A Couple Of Quick Tips For The Recommended "End Of Year" Cleaning Of Your Gear

I was looking for something "colorful" on New Year's Day to brighten up a dreary winter
afternoon.  These are Nandina berries from a plant next to my home. (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark II; 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens @ 35mm; 1/40th sec. @ f/10; ISO 400

As I wrote in this post on Monday, at the beginning of each year I recommend taking stock of all your gear, giving it a good looking over, checking all functions for proper working order and giving each piece of gear a thorough cleaning.  Here are a couple of things you might not think of when cleaning your camera bodies and lenses and accessories that you may find helpful.

I blow off the exterior of my cameras with compressed air that contains no chemical accelerants.  After all the loose dust, etc. is gently blown off, I recommend using one of your clean lens cloths to wipe down your camera.  Won't scratch it.

Clean the insides of your front and rear lens caps.  If you don't clean the inside of the rear lens caps, any dust in there can easily transfer to your sensor.  Often times, this is not considered.

I only use a Rocket Blower to blow off my sensors.  I don't use sensor wipes.  If you do, make sure that you have a sensor wipe that is okay for your sensor.  Some chemical formulas are not to be used on some sensors.  Before using the Rocket Blower, I vigorously press the bulb several times to clear any dust or debris that may be adhering to it.  I recommend holding your camera with the lens opening straight down so gravity pulls loosened dust down and it doesn't settle on the sensor.

Do the same when changing lenses.  Stay out of the wind, hold your camera the same way as above to minimize the chances that dust on your sensor and do a little pre-planning to accomplish a lens change quickly.  If it is windy, stand with your back to the wind.  If it is windy and you are in a dirty or sandy location, go inside.

Don't forget to clean your filters.  If you keep them in their original plastic containers, those containers can "outgas" vapors and leave a film on your filters' surfaces.  Kind of like the inside of your automobile's windshield.  I've been out in the field, retrieved a filter to attach it to my lens and saw that the glass surface was really hazy.  Now I always clean them before leaving the house.

To clean glass surfaces on my cameras and lenses, I use Zeiss Lens Cleaning Wipes.  They have always worked very well for me, are inexpensive and are convenient to carry in a pocket in your camera bag.  First, I blow off the glass surface with the Rocket Blower.  
Never wipe the lens with anything until after you have removed loose debris.  It would be terrible to grind some debris into the front of the lens!

Hope this helps!

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Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

Dennis A. Mook 

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