just received my K-5 , dots on viewfinder

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 12:32 PM

Hi, just received it from Adorama. Lens will arrive on Monday. Before doing anything, without battery, I looked through the viewfinder. Two tiny and sharp dots, almost as fine as lines in viewfinder are seen. One is slightly more contrasty than the lines and is close to the outer vertical line. What is this ?

**TER-OR** · 03-23-2012, 12:38 PM

Artifacts of the display, maybe? I'd see what it looks like once you power up.

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 12:42 PM

Should the battery be fully charged to see if it changes this ? I think It will take really long to charge completely.

SpecialK · 03-23-2012, 12:45 PM

Those are probably little specks of dust that can be removed with the Giotti rocket blower you should buy.

**TER-OR** · 03-23-2012, 12:46 PM

I wouldn't think so, but I know they suggest you fully charge the battery the firs time. This may have more to do with the lithium battery than the camera. Be patient. Remember, the viewfinder is looking at a mirror and prism blending several light paths etc. which may cause it to look different without power.

Now you have me curious, I'll have to look through the VF after removing the battery.

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 12:49 PM

So I wait for full battery charge.

SpecialK, I ordered the big Giotti rocket blower that UPS delivered with K-5 body. I used it for some blows (no experience, is there a specific technique ?) but nothing happened.

**crewl1** · 03-23-2012, 12:58 PM

Stuck my iphone up to my k-5 vf to take a look. I have them too - it is dust. get a big rocket blower as mentioned above, you will need one anyway.

BTW these are not noticeable when you put a lens on, and unlike sensor dust do not affect the picture.

Attached Images

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 01:00 PM

Crewl1, thanks for the effort, it is exactly what I see. As mentioned I have the blower but could not remove these.

If this is not sensor dust, what other kind of dist is it ? On the mirror ?

maltfalc · 03-23-2012, 01:01 PM

wrong ter-or, just wrong. there's no blending of several light paths in the viewfinder and it works exactly the same with or without power, except for the focus confirmation dots and the display at the bottom. kamisu just has dust on her focus screen.

blind-bat · 03-23-2012, 01:01 PM

Sounds like you don't have a lens on the camera. My advice is don't power this up without a cover or lense. If you do, you will attract dust into the body very quickly. You should run a dust removal cycle a few times holding your camera lens side down and then turn off the camera, remove the cap and look to see if the dots are still there. If they are, then raise the mirror and use the blower.

**crewl1** · 03-23-2012, 01:05 PM

kamisu I would not worry about it, like I said - once the lens is on you will not notice them.

They could be on the other side of the focus screen if the blower did not dislodge. The focus screen is delicate so don't try anything else but the blower.

The other advice from Blind-bat is for sensor cleaning. These are not on the sensor so you don't need to do any of that now.

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 01:54 PM

I tried some more blows, but the dots are still there. I will check if with battery this will change, when the battery is charged, also should wait till monday to try the Tamron 17-50.

After complete recharge and without lens, can I take pictures with lens cap on to check the shutter count ? Before that I intend to update the firmware to 1.13.

JinDesu · 03-23-2012, 02:00 PM

You can take pictures to check the shutter count, yes. It can take pictures without a lens. You would import the photo and use something like PhotoMe (google this) to check the EXIF for the shutter count.

You can also update without any issue.

The dots may be dust on TOP of the focusing screen (you have access to the bottom). I have a bunch on my screen - no amount of wiping or blowing will dislodge it. Smaller dots tend to be impossible to see once you have a lens on. I have a few larger ones that I have grown to ignore.

kamisu · 03-23-2012, 02:07 PM

So no one considers this serious to try replacing the camera ?

pezmaker · 03-23-2012, 02:09 PM

Originally posted by JinDesu

You can take pictures to check the shutter count, yes. It can take pictures without a lens. You would import the photo and use something like PhotoMe (google this) to check the EXIF for the shutter count.

You can also update without any issue.

The dots may be dust on TOP of the focusing screen (you have access to the bottom). I have a bunch on my screen - no amount of wiping or blowing will dislodge it. Smaller dots tend to be impossible to see once you have a lens on. I have a few larger ones that I have grown to ignore.

Indeed, ignore this. I learned the hardway that focus screens are delicate and that you can learn quickly to ignore these small flecks of dust that won't affect the image because they're not in path of the sensor. If you don't learn to ignore these guys, you're likely going to do something that will cause you to need to learn to ignore longer trails and dings you put in it with your rocket blower and other items.

So, ignore it. It's minor, it's really nothing, and pretty much every camera will have these. When you have a lens on, you shouldn't notice them, though now you might just because you know they're there.

03-23-2012, 12:32 PM	#1
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130	just received my K-5 , dots on viewfinder Hi, just received it from Adorama. Lens will arrive on Monday. Before doing anything, without battery, I looked through the viewfinder. Two tiny and sharp dots, almost as fine as lines in viewfinder are seen. One is slightly more contrasty than the lines and is close to the outer vertical line. What is this ?

03-23-2012, 12:49 PM	#6
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130 Original Poster	So I wait for full battery charge. SpecialK, I ordered the big Giotti rocket blower that UPS delivered with K-5 body. I used it for some blows (no experience, is there a specific technique ?) but nothing happened. Last edited by kamisu; 03-23-2012 at 12:58 PM.

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03-23-2012, 12:38 PM	#2
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	Artifacts of the display, maybe? I'd see what it looks like once you power up.

03-23-2012, 12:42 PM	#3
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130 Original Poster	Should the battery be fully charged to see if it changes this ? I think It will take really long to charge completely.

03-23-2012, 12:45 PM	#4
SpecialK Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: So California Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,480	Those are probably little specks of dust that can be removed with the Giotti rocket blower you should buy.

03-23-2012, 12:46 PM	#5
TER-OR Site Supporter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Dundee, IL Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 6,699	I wouldn't think so, but I know they suggest you fully charge the battery the firs time. This may have more to do with the lithium battery than the camera. Be patient. Remember, the viewfinder is looking at a mirror and prism blending several light paths etc. which may cause it to look different without power. Now you have me curious, I'll have to look through the VF after removing the battery.

03-23-2012, 12:58 PM	#7
crewl1 Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Los Angeles, CA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,807	Stuck my iphone up to my k-5 vf to take a look. I have them too - it is dust. get a big rocket blower as mentioned above, you will need one anyway. BTW these are not noticeable when you put a lens on, and unlike sensor dust do not affect the picture. Attached Images

03-23-2012, 01:00 PM	#8
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130 Original Poster	Crewl1, thanks for the effort, it is exactly what I see. As mentioned I have the blower but could not remove these. If this is not sensor dust, what other kind of dist is it ? On the mirror ?

03-23-2012, 01:01 PM	#9
maltfalc Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Winnipeg Photos: Albums Posts: 396	wrong ter-or, just wrong. there's no blending of several light paths in the viewfinder and it works exactly the same with or without power, except for the focus confirmation dots and the display at the bottom. kamisu just has dust on her focus screen.

03-23-2012, 01:01 PM	#10
blind-bat Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: NYC Posts: 256	Sounds like you don't have a lens on the camera. My advice is don't power this up without a cover or lense. If you do, you will attract dust into the body very quickly. You should run a dust removal cycle a few times holding your camera lens side down and then turn off the camera, remove the cap and look to see if the dots are still there. If they are, then raise the mirror and use the blower.

03-23-2012, 01:05 PM	#11
crewl1 Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Los Angeles, CA Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,807	kamisu I would not worry about it, like I said - once the lens is on you will not notice them. They could be on the other side of the focus screen if the blower did not dislodge. The focus screen is delicate so don't try anything else but the blower. The other advice from Blind-bat is for sensor cleaning. These are not on the sensor so you don't need to do any of that now.

03-23-2012, 01:54 PM	#12
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130 Original Poster	I tried some more blows, but the dots are still there. I will check if with battery this will change, when the battery is charged, also should wait till monday to try the Tamron 17-50. After complete recharge and without lens, can I take pictures with lens cap on to check the shutter count ? Before that I intend to update the firmware to 1.13.

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03-23-2012, 02:00 PM	#13
JinDesu Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: New York City Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,638	You can take pictures to check the shutter count, yes. It can take pictures without a lens. You would import the photo and use something like PhotoMe (google this) to check the EXIF for the shutter count. You can also update without any issue. The dots may be dust on TOP of the focusing screen (you have access to the bottom). I have a bunch on my screen - no amount of wiping or blowing will dislodge it. Smaller dots tend to be impossible to see once you have a lens on. I have a few larger ones that I have grown to ignore.

03-23-2012, 02:07 PM	#14
kamisu Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Iowa Posts: 130 Original Poster	So no one considers this serious to try replacing the camera ?

03-23-2012, 02:09 PM	#15
pezmaker Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Madison, WI Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 276	Originally posted by JinDesu You can take pictures to check the shutter count, yes. It can take pictures without a lens. You would import the photo and use something like PhotoMe (google this) to check the EXIF for the shutter count. You can also update without any issue. The dots may be dust on TOP of the focusing screen (you have access to the bottom). I have a bunch on my screen - no amount of wiping or blowing will dislodge it. Smaller dots tend to be impossible to see once you have a lens on. I have a few larger ones that I have grown to ignore. Indeed, ignore this. I learned the hardway that focus screens are delicate and that you can learn quickly to ignore these small flecks of dust that won't affect the image because they're not in path of the sensor. If you don't learn to ignore these guys, you're likely going to do something that will cause you to need to learn to ignore longer trails and dings you put in it with your rocket blower and other items. So, ignore it. It's minor, it's really nothing, and pretty much every camera will have these. When you have a lens on, you shouldn't notice them, though now you might just because you know they're there.