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Line showing up in Rebel T5 photos

4bakergirls
Apprentice

Hey all! I was taking photos of my kiddo today, and when I got home, I noticed that this line was showing up in any photo that I took NOT in auto mode. I cleaned all of my lenses (which are all Canon brand) and the sensor, and this line is still showing up, but only in non-auto mode photos. Does anyone know what it might be? I've had the camera for 13 months. TIA!

 

Photo: 

13 REPLIES 13

Waddizzle
Legend
Legend

Looks like dirt, dust, or a hair, to me.  Did you notice the spot in the top right corner?  Maybe you clean your gear too much.  ???  I dunno.  I have learned to take my time switching lenses.  And, I make sure I am in a clean location when I change lenses.  

 

Changing lenses outdoors is a GOOD way to introduce foreign objects into the camera body and lenses.  Wind and breezes are your worst enemy.  I have learned my lesson sitting in a car with the AC blowing, too.  None of the above is advisable.  I have introduced multiple objects onto the image sensor by doing the above.

 

Not sure what you mean by "non-auto" mode.  Are you referring to the lens or the camera?

 

How are you cleaning your camera and lenses? 

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

4bakergirls
Apprentice
This is the same exact line, in the same exact place, as the one I started getting with my old Canon rebel XS towards the end of the time I used it.


@4bakergirls wrote:
This is the same exact line, in the same exact place, as the one I started getting with my old Canon rebel XS towards the end of the time I used it.

You're adding more confusion to the issue.  And, you're not answering questions that you have been asked, either.

 

Same problem as your previous camera?  Does that mean with the same lens, too?  You have a bad lens.  Try a different lens.  If I have misunderstood your problem, please don't blame me.  You're not being very clear describing your issue.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

4bakergirls
Apprentice
Lenses were not changed outside, they were changed indoors. I am using new lenses on my T5 (that were purchased new with it, not used previously on old camera). Non-auto means just what I said, NOT auto, which means the photos were taken in aperture priority mode. I used a back button focus. I tried using both manual and auto focus on each of my three lenses, and the line showed up each time in each case. I brought up my old camera only to demonstrate that I have had the same issue with both cameras, and it is the exact same mark in the exact same place on each photo, and that is what leads me to believe that it is a problem with the camera or the lens and not dust. I cleaned the outside of the lenses using a soft microfiber cloth, and I used an air blower (like one you would use on a keyboard) for the inner part.


@4bakergirls wrote:
Lenses were not changed outside, they were changed indoors. I am using new lenses on my T5 (that were purchased new with it, not used previously on old camera). Non-auto means just what I said, NOT auto, which means the photos were taken in aperture priority mode. I used a back button focus. I tried using both manual and auto focus on each of my three lenses, and the line showed up each time in each case. I brought up my old camera only to demonstrate that I have had the same issue with both cameras, and it is the exact same mark in the exact same place on each photo, and that is what leads me to believe that it is a problem with the camera or the lens and not dust. I cleaned the outside of the lenses using a soft microfiber cloth, and I used an air blower (like one you would use on a keyboard) for the inner part.

Seeing "the exact same mark in the exact same place on each photo" with both cameras is extraordinary.  In fact, I would declare that it is near impossible, not unless you are using the same dirty filter on both.

 

You should not use an air blower [compressed air in a can] on a camera.  I use canned air to clean my keyboards.  I use the object below, Rocket Blower, to clean my cameras, which is not very often.

 

sensei_bl_011_bulb_air_blower_cleaning_system_1363210249000_838818.jpg

 

My cameras and lenses stay clean because I treat them very carefully when they are open and exposed.  Your camera also allows you to collect dust delete data, too, which can auto-correct images.

 

Those are dust and dirt spots in your posted photo.  There is a more than just the one line, too.  Take a picture of a clear blue sky, or a white wall, with the camera out of focus.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."


@4bakergirls wrote:
Lenses were not changed outside, they were changed indoors. I am using new lenses on my T5 (that were purchased new with it, not used previously on old camera). Non-auto means just what I said, NOT auto, which means the photos were taken in aperture priority mode. I used a back button focus. I tried using both manual and auto focus on each of my three lenses, and the line showed up each time in each case. I brought up my old camera only to demonstrate that I have had the same issue with both cameras, and it is the exact same mark in the exact same place on each photo, and that is what leads me to believe that it is a problem with the camera or the lens and not dust. I cleaned the outside of the lenses using a soft microfiber cloth, and I used an air blower (like one you would use on a keyboard) for the inner part.

Let me cut to the chase...

 

You have dust on your sensor.  Not maybe... definitely.  There's no doubt about it.  Also, you have several other spots on the sensor that you did not point out.  The good news is this is not a camera defect.  Sensor defects never look like this (when a sesnor is having an issue, you'll see either individual "stuck" pixels or you'll see entire rows or columns of failed pixels.  You will never see a "spot" or "curve", etc.  You don't need to have the camera repaired or have to fear that you'll need to buy another camera.  It's easy to clean.

 

Similarities to your prior camera notwithstanding or where you were standing when you changed the lens,  every removable lens camera will eventually get dust on the sensor.  All that has to happen is for the dust to drift into the camera body when you remove the lens.  It doesn't even matter where it lands because the camera's reflex mirror has to rapidly swing up and then back down every time you take a shot and that mirror acts like a fan and it stirs the air around inside the camera every time the shutter opens -- and that's how it lands on the sensor itself.

 

You can sometimes clear this by removing the lens, pointing the camera so the opening is pointed at the floor, and use the menu to manually invoke a dust-cleaning cycle (and you may have to do a few dust cleaning cycles).  

 

To test whether your cleaning was a success, point the camera to a plain surface (such as a white wall or a clear blue sky) and dial the f-stop up to f/22 and take a shot.  Examine the shot to see if the dust is still there.

 

If it is still there, you can put the camera into a mode that forces the reflex mirror to swing clear and the shutter curtain will remain open exposing the "sensor" (it's not really the sensor... it's a glass filter in front of the sensor.)

 

If you still have dust, next up is the hand-squeezed air blower.  Avoid letting the tip of the blower touch anything inside the camera.  Also... use a HAND-SQUEEZED blower (very important).  Do not use an air compressor.  Do not use cans of compressed air.   Air compressors spew dirty air -- there's a bit of oil from the compressor as well as the condensation formed by rapidly decompressing air and both of those will just make the sensor dirtier than when you started (and oil is more difficult to remove from a sensor than dust).  Cans of compressed air use a propellent that forms a film/residue on the surface (it will look "fogged" except the fog wont evaporate.)  This is why we go out of our way to emphasize that only a hand-squeezed air blower is safe to use.  (I've heard of compressed air product on the market specifically designed for cameras and apparelent use a propellant that doesn't leave a residue -- but I couldn't tell you the name of it.)

 

If this still doesn't work, there are a few more tricks.  All of these end up using cleaning methods that "touch" the sensor (really the filter).

 

1)  You can have it professionally cleaned.  This involves finding a REAL camera shop in your area (don't bother with big-box stores that just happen to sell cameras.)  It's usually not very expensive (it only takes them a few minutes.)

 

2)  You can use a clean (and I should emphasize PRISTINELY clean - as it should never have been used for any other purpose) to sweep anything off the sensor.  Dust is typically just dry so there's no real adhesion (it's not sticky).  But sometimes it sticks due to static cling.  So there are special brushes with condutive bristles and the brush handle has a wire and aligator clip.  You clip it to something which is electrically grounded so that as you brush the sensor, it transfer any static charge to ground to kill the static-cling effect.  

 

3)  There are also "wet" cleaning methods.  This is what I use when the above methods don't work.   In this method I start by using a magnifier to inspect the surface of the "sensor" to see what I'm working with.  I might also take a sample photo of a plain white wall to note the location of any dust bits (noting that the image is rotated 180º... so if you see dust in the upper-right corner of the senosr, that dust is really in the lower-left corner inside the camera.)

 

The cleaning solution I use is called "Eclipse" by "Photographic Solutions, Inc."  The solution itself is nearly pure methanol (so it is a flammable alcohol).  The advantage of it is that methanol evaporates very quickly and leaves virtually no residue behind.  This means it'll cut whatever is making things stick to the sensor but you wont have any streaks to deal with afterwards.

 

The solution is applied using special "Sensor Swabs" (sold by the same company).  The swaps come in sizes designed to match the height of your sensor.  It's a plastic paddle with a lint-free material wrapped around the end.

 

Follow the instructions (and there are numerous tutorial videos demonstrating how it's done) and you'll place just a few drops (typically 3 - don't use too much.)  Then you give it a gentle wipe from one edge of the sensor to the other and immediately throw the swap in the trash (do not re-use - even if it looks clean.  Otherwise you could be dragging stuff around on your sensor.  When you calculate the cost of a pack of swabs, you'll realize these things cost about $3 each.  That may sound like a lot for a simple swab.  But a $3 swab is a lot cheaper than an expensive sensor repair because you scratched the sesnor by trying to re-use the swab.  Some "dust" can be extremely sharp (ashes, for example) and have an abbrasive property that can easily scratch the filter surface.

 

There's a new system that uses a gummy material and the end of a stick.  You press it to the sensor and then pull it away -- and the material is so gummy that things will stick to the cleaning product and not to the sensor.  I don't own this tool so I can't personally attest for how well it may work but others seem to report that it works as advertised.

 

 

Tim Campbell
5D III, 5D IV, 60Da

Tim has given you great advice.  Be aware that cleaning your own gear, just like cooking and baking, as he describes is not for everyone to attempt.  I don't need to point out that there are quite a number of bad cooks out there.

 

Changing lenses indoors does not necessarily guarantee good conditions, although it certainly improves the odds over changing lenses in the field.  For example, I know a guy whose gear seems to constantly collect dust, dirt, and hairs.  So, he cleans his gear much more frequently than I do.  I should add that this guy smokes and has three dogs.  He smokes when he cleans his gear, too.  He blames his frequently dirty gear on static electricity.

 

Homes can have lots of airborne particles, too, including stuff from cooking, cleaning, and hygiene.  For example, one rainy day, I cancelled my outdoor plans, and launched into inspecting lenses and cameras for dust and dirt.  I had just came from the barbershop, and began going through my gear.  Needless to say, I introduced numerous micro hair clippings into my gear.

 

I have learned to try to avoid changing lenses.  I've bought extra camera bodies, just so that I don't have to change lenses when I am in the field.  When I am done shooting for the day, I used to remove the lens from my camera body, and stow it away, but not anymore.  I figured out that the less I open up the camera body, the less the likelihood that my image sensor can get dirty.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."

ebiggs1
Legend
Legend

TIA,

I too, believe it is a dirty sensor. If you did as you stated, I also believe, you caused it.  Here are some facts.  Dust on the lens surface is OOF so it will not show up in your photos.  Of course if it is severely dusty it can have a detrimental effect.  Dust on the mirror will never show up in your photos.  Dust in the view finder will never show up in your photos.  The only place left is the sensor.  Which, BTW, you can't touch because it has a cover on it.  The cover is what you 'clean'.

Two choices.  Take it to a real camera store/shop or send it to Canon for a C&C.

 

The truth is you don't need to clean camera gear as much as most people think you do.  It is nonsense to think you shouldn't change a lens outdoors.  I do it all the time and have done so so decades.  I sell my photos and work.  Again, if it is severely dusty it can have a detrimental effect.  This is a common sense thing, isn't it?

 

This is my advice to you after you get the T5's C&C done, don't put anything smaller than a football inside the mirror box.

EB
EOS 1DX and 1D Mk IV and less lenses then before!


@ebiggs1 wrote:

TIA,

I too, believe it is a dirty sensor. If you did as you stated, I also believe, you caused it.  Here are some facts.  Dust on the lens surface is OOF so it will not show up in your photos.  Of course if it is severely dusty it can have a detrimental effect.  Dust on the mirror will never show up in your photos.  Dust in the view finder will never show up in your photos.  The only place left is the sensor.  Which, BTW, you can't touch because it has a cover on it.  The cover is what you 'clean'.

Two choices.  Take it to a real camera store/shop or send it to Canon for a C&C.

 

The truth is you don't need to clean camera gear as much as most people think you do.  It is nonsense to think you shouldn't change a lens outdoors.  I do it all the time and have done so so decades.  I sell my photos and work.  Again, if it is severely dusty it can have a detrimental effect.  This is a common sense thing, isn't it?

 

This is my advice to you after you get the T5's C&C done, don't put anything smaller than a football inside the mirror box.


Ernie, I simply avoid changing lenses outdoors, if I can.  One convenient solution I use is to carry two camera bodies.  Some outdoor locations pose greater, or lesser, risks or airborne contaminants than others.  

 

Most of the outdoor locations where I shoot are dirty, like in dusty woods in the fall, or on a windy beach in the summer.  Pollen is everywhere in the spring, and it collects on a car, like a dusting of snow, in less than a day.  High humidity poses a set of risks because you seal that moisture inside the camera.  My advice is to be aware of airborne contaminants when you're working outdoors.  Like I said earlier, wind and breezes are your enemies.

--------------------------------------------------------
"The right mouse button is your friend."
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