So I decided to give my 5D a proper sensor cleaning before my vacation. I have done this myself before, but since I had run out of sensor swabs, and I wanted it to be a proper cleaning, I gave the job to an authorized Canon dealership. Turns out that was a big mistake.

Now the sensor have more dust on it then it ever had before.

This image is from the second time I picked it up at the dealer. The first job they did wasn’t any good, so I complained and they took another look. I guess I’ll have to ask for a full refund and some sensor swabs so I can take care of this myself now.

I most certainly won’t trust them with my camera again.

Update: They didn’t give me a refund, but they offered to try to clean the sensor again. I declined. Mostly because I need the camera on monday. I did, however, get a few sensor swabs with me. I used two swabs when I got home, and now the camera is ready for action.

I’ve installed Pixelpost as a way to improve my photography. Although it won’t affect my photography directly, it will at least force me to look at my own images on a regular basis. The plan is to publish a new photo every day.

The idea came after reading a blog post from Alexandre Bussie, a French photographer and climber.

Oh, I almost forgot; the link to my Pixelpost-site. It is also placed in the menu of this site.

A few days ago I discovered the blog of travel photographer Timothy Allen. According to himself, he is the person who took all the photos in the “Human Planet” series. A BBC / Discovery co-production. I recommend checking out his work.

Here is a clip from the series.

Check out his personal website here:
http://humanplanet.com/timothyallen/

…and his BBC page here:
http://timothyallen.blogs.bbcearth.com/

A few thoughts and observations using the Yongnuo RF-602 wireless flash transceiver and receivers.

Max Sync Speed

Normally the Canon 5D has a max sync speed of 1/200 of a second, rather than the more usual 1/250, since it has a full frame sensor. When using the RF-602s, the max sync speed is reduced to 1/160 of a second. These numbers may vary depending on your equipment.

As a general rule I would recommend to test this before you go out shooting. Especially if you’re using a new camera, a new set of receivers or flashes.

Connecting the Receiver to the Flash Using a Cable

While the RF-602s works more or less flawlessly when the flash is connected using the hot-shoe on the receiver, using a cable (as shown in the image), may result in some strange behavior. In my case, for example, the receiver will no longer be able to wake up the flash from sleep. I’ve tested this on both my Canon Speedlite 580EX II with the same result.

This can be solved by disabling the sleep function on the flash unit.

Another thing I have observed on a few occasions is that the receivers stop working. I can be resolved by either turning of the flash unit and then turn it back on, or in some cases turn of the receiver and then turn it back on. Again, this seems to be a problem when using a cable instead of the hot-shoe mount.

Securing the Receiver on a Flash Stand

Based on what I’ve written above, you might wonder why I don’t simply use the hot-shoe on the receiver instead of the cable.

While connecting the flash unit to the receiver is no problem, connecting the receiver to a mount is a whole different story. Actually, the problem consists of securing the receiver to the mount. And the last thing you want is your expensive flash hitting the ground because your cheap receiver couldn’t hold on to the flash stand.

However, if you use a screw (like the one used when connection your camera to a tripod) instead of a hot-shoe mount, this shouldn’t be a problem. The important part is to make sure your flash is secure. Do not compromise.