How difficult is it to clean the D3X sensor?

[doc4x5]

I'd love to know from all the happy D3x owners out there how much trouble it is to clean the sensor of the D3x, and how often you find it necessary. I realize dusty environments are worse, and living in the relatively moist Pacific Northwest, rain is more of a problem than dust. But even here, in the summer, it can be pretty dry.

I have a D700 and have been quite happy with the automated sensor cleaning compared to my previous D200 and D70. I know it sounds silly, but I would like to spring for a D3x in a few months were it not for the fact that one needs to manually clean the sensor of a $7,500 camera. I have a hard time getting my head around that.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

 

[GrahamWelland]

The D3x is no better or worse than any other camera sensor. The only thing to recognize is that you need to determine yourself how spotless you want the sensor to be because it'll drive you mad if you try to go for zero dust. If you pixel peep you may think that the dust problem is worse than other cameras but that's just because of the resolution and pixel/dust spec size compared to the larger sensor elements of say the D700.

I try to keep to just cleaning with a blower for the most part, perform a dry clean when necessary and occasionally a wet clean if I pick up something stubborn. It can take a few sensor swipes to do the job properly. I typically do a full clean before any significant photo trip but it's not something I have to do constantly.

I'm pretty picky about how clean the sensor is and I occasionally have to dry clean the D700 too as sometimes it'll need it. (I have both D700 & D3x).

I wouldn't worry especially about the D3x and dust. If you've ever used DSLR's before without auto dust off facilities then you'll be right at home.

 

[aboudd]

+1 to Graham's answer. I use the D3x for architectural work where I shoot almost everything between F11 and F22 so the dust really shows up in open areas, like a blue sky. I'll use a blower on occasion, but a wet cleaning is the only thing that gets the gunk off. Like Graham said, it takes about 3 wipes to get the sensor to a fairly clean level. It is easier to remove dust in CS4 as long as it isn't an ugly goober or in the middle of your frame, so relax - go out and spend the $7500 and start working with Nikon's best digital to date.

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