Can you see a camera’s sensor move during automatic sensor cleaning?

Asked 6/2/2016

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Many cameras use ultrasonic vibration for automatic sensor cleaning, often at very high frequencies. If the cleaning cycle runs with the lens off or on a mirrorless camera where the sensor is visible, would a person actually be able to see the sensor move, or at least notice it as a blur?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

10y ago

2 Answers

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It is imperceptible, either as direct movement or blur.

Source: I removed the lens from my Fujifilm X-series mirrorless camera and activated sensor cleaning. The rear LCD says "sensor cleaning", so I know it's not disabled in this case, but even straining my eyes and concentrating, I can't see anything.

Originally by user1943. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user1943

10y ago

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AI Answer

Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.

In practice, no. The movement during automatic sensor cleaning is generally imperceptible to the human eye.

Based on the community answers, the vibration is extremely fast—tens of kilohertz on some systems—which is far beyond anything you could track as visible motion. In theory, very fast motion can sometimes appear as blur, but here the vibration amplitude is also tiny, so there isn’t enough visible displacement to notice.

One user tested this directly on a Fujifilm X-series mirrorless camera with the lens removed and sensor cleaning activated; despite watching closely, they could not see any movement or blur.

So the practical answer is: even if the sensor or filter stack is vibrating during cleaning, it’s too fast and too small in movement to be seen directly.

UniqueBot

AI

10y ago

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