White specks on lens.

I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

could be inside the lense but out of focus when pictures are taken
"Steve Lee" wrote in message
...
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

could be inside the lense but out of focus when pictures are taken
"Steve Lee" wrote in message
...
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 08:41:02 +0000, Steve Lee wrote:

I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. ...

Related to this issue: The first thing that should be done when buying any
new camera is to buy it with a $10 UV or Skylight lens filter and
immediately put that on the lens to protect the original optics.

--
"It said it needed Windows98 or better installed, so I installed Linux."

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 08:41:02 +0000, Steve Lee wrote:

I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. ...

Related to this issue: The first thing that should be done when buying any
new camera is to buy it with a $10 UV or Skylight lens filter and
immediately put that on the lens to protect the original optics.

--
"It said it needed Windows98 or better installed, so I installed Linux."

In article , Steve Lee
writes
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

Don't know what your white specks might be. However, if they are small
and don't cause any degradation of the image, I suggest you may do far
more harm trying to remove them. In general, I am sure inexpert lens
cleaning is one of the major causes of image degradation. The glass and
coatings used for optical equipment tends to be quite soft and easy to
scratch.

If it were mine, I would very carefully try to remove one of them
(preferably one at the edge of the lens) with water or saliva and then
clean the spot gently with a microfibre lens cleaning cloth. If that
worked, I would do the rest; if it had no effect, leave the others
alone. (I might look at the spots under a microscope first in a case
like this.) However, I have been a keen photographer for decades and
have reasonable experience in cleaning lenses. If you do have a go, it
is most important to remove all dust first, with an air duster (use
^upright^ and test on your hand first) otherwise your cleaning cloth
will grind it into the coating. Use a microfibre lens cleaning cloth
^very gently^. Breathing on the lens immediately before applying the
cloth can help to remove oily marks.

In general - only clean a lens when you have to, and then carefully and
gently.

It is most emphatically not harmful to expose glass lenses to sunlight.
However, a UV filter may be a good idea to protect it from fingerprints,
dust, and especially salt water spray and sand on a beach. Remove the
filter and clean it (with a micro-fibre lens cleaning cloth) if it gets
dirty; if it gets damaged, replace it. A lens hood is also a good idea
if the lens will take one.

It is theoretically possible for plastic lenses to be damaged by long
exposure to direct sunlight. However, I have never heard actual examples
of this happening; the amount of time it would take would be very long.
In any case, it is never a good idea to let cameras sit in direct
sunlight unnecessarily, as they will get hot - very bad for film, and
probably not very good for electronics, batteries and plastic bodies
etc. (Not very good for human bodies either.)
--
David Littlewood

In article , Steve Lee
writes
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

Don't know what your white specks might be. However, if they are small
and don't cause any degradation of the image, I suggest you may do far
more harm trying to remove them. In general, I am sure inexpert lens
cleaning is one of the major causes of image degradation. The glass and
coatings used for optical equipment tends to be quite soft and easy to
scratch.

If it were mine, I would very carefully try to remove one of them
(preferably one at the edge of the lens) with water or saliva and then
clean the spot gently with a microfibre lens cleaning cloth. If that
worked, I would do the rest; if it had no effect, leave the others
alone. (I might look at the spots under a microscope first in a case
like this.) However, I have been a keen photographer for decades and
have reasonable experience in cleaning lenses. If you do have a go, it
is most important to remove all dust first, with an air duster (use
^upright^ and test on your hand first) otherwise your cleaning cloth
will grind it into the coating. Use a microfibre lens cleaning cloth
^very gently^. Breathing on the lens immediately before applying the
cloth can help to remove oily marks.

In general - only clean a lens when you have to, and then carefully and
gently.

It is most emphatically not harmful to expose glass lenses to sunlight.
However, a UV filter may be a good idea to protect it from fingerprints,
dust, and especially salt water spray and sand on a beach. Remove the
filter and clean it (with a micro-fibre lens cleaning cloth) if it gets
dirty; if it gets damaged, replace it. A lens hood is also a good idea
if the lens will take one.

It is theoretically possible for plastic lenses to be damaged by long
exposure to direct sunlight. However, I have never heard actual examples
of this happening; the amount of time it would take would be very long.
In any case, it is never a good idea to let cameras sit in direct
sunlight unnecessarily, as they will get hot - very bad for film, and
probably not very good for electronics, batteries and plastic bodies
etc. (Not very good for human bodies either.)
--
David Littlewood

"Steve Lee" wrote in message
...
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

I don't think it will hurt the lens, but it could damage the sensor. My
rule-of-thumb is not to point my digicam at anything so bright that I can't
look at it.

"Steve Lee" wrote in message
...
I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. I tried cleaning them off
with a lens cloth, but none of them even bother to streak, let alone
get cleaned off.

I did not notice these white specks before. There was a very small
and slight finger print that was made on the lens when my little girl
handled the camera (I've since told her that this camera is only for
dad and she can play with the 35mm camera to hear't content) and I was
able to clean that off without too much hassle with the lens cloth.
That was 3 days ago and didn't notice them then.

But I just inspected the lens and just noticed these white specks.
The specks don't show up at all in many different settings I took the
pictures in.

Are these specks supposed to be there and I just haven't noticed them
before or is there something wrong with my lens? I plan to take the
camera to the store I bought it from, but since I bought it from a big
electronics chain store and not a camera specialty shop, I doubt if
they're too informed about these things.

Oh, and while I have your attention, is it harmful to expose my
camera's lens to bright light/sunlight? Someone told me that I should
have filters for my lens if I'll be using it outdoors in sunny
condition to protect the lens. Is this true? Thanks for your time
and courtesy!

I don't think it will hurt the lens, but it could damage the sensor. My
rule-of-thumb is not to point my digicam at anything so bright that I can't
look at it.

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 06:53:39 -0500, Beowulf
wrote:

On Wed, 04 Aug 2004 08:41:02 +0000, Steve Lee wrote:

I just bought a Sony DSC-W1 not two weeks ago and just noticed these
very minute white specks all over the lens. ...

Related to this issue: The first thing that should be done when buying any
new camera is to buy it with a $10 UV or Skylight lens filter and
immediately put that on the lens to protect the original optics.

Oh, I see. So, this UV/Skylight filter then is something I would use
when outdoors on a sunny day or would I use it in general situation,
except perhaps during the night? Thanks.