cleaning inside camera

Hi no doubt this has been asked so apologies now..

How easy is it to clean inside the camera?, ive got some dust/dirt etc in the viewfinder ive not picked up a sensor cleaner yet ive just used a micro cloth for the min (only on the focus lens which i need to replace anyways as this has a scratch altho it does not affect pictures, behind that and on the lens in front of the mirror) it is now cleaner but not brilliant pics seem ok but i know this will bug me if i dont sort it.
so is it easy enough with the right kit ie the swabs to clean or am i best letting a shop do the job for me?, there does appear to be a lot of foreign bodies on the (what looks like black material) inside the camera.
also what is the best colour to take a shot of to test for any dust et - sheet of white A4 for eg?
thanks..

Re: cleaning

You don't say what model of camera you have and there may be slight differences.

But you need to first get a blower one designed for cameras (NOT a hair dryer ). I user a Giottos Super Rocket which is brilliant, but there are many other makes.

Set the mirror lock up option on your camera. Then remove the lens and hold the camera with the lens opening facing downwards and use the blower to clean out all the dust from inside the being careful not to touch the nozzle on anything the dust will fall downwards. Then comes the tricky part cleaning the sensor. There are numerous tutorials on YouTube to show you how and the special cleaning kits are again each slightly different so there is no one right way.

Finally to check for spots a photograph of a white piece of paper or a white sheet taken at a small aperture f/16 or f/22 I find shows up the spots best.
Make sure you have the camera either on a tripod or sitting stationary on a table to do it.

Re: cleaning

I'm gonna make a stab in the dark and say it's a D3200 he's talking about.

Re: cleaning

PapaST said:

I'm gonna make a stab in the dark and say it's a D3200 he's talking about.

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OK so I didn't read the forum title - :barbershop_quartet:

So probably a good guess.

Re: cleaning

thanks ill give it a go in the near future if i feel brave lol..

what light is best for checking for spots against whate A4? brighter/darker/both?

Re: cleaning

thequeenscheese said:

thanks ill give it a go in the near future if i feel brave lol..

what light is best for checking for spots against whate A4? brighter/darker/both?

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Fairly bright is best, they show up as small dark circular patches.

Re: cleaning

i see there different types of sensor cleaning swabs, whats the preffered, wet, gel, dry?

Re: cleaning

Depends on the dirt on your sensor.

If its just dust then the blower alone will fix it.

If its oily or sticky then wet is best.

I have never tried a gel cleaner and would probably avoid them as it sounds like they might leave a deposit behind.

Don't be too afraid to have a go using the right kit though the sensor does have a protection layer on top of it so unless you scratch it your okay.