Lens Cleaning Question at DVinfo.net

Lucinda Luvaas · July 11th, 2006, 01:06 PM

One more issue to write about:

I was filming yesterday and noticed some dust on my UV filter. I tried using the pen cleaner with the brush on one side and velvet pad on the other. The velvet pad side left a smudge on the lens which hasn't happened before...I wonder if the heat and humidity caused that? I got some lens paper and got rid of it, but does anyone know why that happened? How do I avoid this using the pen?

Greg Boston · July 11th, 2006, 01:57 PM

When I used the lens pen on my still camera, I would push it against a piece of paper and turn it back and forth a bit to remove residue from previous lens cleanings. This seemed to work very well for me.

If you could see dust, first thing you should do is try to blow it off before doing any mechanical cleaning.

-gb-

David Calvin · July 11th, 2006, 02:49 PM

I just got one of those sima lens pens. Brush on one side, wet cleaning system on the other side.

Are they safe to use? They ( the manufacturer) that they are safe for any kind of lens even multiple layer coated lenses.

Any experiences here?

Lucinda Luvaas · July 11th, 2006, 04:29 PM

Hi Greg,

That's a good tip, I'll try it. I did use the blower first and then the brush which helped, but there was a spot that I couldn't blow off or brush off, so I used the pen and it left this scummy film that fortunately I was able to get off with lens paper. I hardly have used the pen side being that the brush and blower have worked nicely up to now. But, I will wipe residue off on lens paper before trying again, altho' I must admit I'm a bit leary of trying again after what happened.

There are so many different opinions about what works best...from using alcohol, to lens paper, to pens, to compressed air, some say compressed air is good, some say it isn't. It's hard to know, without experimenting what works best. I've been experimenting now for some time and still haven't found a quick, safe way to do this.

July 11th, 2006, 01:06 PM	#1
Lucinda Luvaas Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 233	Lens Cleaning Question One more issue to write about: I was filming yesterday and noticed some dust on my UV filter. I tried using the pen cleaner with the brush on one side and velvet pad on the other. The velvet pad side left a smudge on the lens which hasn't happened before...I wonder if the heat and humidity caused that? I got some lens paper and got rid of it, but does anyone know why that happened? How do I avoid this using the pen?

July 11th, 2006, 02:49 PM	#3
David Calvin Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Cupertino, Ca Posts: 63	I was wondering about this too I just got one of those sima lens pens. Brush on one side, wet cleaning system on the other side. Are they safe to use? They ( the manufacturer) that they are safe for any kind of lens even multiple layer coated lenses. Any experiences here?

July 11th, 2006, 01:57 PM	#2
Greg Boston Wrangler Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: DFW area, TX Posts: 6,117 Images: 1	When I used the lens pen on my still camera, I would push it against a piece of paper and turn it back and forth a bit to remove residue from previous lens cleanings. This seemed to work very well for me. If you could see dust, first thing you should do is try to blow it off before doing any mechanical cleaning. -gb-

July 11th, 2006, 04:29 PM	#4
Lucinda Luvaas Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 233	Hi Greg, That's a good tip, I'll try it. I did use the blower first and then the brush which helped, but there was a spot that I couldn't blow off or brush off, so I used the pen and it left this scummy film that fortunately I was able to get off with lens paper. I hardly have used the pen side being that the brush and blower have worked nicely up to now. But, I will wipe residue off on lens paper before trying again, altho' I must admit I'm a bit leary of trying again after what happened. There are so many different opinions about what works best...from using alcohol, to lens paper, to pens, to compressed air, some say compressed air is good, some say it isn't. It's hard to know, without experimenting what works best. I've been experimenting now for some time and still haven't found a quick, safe way to do this.