My Canon 5D MKIII DSLR often does sensor cleaning when powered off and occasionally I'll go through the menu and specifically run a sensor clean when I've been shooting in unusually hazardous environments like caves. But aside from a weird 'bzzt' noise that I hear and the mirror clacking up and down, I actually have no idea how its working on what its doing.
How effective is this compared to say using a blower (or any alternative methods)?
Does 'over cleaning' (manually re-running the sensor clean many times) damage the sensor/mechanics at all?
How does the sensor actually remove dust?
What happens to the removed dust?
What is the most effective AND safest way to clean the sensor?