Cleaning my lens

I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a second. I
can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But the dust just
gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid stuff. Will it hurt to
use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?

--
Message posted via http://www.photokb.com

Just stop fussing over it!! Every time you clean your lens, no matter
how careful you are, you will be leaving micro scratches, eroding the
coating.., and those problems are far worse than dust specks, which are
normally irrelevant. It takes a LOT of dust to affect an image, and
even then, you would probably only notice if you are shooting against
bright light.

Don't use the glasses cleaner, unless it specifically states that it is
safe on coated lenses, and even then, only to remove nasty greasy
smudges! If you must improvise - for the dust, stick with your lens
brush or upgrade it to an antistatic one. Microfibre cloths (ones that
have no polishes or other contaminants) are good for worse problems, eg
greasy fingerprints. When using a cloth or lens tissue, GENTLE is the
word - `huffing` on the lens will help, and the humidity you create
will also reduce the static cling problem.

April Lyons via PhotoKB.com wrote:
I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a
second. I can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But
the dust just gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid
stuff. Will it hurt to use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?

First, don't worry be happy. A little dust is not the end of the world.

How old is that brush? How much dust is now on it? "Tissue?" Is that
lens tissue or what? Fresh lens tissue each time. Tear it in half roll it
up so it forms a brush.

But don't overdo it. Think about the subject more and the camera less.

--
Joseph Meehan

26 + 6 = 1 It's Irish Math

The trick is to get rid of the static charge....Try this...I use it and
it
works...http://www.kinetronics.com/cgi-local...42e+1138571568

Joseph Meehan wrote:
April Lyons via PhotoKB.com wrote:

I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a
second. I can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But
the dust just gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid
stuff. Will it hurt to use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?


First, don't worry be happy. A little dust is not the end of the world.

How old is that brush? How much dust is now on it? "Tissue?" Is that
lens tissue or what? Fresh lens tissue each time. Tear it in half roll it
up so it forms a brush.

But don't overdo it. Think about the subject more and the camera less.

"April Lyons via PhotoKB.com" wrote in message
. ..
I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a second.
I
can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But the dust just
gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid stuff. Will it hurt to
use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?

--
Message posted via http://www.photokb.com
I hate to clean lenses; so what I do is, clean them once, and keep a filter
on them. After that I wash the filter under the faucet, and throw them away
if they get bad. Bob Hickey

"April Lyons via PhotoKB.com" wrote in message
. ..
I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a second. I
can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But the dust just
gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid stuff. Will it hurt to
use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?

None of that stuff you're using is strong enough-- and ignore the other
responses to your question.

Try some 000 or 0000 grade steel wool, that'll fix ya' right up. Make sure
you press hard and move it over the surface in a circular motion.

schreef in bericht
oups.com...
Just stop fussing over it!! Every time you clean your lens, no matter
how careful you are, you will be leaving micro scratches, eroding the
coating.., and those problems are far worse than dust specks, which are
normally irrelevant. It takes a LOT of dust to affect an image, and
even then, you would probably only notice if you are shooting against
bright light.

Don't use the glasses cleaner, unless it specifically states that it is
safe on coated lenses, and even then, only to remove nasty greasy
smudges! If you must improvise - for the dust, stick with your lens
brush or upgrade it to an antistatic one. Microfibre cloths (ones that
have no polishes or other contaminants) are good for worse problems, eg
greasy fingerprints. When using a cloth or lens tissue, GENTLE is the
word - `huffing` on the lens will help, and the humidity you create
will also reduce the static cling problem.

Solvents like isopropylic alcohol (i.p.a.), wich is often used in cleaning
fluid for glasses, are not agressive for coated lenses. The coating
consists of metals, wich cannot solve in i.p.a..
Gijs

April Lyons via PhotoKB.com wrote:
I noticed that my lens on my camera will not stay dust free for a second. I
can clean it with the little brush and with the tissue. But the dust just
gets moved around. I don't have any of the liquid stuff. Will it hurt to
use the cleaner that I bought for my glasses?

Here are my solutions:

For light dust, use a blower bulb. An ear syringe from the drug store
makes a great blower bulb. This cannot harm the lens and is very
effective against light dust.

For really dirty lenses, I use q-tips and 99% isopropyl alcohol.
Dip the q-tip in alcohol and start cleaning gently in the middle
of the lens and work in a circular motion towards the edge. Change
q-tips often, you don't want to rub dirt into the front of your
lens. I would normally use half a dozen q-tips for one lens.
You should not need to do this very often, but I will do this
with a lens bought used or with a lens on which someone has left
their fingerprint.

For in-between jobs, breathe gently on the front of the lens
so that you get a light fog, and clean with a folded fresh piece
of Kodak lens tissue. One package of Kodak tissue should last
many years. If you need more than a blower-bulb on a regular
basis, you should figure out why your lenses keep getting
dirty.

Peter.
--

"Gijs Rietveld" wrote in message
ll.nl...

schreef in bericht
oups.com...
Just stop fussing over it!! Every time you clean your lens, no matter
how careful you are, you will be leaving micro scratches, eroding the
coating.., and those problems are far worse than dust specks, which are
normally irrelevant. It takes a LOT of dust to affect an image, and
even then, you would probably only notice if you are shooting against
bright light.

Don't use the glasses cleaner, unless it specifically states that it is
safe on coated lenses, and even then, only to remove nasty greasy
smudges! If you must improvise - for the dust, stick with your lens
brush or upgrade it to an antistatic one. Microfibre cloths (ones that
have no polishes or other contaminants) are good for worse problems, eg
greasy fingerprints. When using a cloth or lens tissue, GENTLE is the
word - `huffing` on the lens will help, and the humidity you create
will also reduce the static cling problem.

Solvents like isopropylic alcohol (i.p.a.), wich is often used in cleaning
fluid for glasses, are not agressive for coated lenses. The coating
consists of metals, wich cannot solve in i.p.a..
Gijs

I have never tried to clean the coating off of a lens, but I cleaned the
anti-glare coating from my computer monitor, and it was very tough stuff. I
had to soak it in something called, "goo-gone" for several hours, and then
rub it for a long time with a goo-gone soaked rag before it would come off.
None of the other solvents I tried would work at all, including alcohol and
Windex......If lens coatings are that tough, a little brushing with an
artists brush isn't going to hurt them.....

1. Don't use eyeglass cleaner.
2. A little dust won't hurt.
3. Buy a UV or skylight filter for the lens and a BLOWER brush.
4. Buy a bottle of Kodak lens cleaning solution to go along with the
lens cleaning tissues. They are CAMERA LENS CLEANING tissues aren't
they?
5. Follow the directions on the bottle, ie. Blow & brush the lens to
get the dust and grit off. Put one drop of cleaner on a crumpled
tissue. Gently wipe in circles from the center. Dry with another
crumpled tissue. Clean the inside surface of the filter and put it on.
Keeping the clean surfaces face down while working in a fairly dust
free area (bathrooms and kitchens are better) helps. Leave the filter
on and don't clean it too often either.
6. Train yourself to not touch the front of your lens and explain to
your dog while taking those cute wide angle extreme closeups that he is
not to touch your lens with his nose either.