Condensation question

pnomanikon

Senior Member
I purchased a new D7200 2 years ago and love it. I didn't get to use it much the first year as I was taking care of my mother before she passed.

Last summer, I was on the road in Indiana and stayed overnight in a B&B. The owner had the A/C cranked up and it was cold in the house. It felt good, though, compared to the 90 degrees (F) and high humidity. I brought my insulated camera case inside but did not open it.

The next morning, I was on the road early. It was another hot and humid day. As the sun was coming up, I came across a nice shot of a farm and barn. When I got the camera out, it still had the 55x300 lens on it. I popped it off to switch with the 18x140 for wider angle. When I raised the camera up to shoot, I noticed everything was fogged up. Duhhhh.... I didn't think about condensation in the summer. I left the lens off and got back in the car with A/C until things dried off.

HERE'S THE QUESTION: (Finally) Since I had the camera open to switch lenses, could the condensation have damaged the sensor? The reason I ask is, now that I have time to use the camera more, I'm finding focus is not nearly as clear as I thought. I use the VR when hand-held, and try to shoot with a reasonably fast shutter, but then I view the photos on the computer at 100%, the details are fuzzy.

Suggestions?

Thanks for your help with this.

.
 

Bengan

Senior Member
First of all, don't panic. I dont think that any damage was done to the sensor.

I suppose that the focus was good before the incident...? Yes/no?

Are the photos taken with viewfinder AF or live view?

If photos were sharp before with booth/all lenses and you're using the viewfinder, then there may hav been contamination/dirt on the autofocus sub-mirror or autofocus prism.
Depending on your answers ther may also be a question of AF fine tuning.
 

pnomanikon

Senior Member
First of all, don't panic. I dont think that any damage was done to the sensor.

I suppose that the focus was good before the incident...? Yes/no?

Are the photos taken with viewfinder AF or live view?

If photos were sharp before with booth/all lenses and you're using the viewfinder, then there may hav been contamination/dirt on the autofocus sub-mirror or autofocus prism.
Depending on your answers ther may also be a question of AF fine tuning.

I didn't really take too many photos before then - busy with mom.

I use viewfinder, not the live view.

I did read about focus fine tuning by taking a photo at an angle of a newspaper on the floor, marking the focus point and then analyzing the photo.

Thank you.
 

Fred Kingston

Senior Member
You may want to have the camera looked at by a good shop... Condensation certainly won't harm the sensor... one method of cleaning is a wet method/process...

However... if heavy condensation is not dried properly...it can leave water spots and dust on the sensor, focus screen, and the interiors of the lens and camera's focus mechanisms... that could potentially create some issues...
 

pnomanikon

Senior Member
You may want to have the camera looked at by a good shop... Condensation certainly won't harm the sensor... one method of cleaning is a wet method/process...

However... if heavy condensation is not dried properly...it can leave water spots and dust on the sensor, focus screen, and the interiors of the lens and camera's focus mechanisms... that could potentially create some issues...

That's what I'm afraid of. The condensation did dry off in about a minute once I was back in the car with A/C.

I will try the "focus tuning" this week and get back with the results. The nearest "good shop" is 100 miles away in Pittsburgh.

Fingers crossed. Thanks.

.
 

nickt

Senior Member
I get the fog a lot in the summer going from the a/c to outdoors on some of those 90% humidity days. I never had a problem beyond waiting for the fog to clear. I would say with your 18-140, take a shot outdoors in great light at a good shutter speed, iso 100 and f8. Use single point focus. Also back the zoom down to about 100mm. Lenses in general can be less sharp at full zoom and wide open aperture.
As far as focus tuning, just do a very preliminary test. Take a shot of a fence or the side of a building at a 45 degree angle. Use single point focus and your widest aperture. Even a shot of the ground is fine. Something should be in focus, either exactly at your focus point or just in front or behind. If its not sharpest at the focus point, then maybe you need to tune. In any case, something should be sharp proving your sensor is fine. It may not be as sharp as at f8 and 100mm though.
 

pnomanikon

Senior Member
I get the fog a lot in the summer going from the a/c to outdoors on some of those 90% humidity days. I never had a problem beyond waiting for the fog to clear. I would say with your 18-140, take a shot outdoors in great light at a good shutter speed, iso 100 and f8. Use single point focus. Also back the zoom down to about 100mm. Lenses in general can be less sharp at full zoom and wide open aperture.
As far as focus tuning, just do a very preliminary test. Take a shot of a fence or the side of a building at a 45 degree angle. Use single point focus and your widest aperture. Even a shot of the ground is fine. Something should be in focus, either exactly at your focus point or just in front or behind. If its not sharpest at the focus point, then maybe you need to tune. In any case, something should be sharp proving your sensor is fine. It may not be as sharp as at f8 and 100mm though.

Thank you. Yes, I forgot to mention I use single point focus and usually Aperture Priority. We have a chain link fence around our veggie garden, so that may be a good focus subject. I'll try that and a newspaper print page.
 

editorial_use_only

Senior Member
if heavy condensation is not dried properly...it can leave water spots and dust on the sensor, focus screen
Agree.

If it's difficult to get to a shop, you could buy a sensor loupe and at least inspect the mirror and sensor yourself as a first step. If there is a film or water spots on the sensor, then at least you have some idea of the issue and what you need to do next. I have the Carson SensorMag loupe and like it. It's inexpensive, like $20. And you'll need a loupe anyway if you ever intend to clean your camera's sensor yourself.
 

pnomanikon

Senior Member
Thank you all for your suggestions. I'm on hold right now and may not get to look at it for awhile.

Last Friday afternoon, I was driving an elderly neighbor around town doing errands when I noticed a flashing light way off to my left in my left eye. Then I noticed every time I turned my head quickly to the left (like to check for traffic at an intersection), it flashed again. Like a lightning bolt - a thin, vertical bright light. My wife took me to the ER and after two ophthalmologists spent over 2 hours shining bright lights and poking in my eyes, told me I was experiencing vitreous separation. The vitreous fluid (very thick gel) attaches to the inside of the eye at several locations. One of those was in the process of separating. The exposed nerves cause the flashes of light. I'm also getting more than the normal number of "floaters". They said most of the time they will separate with no problems - may take weeks or even months. However, if it doesn't go right, it can tear the inside lining of the eye and require surgery. Oh, and to add to the fun, they said this usually happens to both eyes about the same time.

My wife and I have wanted to see the Southwest (USA) for many years. Since we retired last year, we spent the entire winter planning a 5,500-mile, 4-week driving loop to see Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Zion, Mesa Verde, Arches, Canyonland, Colorado, and Old Rt 30 (Lincoln Highway). We had our bags packed and were going to leave yesterday (Monday). Obviously, I'm not about to embark driving on a trip like that driving with flashes in my eye. Plus, if there's a problem when we're in Death Valley.....???? So, after all that planning, I spent Sunday afternoon online and calling hotels and tours to cancel. Very depressing! Oh well, maybe this fall.

When the eye situation settles, I will get back to "focusing" on this issue. I just didn't want you to think I was ignoring you.

Thank again.
 
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