and in particular the rear element is not sealed, so air and dust may pass into the lens and then into the camera body. This is particularly an issue with zoom lenses where the length of the lens is changing thus pumping air into and out of the lens body.
I developed this method of changing lenses to mitigate dust problems:
http://www.clarkvision.com/photoinfo...hanging.lenses
But even with the above methods, some people still have had problems with dust on sensors. Then I came to learn they had lenses that were not sealed.
I don't have any problems with dust on sensors, despite trips this year to Tanzania, India, Hawaii, multiple trips to the American southwest, all over the US, Puerto Rico, and Europe. And I have not had to clean my sensor even once on either my 1D Mark II nor my 5D mark II at all this entire year.
So the questions are:
1) Do you have a problem with dust on your sensor?
2) How many times have you had to clean you sensor this year?
3) Do you use lenses that do not seal the lens from the camera body, thus can let dust into the body?
Example: the 100-400 L IS lens is not sealed, but the 28-135 IS (non L) is sealed at the rear element.
4) Please let us know which lenses are not sealed at the rear element.
Roger