How to Clean DSLR Mirror

Keeping your camera in good condition is very important as this would maximize its quality and longevity. The build-up of dust on a camera mirror is occasional and it happens from time to time, whether used or unused. These dust particles usually appear on pictures as tiny blotches. To verify that the dust particles are really coming from the mirror and not from the camera sensor, you have to clean the sensor first through the settings of the camera, or you have to make certain that the viewfinder is free of any filth and debris. If the particles still appear, this is the right time to attempt to clean the mirror of your camera.

Here are some instructions on how to cautiously clean the mirror in your camera:

1. Carefully remove the lens from the camera body and cap it. Remove the body cap if there is no lens attached. You will see that inside the camera, the mirror is located just above the image sensor.
2. If possible, you can attach the camera to a tripod. Securely attach the camera to the tripod with the lens or body cap properly removed.
3. Let the camera face down by tilting the front part. If tripod is unavailable, you can hold the camera at a downward direction. You can have someone help you with it.
4. Now, safely place the tip of the bulb blower inside the camera and introduce a couple of puffs. Dust particles usually fall away to the floor. Be sure that the tip of the bulb does not reach or touch the actual mirror of the camera when you are blowing away the dust particles.
5. Slowly reattach the lens or body cap as this would promote protection to the inside electronics of the camera.

Additional tips:

1. If the above steps do not prove effective in cleaning or removing the particles in the mirror, you can have another approach by using a small camera brush to the mirror. This is composed of a cotton swab to clean the actual mirror. This method should be carefully executed because according to digital photography experts, the slightest scratch on the mirror can certainly cause damage and your camera’s warranty might be in void.
2. If you don’t have enough capacity or courage to clean the mirror by yourself, you can contact a professional technician and let them handle it. Technicians usually clean the mirrors by using some kind of special viscous fluid and they often do it for free at camera stores. Mirrors are very delicate, they have fragile surfaces. You may also want to consider buying a standard lens cleaning solution or cloth to aid you clean by yourself.

The front surface mirrors in a DSLR are indeed very delicate. If it requires necessary cleaning, you should be very careful especially when you are using cotton swabs or lens tissue. It will eventually blow the stubborn grime off. Make sure you have read all steps on how to clean the mirror so that you will be guided accordingly.

Related Cleaning Tips

How did this cleaning tip work for you? Do you have any tips, advice or questions - please let us know below!

Your contribution will help CleaningTips.com grow and provide the best quality tips for others!

Your Name
Your Email Address Your email address is kept private and not shared
Share Your Experience

CMOS Sensor Canon – How to Clean Wednesday 16th of March 2011

[...] in producing quality gadgets and high end devices like digital cameras, printers, video recorder, DSLR to name a few. In fact, Canon has created the largest CMOS sensor available in the market today. [...]