 |
|
|
UER Store
|
|
order your copy of Access All Areas today!
|
|
|
|
Activity
|
|
984 online
Server Time:
2024-05-12 00:38:32
|
|
|
 blackhawk
  
This member has been banned. See the banlist for more information.
Location: Mission Control
UER newbie
 |  |  | Lense and Filter Cleaning 101
< on 5/9/2008 9:59 PM >
|  | | | First always try to use air to clean optics first, if for nothing else, to remove larger debris and abrasives.
Clean lenses and filter with compressed air (low pressure, volume, filtered) or a puffer bulb, a shop vac sometimes is useful, but be very careful around cam bodies with it, and in dry places (ESD). Use air to clean whenever you can; the less you touch the optics, the better.
If that fails, use a good micro fiber cleaning cloth. Use it dry.
Use a single point light source like the sun to spot streaks, avoid circular cleaning motions, instead swipe across using as much of the surface area of the MF cloth as possible with straight or half arc motions.
If you want a fancy cleaner, any good eye glass fluid will work, or a mixture of ammonia water and deionized water. Never use alcohols or solvents.
Sometimes repeated cleanings are needed. Be gentle and patient, have more than one MF cloth on hand, and clean them as needed.
You probably noticed the MF cloth worked at first. If it left streaks after washing it, either soap or hard water is the culprit. Hand wash it and try ammonia water, rinse well with tap water, wring, then use distilled water to flush out the minerals left from the tap water.
Avoid washers or driers that fabric softeners are use in; a very small amount is all that's needed for streak city. Keep the MF cloth is a clean plastic bag or container. Be mindful of contaminating it with hand lotions, etc.
Shake it out before each use.
Use lense hoods and protect your optics as much as is practical. Clean completely after each outing. It's rare I ever need a wet cleaning for a lense or filter. MF clothes when properly used, really are the best! They last a very long time too.
The tools:
Microstar Micro-Fiber 18% Gray Lens Cleaning, use to calibrate WB too.
http://www.bhphoto..._18_Gray_Lens.html
Hakuba Blower Brush Deluxe Large, cheap, effective.
http://www.bhphoto..._Deluxe_Large.html
-or-
http://www.bhphoto...Deluxe_Medium.html
StaticMaster is cool. It's nuclear! Great for static charged dust and particle removal.
http://www.bhphoto...rush_for_Film.html
[last edit 5/9/2008 10:19 PM by blackhawk - edited 1 times]
Just when I thought I was out... they pulled me back in.
|
|
terapr0
    
Location: Sauga City
Gender: Male
www . tohellandback . net
| | | Re: Lense and Filter Cleaning 101
<Reply # 1 on 5/12/2008 4:59 PM >
| | | | The hakuba blower is great....Ive had one for a while and absolutely love it.
Good call on the compressed air as well...I always prefer this as a starting point, as often times it will do 90% of the job, meaning I can spend less time actually touching my glass
just make sure you dont use compressed to clean your image sensor.....Ive heard of some asshats locking up their mirror and blowing the sensor with that shit...while it *may* dislodge hairs or other large objects, chances are also good its going to carry / blow in a whole whack of other airborne particles with it, this time ramming them deep into the sensor and becoming seriously difficult to dislodge later...the tiniest little specks of dust are the most difficult to remove and (in my opinion) the most annoying to look at every fucking picture you take...
wether your cleaning your lens, filter or (god forbid) your sensor, for gods sake, always ensure you hold the can UPRIGHT....you can really mess up your shit if you blow liquified carbon dioxide or oxygen onto anything...except your friends skin / clothing...thats just fun
www.tohellandback.net |
|
blackhawk
This member has been banned. See the banlist for more information.
Location: Mission Control
UER newbie
| | | Re: the use of compressed air...
<Reply # 2 on 5/12/2008 6:04 PM >
| | | | Care must be exercised with the use of a shop vacuum.
NEVER use a shop vac as a source of compressed air... it can sandblast optics with airborne particle, or simply blast delicate assemblies to pieces.
You can use the vacuum sparingly on the outside body, but never on/in the optic chamber!
Avoid placing suction on the viewfinder, or lense ends as it can damage seals and draw dust into the optic assemblies. Avoid contact with glass surfaces.
Avoid use on dry days or if you feel static electricity, ESD can damage/destroy electronics and memory cards.
A small shop vac with a clean, soft brush attachment is useful in removing dust/dirt on the outer surfaces of lense bodies, and cams. I use a damp rag to wipe down afterwards.
Care must be exercised with the use of compressed air.
It should an oil-less compressor (most small ones are) with a water/particle trap, and a pressure regulator on the output stage. A micro filter on the nozzle end is a wise choice, it will reduce the volume as well as pressure, and ensure no high speed projectiles damage optics.
This is the best way to remove dust, but will destroy sub-mirror assemblies, etc if you don't maintain a proper distance with the nozzle.
I maintain a distance of 8-12 inches; never place the nozzle inside or closer than 6 inches (more for higher pressure/volume) fot optic chamber!
Use only as much as is needed, and never use beyond what will cause the webbing between thumb and forefinger to deflect inward.
Use good judgment as you can easily destroy delicate optics and electronics with excessive volume and/or pressure!
You can also cause the migration of dust to areas that are impossible to easily reach such as the pentaprism chamber of the 5D. The rear viewfinder seal is notoriously leaky is this respect, and if you direct the airflow to the focus screen assembly this may also happen. It doesn't permanently damage it, but the spots are annoying.
For cleaning the sensor and lense/filters though compressed air is tops. Always remember to use caution with lense; don't hit the breather vents, and don't force dust beyond the gaskets and seals! A little bit goes a long way, use a sweeping motion for best effect.
The puff bulbs are totally harmless as long as you never place the end inside the optic chamber! Some also have intake particle filter to help blow clean air. The larger plunger style ones are suitable for sensor cleaning.
Prompt dust removable for the sensor will help prevent residues that need wet cleaning from forming. Even after countless dusty hellholes neither my 5D or MK-3 have ever needed a wet cleaning; their sensors are spotless with around 50K of shots between the two bodies.
Just when I thought I was out... they pulled me back in.
|
|
Marko Kovacevic
This member has been banned. See the banlist for more information.
| | | Re: Lense and Filter Cleaning 101
<Reply # 3 on 10/14/2008 10:51 PM >
| | | | Do you prefer lens cleaning tissues [the brands I have is olympus and kodak] or microfiber cloths? I find that the tissues get my lens way cleaner.
www.youtube.com/Markok765
Markokovacevicphotography.blogspot.com |
|
|
|
All content and images copyright © 2002-2024 UER.CA and respective creators. Graphical Design by Crossfire.
To contact webmaster, or click to email with problems or other questions about this site:
UER CONTACT
View Terms of Service |
View Privacy Policy |
Server colocation provided by Beanfield
This page was generated for you in 359 milliseconds. Since June 23, 2002, a total of 741412185 pages have been generated.
|
|
