Lens Cleanliness, care

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DanHD

Well-known member
Hey guys. Got a funny question that's been buggin' me.


How clean do you guys keep your lenses? Spotless? Do you polish them with microfiber cloths everyday and constantly clean them? I find myself doing that so much. Even the smallest dust particle canm show up at small aperatures.
It's buggin the hell out of me i'm always cleaning and cleaning and cleaning the lenses.

But it only shows up with serious lens flare or filming into or around strong specular light.

Should I lighten up on the lens cleaning and not worry?

I mean, is it is bad as I think to have some particles and a bit of dust on the lens?

Does it effect resolution?
 
Don't get compulsive but don't forget about it.
If I shoot toward the sun, I wipe it off. Other than that, I clean it when it's dirty.
I never change exposure because of a spec. I may change framing to hide it.
 
grinner said:
Don't get compulsive but don't forget about it.
If I shoot toward the sun, I wipe it off. Other than that, I clean it when it's dirty.
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Ditto. I also tend to clean only when necessary, much the same with mirrors in film cameras. Also, I don't much like the thought of wiping a lens with a cloth. They tend to get greazy and I'd say you're always better off with a pristine piece of lens tissue and only Panchro lens cleaner when you really need it. I use compressed air more often than lens tissue.

.
 
if you are using filters you do need to get real diligent - with a naked lens I clean at the beginning of a shoot and then whenever shooting into the sun.

use a microfiber cloth and a lens pen for quick touch-up
 
Get a can of compressed air. Too much microfibre cleaning increase the odds of marking your lens. It just takes one small spec of grit on a cloth to wreck the whole front element. Make sure the dust your trying to remove isn't actually inside the lens elements themselves. You'll have to send it back to the manufacturer or approved lens centre if it's dust on the inside.
 
Use a small air bulb rather than compressed air. It's just enough air to blow away a stray particle and won't introduce moisture into the lens.
DO NOT USE COMPRESSED AIR!!!
 
Man I thought it was just me. I recently was shooting with a bit of lens flare and wow, I could not believe the dust in the footage. Everything looked clean before that when I inspected the lens. I think the problem is the UV filter I always shoot with. I think this may increase the dust effect and now I am thinking I should be shooting without one. What do you think?
 
jimpatro said:
Use a small air bulb rather than compressed air. It's just enough air to blow away a stray particle and won't introduce moisture into the lens.
DO NOT USE COMPRESSED AIR!!!
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I don't understand why you think compressed air is bad. If used correctly there's no issues of using compressed air on lenses.

I've been using cans of air for 15 years now on all sorts of lenses from very expensive 35mm Cine Lenses, very expensive 35mm and medium format still lenses and have lost count on how many gates I've cleaned on 35mm & 16mm Cine Cameras and haven't had 1 problem in those 15 years.

If you want to invert a can of compressed air or shake it whilst using it then of course your going to have problems but you should read the label like most things, before you use it.

Back to the original question. The more glass you put in your focal path the more chance/surfaces of introducing contaminants. If you can get away with not using protective glass on the front of your lens then do so.
 
on a video camera use a protective filter only when necessary - they cause myriad problems and provide negligible benefit.
 
I used compressed air for a couple of years and then maybe 20 some odd years not. I learned that harder particles already resting on the lens can cause scratches when impacted by the high pressure. No need to chance it.
 
It has been cinematic practice for years. Do NOT allow any light to strike the front lens element or front mounted filters.

Use Matte box, shade , flags, gobos..whatever.

If you must point at the light...deal with it if you can but its bad photographic practise and made worse by extreme DOF of digital cameras.
 
Really? Never heard that before. It's certainly great advice, and would allow me to avoid these kinds of problems.


Today I had a shoot where I was using a smaller aperature on the HPX170 stock lens and even the tiniest dust particles showed up. Its very frustrating.

So youre saying that no one's lens is spotless, and I should just use whatever means neccessary to avoid direct sunlight?

Do small particles effect lens sharpness or contrast?
 
Shooter said:
It has been cinematic practice for years. Do NOT allow any light to strike the front lens element or front mounted filters.

Use Matte box, shade , flags, gobos..whatever.

If you must point at the light...deal with it if you can but its bad photographic practise and made worse by extreme DOF of digital cameras.
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One mans "bad cinematic practice" is another mans genius. Rule number one, there are no rules when film making.
 
I got me a Tiffen clean glass for protection against the dust in India. Does anybody think its a bad idea to keep it in front of the lens at ALL times? I just like the idea to have a protection and if it gets hit by dirt or scratched, I am safe.

But should I take it off during inside shots? I mean its optical glass from Tiffen, it should not reduce the quality right?
 
Quote: "Rule number one, there are no rules when film making."

Try telling that to the Director and the Producer when you wreck a big scene.


There are plenty of rules in film making but only the talented and experienced know how to break them and get away with it.
 
Shooter said:
Quote: "Rule number one, there are no rules when film making."

Try telling that to the Director and the Producer when you wreck a big scene.


There are plenty of rules in film making but only the talented and experienced know how to break them and get away with it.
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Film Making is a collaboration so I don't see your point about wrecking a big scene and explaining to the director and the producer? Surely they would be involved in the decision on what is required from the scene from the very beginning, No?
 
Well, one rule is: Collaborate with the director. Break that rule and see what happens. Being a rebel for the sake of being a rebel is for kids. Some things can be improved upon but much of the workflow involved in filmmaking has taken many years to tweak. And it generally comes off like clockwork.
 
jimpatro said:
Well, one rule is: Collaborate with the director. Break that rule and see what happens. Being a rebel for the sake of being a rebel is for kids. Some things can be improved upon but much of the workflow involved in filmmaking has taken many years to tweak. And it generally comes off like clockwork.
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I don't see your point. When is collaboration a rule?

Collaborate - 'To work together, especially in a joint intellectual effort'

Where did this 'being a rebel for the sake of being a rebel' thing come from?

My point is - Rules constrict people in the way they see/do things (especially when one grows up). However I like to think of myself as being a big kid. Question, Where would you look for the greatest creative minds to be found on this planet.....ASK ANY KID.

So maybe your point about being a rebel is for kids sums up your own perceptions or lack there of the creative talent/genius you may well lack.

As I've said before one mans bad practice is another mans genius. Rules are there to be broken.

This thread has gone well off track. I can only apologise for this. I hope the original poster has found some sort of answer to his original question.
 
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