The lens of a camera is very important and so when you come to clean your camera lens you need to take care that you don’t damage it.
A camera lens shouldn’t need cleaning regularly, and so as long as you use a lens cap and don’t touch the lens of the camera when handling it you should find that it will stay grit and smear free, however the reality is that every so often it’s going to get dirty and here are some basic tips on cleaning your camera lens in the right way.
There are a few ways that you can avoid damaging your camera lens when you clean it and by far the best is to try to carry out this routine maintenance when you can sit at a table and complete the process carefully and methodically with all of the equipment you need to hand.
Taking care and time will result in a better job being done and a better result for you and your camera.
Remove the dust and dirt that is stuck to your lens first by blowing it and then by gently brushing it away with a soft camel hair brush, if necessary you can get a can of compressed air and use this to clear out any areas that have small pieces of dust and dirt lodged firmly. Make sure you don’t brush or wipe too hard, or you could end up scratching and ruining the lens.
Even though you may not be able to see it, microscopic pieces of stone can cause tiny scratches that can’t be fixed and you’ll only find out about them after you’ve taken your photos.
After every clean I recommend that you take a few test shots of light and bright pictures that will show up any scratches and review them on your PC. The morale of the story is be careful.
There are two common types of cleaners to use to help clean your camera lens in addition to a good microfiber cloth.
If the film built up on the lens is water-soluble, your best option is simply to use distilled water. You can normally get distilled water at your local grocery store, but even breathing on the lens will help. Add a very tiny amount of water onto the cloth, and gently rub over the lens cleaning from the centre and working outwards, afterwards dry the lens with a part of the cloth and remove any excess moisture, spend at least twice the amount of time drying as you did cleaning.
If you need to use a stronger kind of cleaner to clean your camera lens. You can consider using an alcohol based solution. Make sure that it is 100% pure alcohol and there are no additives, or you could damage the lens. Never use things like paint thinners or anything else that’s considered toxic. As with the water only use a very tiny amount of the solution and start from the centre and work outwards. If you use a circular motion when applying and drying then you should find that you remove any excess which can cause streaking on your lens and ruin any future pictures.
Taking care and cleaning your camera lens before dirt has a chance to build up you will help you to get crisp clear pictures throughout the life of the camera.
