What if AI spot removal doesn't see all the spots?
Sunday 21 December 2025, 20:10 by Nando Harmsen | 1,972 views | 2 commentsThis article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.
Does your sensor have spots? Then it is important to remove them from your photos during post-processing. AI can now do this almost automatically. But what if it doesn't remove all the spots automatically? Photoshop might be the answer.
In autumn 2025, automatic spot removal was added to Lightroom, Lightroom Classic and Photoshop. Machine learning techniques are used to recognise spots and remove them in one go.
That saves a lot of work, especially if your sensor is not the cleanest. Unfortunately, it never works completely flawlessly. The pun is intentional. There are often still some spots left. You still have to remove those by hand.
Do you work in Lightroom? Then Photoshop can still come in handy. I will show you using an example with hundreds of sensor spots. The Visualise Spots option makes them clearly visible.
AI spot removal removes many spots. But not all of them. In this example, there are still a lot left. Unfortunately, I cannot apply AI spot removal again or fine-tune it further.
Instead of using Lightroom, you can choose to use AI spot removal in Photoshop. Forget about the spots for a moment and edit the photo to your liking. Then open the photo in Photoshop via the right-click menu and the edit in > Photoshop option.
Is the photo open in Photoshop? Then apply the Camera Raw Filter. There you will find the same AI spot removal as in Lightroom. Apply it and watch the spots disappear. Close the Camera Raw Filter when it is finished.
Are there still spots left? Then simply open the Camera Raw Filter again and run AI spot removal once more. You can do this as often as you like. Finished? Then close the photo in Photoshop. The photo will automatically be added to Lightroom.
Although it should not make any difference, AI spot removal in the Camera Raw Filter seems to produce a better result than in Lightroom. Try it yourself if your sensor has a lot of spots.
But also remember that prevention is better than cure. Does your sensor have so many spots? Then clean the sensor, or have it done. Are you going on holiday, as I was at the time? Check it before you leave.
About the author
Nando Harmsen has been photographing for more than 40 years. He specialises in wedding photography and landscape photography. Nando also gives talks, workshops, masterclasses and photo trips, and regularly reviews new and interesting equipment.
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2 comments
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Paulus van Aken wrote on Wednesday 24 December 2025 at 13:29 | replyGoed stuk weer.
This comment was written in another language and has not been translated yet.
Ik ben nog steeds veel met analoog spul bezig, en daar willen ook nog wel eens (!) vlekjes, stofjes en krassen inzitten. Gebruik daar altijd het snel retouche stempel voor in ps. Werkt lekker vlot, zeker als je, zoals ik, een tekentablet en pen gebruikt.
Zo bont als in jou voorbeeld komt gelukkig weinig voor. -
Nando
wrote on Wednesday 24 December 2025 at 14:11
| reply
Ik heb het sindsdien ook nooit meer zo erg gehad. Ik heb me laten vertellen dat deze camera er meer last van had dan andere. Wat daar van waar is, weet ik niet.
This comment was written in another language and has not been translated yet.
Voor wie het wil weten, het was de Canon EOS 1Dx
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