What is causing image problem?

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211dave112

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Name
David
Edit My Images
Yes
Sorry for the vague title, hard to explain but I'm getting a mark on some of my photos such as below (ignore the pic, it was the one that showed the problem best)


Nuffield 5 by djbrazier, on Flickr

It's the 'V' to the left of the bird. Any ideas what this could be? It seems to be happening at higher apertures (F11+) and doesn't happen with the aperture wide open.

Using a EOS450d with the 18-55mm kit lens.
 
Hi David,

As mentioned, it's dirt (or in this case what seems to be a hair) on your sensor. Unfortunately stuff on the sensor is just a part of life for every DSLR user and while it seems terrible at first it's really nothing to worry about, it's more an inconvenience than something that causes damage. Acquire yourself one of these:

http://www.parkcameras.com/9264/Gio...rrer=Froogle&gclid=CNahys3d4LYCFdQctAod0zgA7Q

Somewhere in your camera menu there'll be a Sensor Cleaning mode which will flip the mirror and open the shutter, allowing direct access to the sensor. Find the least dusty place you can (possibly the bathroom but make sure no-one's had a bath or shower lately so there's no moisture in the air). Activate Sensor Cleaning mode, take the lens off, hold the camera so the lens mount is facing the floor and give maybe 2-3 blows inside the mirror box making sure you don't prod anything in there with the end of the rocket blower. Turn the camera off to cancel cleaning mode, mount the lens again, stop down to something like f/20 and take a photo of clear blue sky or something white like a sheet of paper or a white wall. With any luck the hair should have gone. You might still be left with a few little dust spots like the one just above the bird in your photo, but they're easily taken care of in photo editing software and aren't really worth getting rid of unless there are a lot of them.

Just one thing to be aware of is that sometimes when you have a hair on the sensor and you use a rocket blower to try shift it you might actually only move it to another place like the side wall of the mirror box. It might reappear again a few days down the line and you might need to repeat the process but eventually it should make it's way out of there. :)
 
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