A method includes: receiving light at an image sensor of a digital camera; generating an image based on the received light; detecting an artifact in the image; determining a blocking area of the sensor based on the detecting the artifact; blocking the light at the blocking area; determining whether the artifact is present in the image after the blocking; in response to determining that the artifact is present after the blocking, determining a new blocking area and repeating the blocking and the determining using the new blocking area; and in response to determining that the artifact is not present after the blocking, saving the image in memory.