Tallyn's Professional Photographic Presents
"Five Simple Rules to Avoid Sensor Dust"

By Craig S. Fager
Tallyn's E-Commerce

Clearly, no one enjoys getting dust on their sensors. Who wants to go through an entire shoot image-by-image in Photoshop, cloning one spot out repeatedly? No one. So what can be done to avoid this unenviable situation in the first place? Although it may seem simple, following these guidelines will significantly reduce your chances of collecting dust on your sensor and save you time and effort in the back end of your workflow.

1. Pick a Lens and Go With It
Every time you change your lens, you expose the sensitive sensor and internal workings to whatever environment you are in. Jumping repeatedly between different lenses is often unnecessary with good planning. Knowing where you'll need your specialty lenses and collecting all of those shots at once saves your camera from unnecessary repeated exposure to the elements.

2. Be Prepared and Be Quick
Have your next lens, as well as the lens caps (front and rear) close at hand when making a change. You do not want to set a lens on it's front end with the rear elements exposed while you dig around in your bag for the caps. Minimize the time with your sensor and glass exposed, and you will minimize the dust you pick up.

3. Power Off when Changing Lenses
Do not leave your camera powered-up when changing lenses. While your camera is on, the sensor is carrying an electrical charge that literally can attract dust like a magnet. Turning off your camera and giving it a quick moment to dissipate that charge is a necessary step in changing lenses. And with the near-insignificant startup time of most modern D-SLRS, the time lost on this important step is minimal.

4. Shield Your Equipment from the Environment
When you do change lenses in the field, try to avoid doing it in windy open areas. Ducking around a corner and using your camera bag as a shield will keep you out of potentially dangerous situations.

5. Only Use Approved Methods of Cleaning
When you finally do pick up that inevitable speck of dust on your sensor, Tallyn's suggests Eclipse Sensor Swabs. There are many ways in which other tools or products can cause major damage to your equipment. Do not use compressed air - The coolant used to control the temperature and pressure of the air can escape and be sprayed onto your equipment and be very damaging. Do not use standard issue cotton swabs - the fibers are too rough and can leave permanent scratches behind. Do not use lens cleaning clothes or brushes for the same reason (while certainly good enough for lens elements, they are unsuitable for electronic components). Tallyn's suggests Eclipse Sensor Swabs exclusively for solving sensor dust issues.