I think I've scratched my sensor!!

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*kev*

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Kevin
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I think i might have scratched the low pass filter on my Nikon D50:eek:. I noticed some dirt on the sensor and tried to clean it off using a sensor pen, but all I got was a mark on the sensor which i thought was rubber from the edge of the sensor pen. London Camera Exchange in Chester are telling me that it's scratched, but they'll wait for theirsensor cleaning guy to come in tomorrow before they decide if they are going to touch it. If it is scratched they are saying that it is a £150 - £200 repair bill, the camera isn't worth that so it's a write off!

Now for the good (sort of) bit, if it is scratched I'm taking that as meaning it's time to buy a new camera. My choices are a D90, D300, or what I really want a D700. To the enthusiast user is there £350 difference between the D90 and D300?

I tend to shoot predominately landscapes, and have just done some street stuff which i enjoyed so i may start doing more of that in the future.

So what would everyone reccomend? The D300 and D700 are over budget but should i just bite the bullet and go with the D700and have a camera that i should:thinking: be happy with for the next 5 years, get a D300 and look better than i am and get annoyed when potentially a D400 is released later this year, or get a D90 and still want to upgrade in 6 months?

Could someone please make a (sensible) decision for me as i can't.

Thanks

Kev
 
depends what lenses you have, a D700 with a 18-55mm lens isn't going to be much use, i'd chose the D700 every time because I very much doubt i'd get upgradeitus with it but if I didn't have the lenses to go with it it'd be a waste of money
 
If you do buy a new camera don't throw the D50 out as you won't have damaged the sensor, just the glass filter that sits on top of it. As you rightly say,it's not economical to get it repaired, but it's not a huge job to change it yourself if you're careful.

Failing that it would still have some value on Fleabay :)
 
You can remove the AA filter yourself, just get some clear glass, job done.
 
D90 Kev, you know it makes sense. Its nearly as good as the D300 in most respects and better in some (noise reduction for a start) and its 350 of your Earth pounds cheaper. Listen to Puddleduck, he knows the D300 isn't the one for you. :thumbs:

Andy
 
The sensible option would be to go for the D700 if that's what you really crave...it will be expensive though and then you will have to factor in some new glass for the beast. :eek:

I have a D90 and really do like it, I have been considering my next move and keep coming back to the conclusion that if I want to be satisfied with my next purchase (and to stop spending :bonk:) then I need to go for what I really want - at this stage a D700. Having missed a recent opportunity of picking it up for circa £1450 I've put that idea on the backurner for now. :thinking:
 
You might just have smeared some grease on the low pass filter, that came from the mirror area. I did it with my camera and just couldnt get it cleaned off my self. I took it to a Canon service centre and they took out the low pass filter and cleaned it for £90, and then I claimed it back from Canon.
 
The majority of my lenses are DX but i do have couple of FX lenses, i realise this wouldn't unlock the full potential of the D700, but it would be ready to take full advantage of FX glass when i got it.

I know what i want but i also have to factor in what i can afford, I think the D700 + glass is out of my price range at present.
 
Kev, I see you are near Chester, well I assume you are as you went to LCE in Chester. If you want to try both a D300 & a D700 give me a shout I have both. I know which one I would pick for landscapes, but in the end its down to you and to the depth of your pockets.
Mart.
 
Thanks for the offer Marvin,

I may well take you up on the offer. I think mastertrinity, has just given me the best or most sensible option, i know Andysnap is very pleased with his D90, and this could be the best compromise for my shallow pockets.

I'm guessing that the D300 isn't the machine it once was in comparison to the other equipment on the market now, as no-one has said to go for it. Is the D90 a more compact D300?
 
*kev* said:
Could someone please make a (sensible) decision for me as i can't.
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If I were in your position I'd buy a cheap (probably used) D40 and wait and see what Nikon release next. Could be a budget bodied version of the D90 sensor to replace the ageing D40/D60 announced any day now - may not be in the shops for a few months.
 
With regards to which one to buy, wait a while (if you can) as there are strong rumours that something is in the pipeline for an announcement. Failing that, I'd suggest to go with the D90, unless you really need a function or feature on the D300 / D700 that you badly need.

As has been said, to get the best of the D700 you would need lenses that are suitable for it. DX lenses aren't really that good on this body. Factor that cost in, too.

As for your existing D50; God forbid should the glass be scratch and you decide to go ahead and buy a new body while not wanting to do the change to the glass yourself, then you could offer it for sale .. I am sure there are many who'd want to buy it and give it a go. Basically, it is not a write-off!
 
Why not get the filter removed or do it yourself! (if it really is damaged? that is) and use it for FS Infra Red shots? :) Open up a whole new world of photography :D
 
Splog said:
Why not get the filter removed or do it yourself! (if it really is damaged? that is) and use it for FS Infra Red shots? :) Open up a whole new world of photography :D
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You still need to replace the filter with something, otherwise you'll leave the sensor open to the elephants elements
 
Flash In The Pan said:
You still need to replace the filter with something, otherwise you'll leave the sensor open to the elephants elements
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True... but if the cameras knackered! why not? replacing the filter with glass or an IR filter gets expensive and / or difficult to find :thinking: However your right! it would be the 'best' way :) There is also another option - A 'clip in' clear glass filter which sits in the recess of the camera body, although not sure if they are available for this camera :shrug:

Steve
 
Splog said:
True... but if the cameras knackered! why not? replacing the filter with glass or an IR filter gets expensive and / or difficult to find :thinking: However your right! it would be the 'best' way :) There is also another option - A 'clip in' clear glass filter which sits in the recess of the camera body, although not sure if they are available for this camera :shrug:

Steve
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Isnt the AA filter rather important though?
 
Cheers for the input everyone, it looks like for me at present that the D90 is coming up trumps for me, which for once means i'm not totally blowing all the money i don't have.

Any ideas when the D300's successor will be announced/available?
 
If you've gone as far as stripping the camera down to this level

3323274535_2321d722d2.jpg



You're as well doing the job properly ;)

For infrared shots you need to block out the visible light spectrum below around 700nm (depends of the effect you wish to achieve). Merely removing the filter just lets the entire spectrum to be captured, but with jaggy edges :lol:
 
*kev* said:
Any ideas when the D300's successor will be announced/available?
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The talk was a D400 before July as there was supposedly a book on the D400 being previewed for sale on amazon.de
 
Flash In The Pan said:
If you've gone as far as stripping the camera down to this level

3323274535_2321d722d2.jpg



You're as well doing the job properly :wink:
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:lol: Oh dear...Now I'm worried :D. Actually, this is something I'm about to do with my 30D ........ I'm sure it's quite simple really..........:help:
 
:thinking:

Its difficult to scratch an AA filter with a lens pen.
Ok, if there was a big lump of grit on there you might be able to do it, but generally they're pretty tough.
I'd have another go with a swab, what is there to lose.
 
*kev* said:
I think i might have scratched the low pass filter on my Nikon D50:eek:. I noticed some dirt on the sensor and tried to clean it off using a sensor pen, but all I got was a mark on the sensor which i thought was rubber from the edge of the sensor pen. London Camera Exchange in Chester are telling me that it's scratched, but they'll wait for theirsensor cleaning guy to come in tomorrow before they decide if they are going to touch it. If it is scratched they are saying that it is a £150 - £200 repair bill, the camera isn't worth that so it's a write off!
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I'm not so sure.

You've have to be very heavy-handed with a lens pen in order to apply enough pressure to scratch the filter, assuming you'd also been unlucky enough to accumulate a piece of grit that was sharp enough in the first place.

I think you've just smeared something over the filter and a bit of TLC and the appropriate wet-cleaning methodology will see you right.
 
Only one woman known to mankind has ever scratched the sensor filter. :popcorn:

If you have actually followed in her footsteps you can either sell it to somebody for them to repair it, or have a go yourself. I thought I'd scratched mine once but it was just a streak of stubborn dirt. Contrary to earlier suggestions you cannot just remove the filter and leave the sensor pixels exposed. You would never be able to clean the sensor again. Replacement filters aren't hideously expensive (compared to a sensor). This site shows you how to do it yourself on a D50.

http://www.lifepixel.com/ir-tutorials/nikon-d50-digital-infrared-conversion-instructions.htm

They quote $90 for a replacement filter for you to have a go yourself. As for a UK source and price you'll have to look around yourself.

Or you could fit a sensor filter suitable for Infra Red, but they cost twice as much. If you have a look at the IR pictures on the above site you may well be tempted.
 
I got my tutor to check it at night school tonight and he agreed that it was scratched. I'm not confident trying to change the filter myself, so i think it's destined for. I'll check with the financial manager, but i think I'll be visiting the local jessops at the weekend to take advantage of their 12 months 0% finance, and may treat ebay myself to a little extra something.
 
these filters are so tuff I would so so shocked if you have really scratched it.Can you show me a full res example at F16/F22
 
I thought I scratched my 5d sensor there was a shine line where the corner of the swab had gone over it I put a cotton wool bud in there and gave it a few firm rubs and off it came :)
 
i agre - i had something that looked like a scratch on a D70 filter, turned out to be a streak of glue from a poor quality cleaning swab

We got some pec pads, and some iprosol alcohol - and made some swabs, using glue spreadders from hobycraft, double sided tape, pec pads... being really careful to ensure that the double sided tape holding it all together was not near an edge (you use nylon thread too). Within 10 mins, said glue had been cleaned off, and we were back in action. Since than I have made my own swabs, and use the eclipse fluid

Google: pec pads, Eclipse fluid, and somewhere there is a site that explains how to make the swabs - very easy
 
you quite often find that where you go one way then the other with a swab you sometimes get a streak line where the two overlap, it looks exactly like scratch but a little bit of eclipse and another clean soon removes it, it can actually sometimes be quite stubborn to remove aswell, as others have said you have nothing to loose by doing it again so give it a go.
 
Johnny1982 said:
these filters are so tuff I would so so shocked if you have really scratched it.Can you show me a full res example at F16/F22
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Sorry for my nievity (if thats spelt wright) Johnny1982 do you want a full res pic of the sesor or a full res pic of say the sky, to show how the scratch shows up?
 
I think johnny was asking for an image taken with the sensor, not of the sensor.
 
I'm no expert but I had a look at it last night as well with a pen torch and it really does look like a scratch.
If you want to borrow my D70 for a bit Kev, no problem, we can meet somewhere if you want.

Andy
 
Yeah take a picture of the sky with a tiny aperture please.
 
Johnny1982 said:
Yeah take a picture of the sky with a tiny aperture please.
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Or of a white wall which I find better, best done with a tripod as its stopped right down.
 
But how will that help you tell if it is a scratch or grime?
 
Well you never know do you. I have worked on 10s of fithly sensors and I have fully dismantled a Canon EOS350D to convert it to Infrared only so I know what these filters are like.
 
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