sensor dust issue - Ricoh GR

bigreddog · 03-24-2017, 08:59 PM

howdy all! newbie here and i've got me a problem.
love the ricoh GR but it is a sensor dust magnet.
super tool for my craft, street photography, but i'm on
GR number two right now and it also had sensor dust
and picks up more every time i use it. i treat it with
the love and respect it deserves, and it is never exposed to
dusty environments. don't want to shell out big bucks for cleaning,
and i am not DIY guy. also, i don't want to use bulky lens protector.
p[art of the beauty of the34 GR is that it is pocketable and
always ready to fire at a moment's notice. just wanted some feedback
and suggestions. with ther current sensor dust load i can't go above f8
and noticeable stuff sometimes shows up even at 5.6.

**geomez** · 03-24-2017, 11:30 PM

Same problem. I too am on my second. And I'm ultra protective about where I store it and use it.
If you don't want to do DIY and you don't want to pay Precision to clean it, I'm afraid you don't have many other options. I know forum members have successfully cleaned their own with success. Maybe you can slip someone some cash in exchange for a cleaning?

I've sitting here patiently waiting for a GR III with that problem solved.

Here's a link to some members that have had success and shared their experiences.

Disassembling GR for sensor cleaning - PentaxForums.com

BTW, welcome to the forum

bigreddog · 03-25-2017, 11:12 AM

thanks much for the info geomez

yeah, i would be willing to spend a bit to get a cleaning done, but i don't see how that would
solve what i see as a basic engineering flaw. don't wanna have to be doing that regularly.
on the other hand, i truly love this camera, it is all i need for stree5 fotos, and i am not spending
$ on film now (my canonet q17 is gathering dust, so to speak). so maybe i could justify the
cost of a periodic cleaning that way. have you had any experience with Precision?

Eyewanders · 03-27-2017, 03:34 PM

How do you store it when it isn't turned on? Maybe I'm just lucky but these threads have always baffled me. I've never had a spec of dust (knock on wood over and over and over!) on my GR's sensor and mine was a first run pre-order of the original model. I store mine in a mircofiber sunglass pouch wit a draw string at the top (the kind that come with 50% of sunglasses. Also put it (sometimes still in the pouch, sometimes not) in a small Lowepro zip case if its not gonna be used much or if I'm just throwing it in a backpack. I guess I should thank my stars I haven't been hit with it yet.
At any rate - if the spot is always in the same location (as it well should be), you can clone brush it out in Lightroom and then just sync that change across every photo in your import batch.

bigreddog · 03-27-2017, 07:44 PM

howdy chickentender

well, i bought the camera from b&h for a good price. when i got it,
first thing i checked was shutter count (@12,00). then i throttled down to f16
and took a photo of a sheet of white paper. result: maybe 50 dust spots
and fibers scattered all over the sensor. i decided to see if i could live with
that restriction, but even at f5.6, on more uniform grounds, a lot of the stuff
is very visible. so, since it has a warranty, i can return it, but i love everything
else about the camera. my other choice is to have it cleaned by a reputable
place that won't set me back too much, so i guess my main question at this
point is, can anyone recommend a good place to get the sensor cleaning done.
then, when i get it back, i can baby it like you do with yours.

03-24-2017, 08:59 PM	#1
bigreddog New Member Join Date: Mar 2017 Posts: 3	sensor dust issue - Ricoh GR howdy all! newbie here and i've got me a problem. love the ricoh GR but it is a sensor dust magnet. super tool for my craft, street photography, but i'm on GR number two right now and it also had sensor dust and picks up more every time i use it. i treat it with the love and respect it deserves, and it is never exposed to dusty environments. don't want to shell out big bucks for cleaning, and i am not DIY guy. also, i don't want to use bulky lens protector. p[art of the beauty of the34 GR is that it is pocketable and always ready to fire at a moment's notice. just wanted some feedback and suggestions. with ther current sensor dust load i can't go above f8 and noticeable stuff sometimes shows up even at 5.6.

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03-24-2017, 11:30 PM	#2
geomez Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Roanoke, Virginia, USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,760	Same problem. I too am on my second. And I'm ultra protective about where I store it and use it. If you don't want to do DIY and you don't want to pay Precision to clean it, I'm afraid you don't have many other options. I know forum members have successfully cleaned their own with success. Maybe you can slip someone some cash in exchange for a cleaning? I've sitting here patiently waiting for a GR III with that problem solved. Here's a link to some members that have had success and shared their experiences. Disassembling GR for sensor cleaning - PentaxForums.com BTW, welcome to the forum

03-25-2017, 11:12 AM	#3
bigreddog New Member Join Date: Mar 2017 Posts: 3 Original Poster	thanks much for the info geomez yeah, i would be willing to spend a bit to get a cleaning done, but i don't see how that would solve what i see as a basic engineering flaw. don't wanna have to be doing that regularly. on the other hand, i truly love this camera, it is all i need for stree5 fotos, and i am not spending $ on film now (my canonet q17 is gathering dust, so to speak). so maybe i could justify the cost of a periodic cleaning that way. have you had any experience with Precision?

03-27-2017, 03:34 PM	#4
Eyewanders Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Land of the Salish Sea Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,343	How do you store it when it isn't turned on? Maybe I'm just lucky but these threads have always baffled me. I've never had a spec of dust (knock on wood over and over and over!) on my GR's sensor and mine was a first run pre-order of the original model. I store mine in a mircofiber sunglass pouch wit a draw string at the top (the kind that come with 50% of sunglasses. Also put it (sometimes still in the pouch, sometimes not) in a small Lowepro zip case if its not gonna be used much or if I'm just throwing it in a backpack. I guess I should thank my stars I haven't been hit with it yet. At any rate - if the spot is always in the same location (as it well should be), you can clone brush it out in Lightroom and then just sync that change across every photo in your import batch.

03-27-2017, 07:44 PM	#5
bigreddog New Member Join Date: Mar 2017 Posts: 3 Original Poster	howdy chickentender well, i bought the camera from b&h for a good price. when i got it, first thing i checked was shutter count (@12,00). then i throttled down to f16 and took a photo of a sheet of white paper. result: maybe 50 dust spots and fibers scattered all over the sensor. i decided to see if i could live with that restriction, but even at f5.6, on more uniform grounds, a lot of the stuff is very visible. so, since it has a warranty, i can return it, but i love everything else about the camera. my other choice is to have it cleaned by a reputable place that won't set me back too much, so i guess my main question at this point is, can anyone recommend a good place to get the sensor cleaning done. then, when i get it back, i can baby it like you do with yours.