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09-16-2007, 05:17 PM   #1
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anyone had pentax map out stuck pixels?

My Olympus C5060 bridge cam had a feature where it would take a dark frame and then automatically map out any stuck bright pixels. The K100D doesn't seem to have any such feature (does the K10D?) and mine clearly has some that show up in any picture with a dark background. Will Pentax do this for you if you send the camera to them? Anyone had that done? How long does that take, and do they charge anything?

09-16-2007, 05:56 PM   #2
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Though not exactly what you are asking for, your K100D takes a dark frame after long exposures and subtracts it. The feature is one of the first items in the Custom Setting menu and by default it is on. I have not found mention in the manual of what exposure lengths the feature kicks in.

Noise Reduction is mainly to reduce speckles to long exposures, though I presume it will reduce hot pixels as well. I used it a LOT last night taking 1 minute exposures of the night sky for 5 hours with a K110D and 70-210mm manual lens. Without NR the images would be very noisy.

Last edited by LeoTaylor; 09-16-2007 at 05:58 PM. Reason: reworded
09-16-2007, 06:47 PM   #3
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Yeah, I'm not talking about long exposures. These show up at even very high shutter speeds.
09-16-2007, 07:09 PM   #4
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Depending on where you are on your warranty, how nicely you ask, and who ends up looking at your camera, Pentax may remap your sensor for free.

I found that being polite and concise about what you want/need goes a long way.

09-16-2007, 07:35 PM   #5
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I suppose it can't hurt to try. I'd hate to be without the camera for a month, though. I suppose I should call Pentax and ask.
09-21-2007, 11:54 AM   #6
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So, here's what Pentax US e-mailed me back:

Yes, this can be fixed under warranty, assuming you have not physically abused the camera (no cracks in the camera, etc).

Unfortunately, the normal repair time is about 4 weeks from the time we get the camera until the repair is complete, and this does not count shipping in either direction.

I could issue a call tag for you and have UPS pick the camera up from you, but that usually adds time to how long it takes for the camera to get to us.
So, over a month with no camera if I want this fixed.

Of course, the pixels don't show up in bright areas, and are unlikely to be visible at small print sizes. And in dark areas they're usually pretty easy to touch-up if it's in an essential area. But, it's still really ugly.

It's pretty frustrating that there's no in-camera solution for this, and even more frustrating that the turn-around time is so long.
09-21-2007, 02:20 PM   #7
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I suspect Pentax didn't do pixel mapping at all with their DSLRs. The CCD of my DS was replaced by Pentax Japan some months ago and the camera has had about 10+ hot pixels both before and after the replacement, just at different locations. Thank god I shoot RAW only or I might go mad fixing them for every shot.

09-21-2007, 06:02 PM   #8
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QuoteOriginally posted by wlachan Quote
I suspect Pentax didn't do pixel mapping at all with their DSLRs. The CCD of my DS was replaced by Pentax Japan some months ago and the camera has had about 10+ hot pixels both before and after the replacement, just at different locations. Thank god I shoot RAW only or I might go mad fixing them for every shot.
Yes, my impression is they can do it, but don't bother unless you ask. And then they apparently go out of their way to make it painful to have done.
09-22-2007, 08:59 PM   #9
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I have my k10d in for service for dead pixels at the moment... I should be getting it back within the next week or two... I do alot of night photography and low light photography so they were there in just about all my shots. I know the dead pixels can be fixed with cloning in photo shop, but the fact that every time i opend my pictures to look at my eyes would almost subconsciously spot them and they would just jump out at me... i thought about just letting it slide but i realized that because im so anal retentive over things that it was going to prevent me from enjoying the camera as much as i truly could with out the dead pixels there... im sure they will come back with age but at least they will be gone for a good while when i get the body back lol... I figured while its under the warranty i may as well send it in and have it fixed for free, plus i think they run a basic diagnostics on the camera while its there to check for other problems... while my k10d has been gone ive been shooting film with my ME Super... its gotten me back in touch with my photography roots... its been kind of nice actually. Im going to the beach this coming weekend and ill be shooting with the ME Super, my girlfriend is going to bring her ME... Should prove to be a very nice trip =)
12-08-2007, 06:48 PM   #10
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Found way to get rid of hot pixels

I found after hours of searching a post on Steve's DigiCam forums that gave a hint for remapping hot pixels.

The hint was to go to sensor-cleaning mode and leave the mirror up for 30 seconds.

I did this (camera face down to keep dust out, since I don't have a good body cap at present), and tried 20 seconds of mirror-up.

Then I took a shot with the lens cap on the replaced lens, so it would be a completely black shot.

Looking at it in my editing program, and even maxxing the contrast, I saw only one hot pixel where there had been four or five before.

I then repeated the process, waiting 45 seconds with mirror up. After that, I see no hot pixels at all.

Time will tell if this is valid, or just a coincidence, but it's easy, it can't hurt anything if you keep dust out and have pretty fresh batteries, and it seems to have worked for me.

I wish I had called this "Found POSSIBLE Way" etc. but apparently I can't edit the title of my post. So don't consider this gospel by any means, but it seems a safe and promising way to improve things. It had been a LONG time since I cleaned the sensor, and before that I was cleaning it about every week to two weeks, and had very few if any hot pixels. That is suggestive, too.
12-08-2007, 07:54 PM   #11
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Jonrkc, you may be on to something!!! I just tried it and I am not seeing my hot pixel. I tried in jpg mode (not raw), all the way up to 1600. I'll have to try with some more photos but can anyone else confirm. I made sure noise reduction was off!

If this is true, this is outstanding.
12-08-2007, 08:14 PM   #12
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Wow, that sounds pretty intersting Jonrkc. If it really works, it should definitely go into the Knowledge Base forum. I'll give it a try on my *ist DL when I have a chance. I read that older sensors tend to have more hot pixels and my *ist DL definitely seems to have more than my K100D.
12-08-2007, 08:49 PM   #13
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I'm pretty skeptical, since it seems like if this were true, Pentax would not only have told me so when I asked about it, but actively tout it as a feature. Can't hurt, though.
07-26-2008, 10:01 AM   #14
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Does this really work?

So, what's the consensus?
07-26-2008, 12:00 PM   #15
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My K200D has this function in camera. I assume the K20D does as well.
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