cleaning a DSLR?

[ZippyDan]

I took my Nikon D3100 on a 9-hour mountain hike/climb

The day was extremely hot, and the trails were extremely dry and dusty. My camera got completely coated in dust.

I tried to keep the lens cap on as much as possible, but of course I took a lot of pictures so it wasn't always on.

What I'm actually most concerned about is the lens itself (standard kit lens). The lens rotates for zoom and focus. Is it possible for dust to have gotten inside the lens via the rotating action? To describe what I'm trying to ask: as you zoom, part of the lens actually extends out of or retracts into itself. If the lens gets coated in dust while fully extended and then I retract it later (which I was doing constantly of course as I shot many pics over the whole hike), then am I not pulling dust into the interior of the lens casing?

I never removed the lens from the body for the whole trip, and in fact I took the camera to the trip already assembled.

 

[CuriousMike]

Good question - I'm curious to hear responses.

I'd also be concerned about the mirror, prism and sensor getting dust.

I had great luck for 4 years without having any visible signs of dust/dirt on my D5000.
And then, I had a piece of grass suddenly show up in my viewfinder - somehow it had made it onto the prism, without me having ever removed the lens.

 

[Syborg1211]

When you consider that every lens "breathes" as it zooms (air being sucked in or blown out because of the movement of the internal elements), dust becomes a much scarier thing. Most regular small dust isn't normally an issue. The real question is whether or not the dirt/dust shows up in your photos. Take a picture of something uniform like a white wall or ceiling and check for spots. The smaller the aperture, the more likely it is to show up.

 

[ZippyDan]

When you consider that every lens "breathes" as it zooms (air being sucked in or blown out because of the movement of the internal elements), dust becomes a much scarier thing. Most regular small dust isn't normally an issue. The real question is whether or not the dirt/dust shows up in your photos. Take a picture of something uniform like a white wall or ceiling and check for spots. The smaller the aperture, the more likely it is to show up.

Thanks for the response. But this is a special case: my lens has been exposed to a tremendous amount of dust all at once. I'd rather be proactive about this. Is it worth getting it cleaned?

 

[Syborg1211]

Well, this isn't something that's going to suddenly happen and then totally ruin all photos taken. It'll be at most a tiny smudge in the photo. I don't see the problem if you don't see it show up in the photos.

You can get the sensor of your camera cleaned for ~100 bucks at a local camera shop. I've never really heard of lens cleanings, but I imagine they are much more expensive - maybe even only done by Nikon.

 

[Throckmorton]

Yeah you're always going to get dust. My brand new A77 has dust on the sensor already.

Just get a good cleaning kit and be prepared to wipe the sensor and mirror. Delkin makes a good one with nice big Q tips