Table of Contents
Introduction
It doesn’t matter whether you mainly take photos on a smartphone, compact camera, drone, or DSLR…keeping the camera lens clean means sharper photos. It also means you won’t be wasting your time editing away pesky dust spots from your images. There’s not much sense in buying good quality equipment if your photographs contain imperfections from dirt and smudges on the lens. All of these types of cameras will attract some dust, fingerprints, and stains from water droplets, and they need to be removed with care, otherwise, you’re likely to damage your lens and you’ll end up with an expensive repair bill.
Smartphones: The camera that you carry around with you everywhere is technically advanced and highly sophisticated, but most people take them so much for granted that they end up dragging them in and out of their pockets on a continual basis. It’s not surprising that the lens quickly becomes covered in dust. When the phone rests against the makeup on your face, and fattiness from food makes its way onto your hands, it’s easy to see how the lens on your smartphone becomes covered in smudges and fingerprints. This means your photographs end up cloudy and unsharp, or they are full of glare whenever you shoot towards bright light. Luckily, smartphones have a tough piece of glass covering the actual lens, so it rarely collects scratches, but it still needs a clean every now and then.
To make your smartphone lens spotless, simply breathe onto that area of glass to add a little condensation and then wipe it dry with a microfiber cloth. Softly rub the glass in a circular motion and it’ll clear up quickly. Use the corner of this microfiber cloth to get into the edges of the lens. Remember to clean the lens on the other side of the phone too. The selfie camera on the front of the screen is tiny, and it only takes a fingerprint to ruin the photo of a potentially-beautiful memory, so wipe it often. And finally, don’t forget to clean the flash. It’s positioned next to the lens and when it’s covered in grime the intensity of the brightness can be reduced. Don’t be tempted to use chemicals or abrasive cleaners to remove marks on a smartphone lens; you’ll just cause more problems — a microfiber cloth is enough for this type of device.
Drones: Whizzing through the sky over land and sea means your drone will sometimes return with a dirty lens on its camera. And since most drone photographers want crystal clear aerial shots, it pays to clean the lens properly before each flight. A product called the Polar Pro Drone Pen is a combination of a lens cleaning pad and a brush. It’s specifically designed for drones and the neutral density filters that they sometimes use over the lens. The brush will move aside dust and dirt, whereas the pad on the other end of the pen holds a carbon-cleaning compound that safely removes oily grime from the lens. Fingerprints can be removed with the wipe of a microfiber cloth.
Compact Camera Care: Most compact cameras have a built in zoom lens which extends when the power is on, and retracts when the camera is turned off. For this reason, most people forget to check the lens when they activate the camera because they are busy getting ready to take a photo, and then it disappears behind the lens cover when it’s switched off. This is why they are surprised when their photos don’t turn out as clear and sharp as they thought they would; they don’t realize how many fingerprints are covering the front of the lens. And it’s so easy for people to accidentally smear the lens in oily residue when their fingers accidentally rub against it when they pick it up the wrong way, or when children (with their sticky fingers) play with it as if it’s a toy. Further along in this article we’ll deal with the four main steps you can take to clean the lens of a compact camera and a DSLR.
DSLR / Mirrorless Cameras: Serious photographers use a DSLR or a mirrorless camera, and they are the ones who are most particular about keeping their camera lens clean in order to get the best results. Each of the techniques explained in the rest of this article are relevant to any device with a camera lens, but they are especially appropriate for the lenses on DSLR and mirrorless cameras due to the high precision optics that are usually associated with these lenses. The only extra thing to mention before we start is that when cleaning the interchangeable lens of a DSLR or mirrorless camera, remember to detach it from the body of the camera and check whether the other end of the lens is affected by any dust or smudges, and use the same processes to clean the glass on that end too. Now, let’s get down to business!
Step 1: Blow it Away
The simplest method is often the best, and when it comes to cleaning a camera lens, blowing dust away from the surface of the lens with your breath is going to work well most of the time. Using your breath means there’s no physical contact with the front of the glass, so there’s no risk of scratching the lens. However, no matter how hard you blow through your lips, there’s only a small amount of air pressure available, so it’s only the lightest of particles that are going to be pushed aside. When you take into account any static electricity holding the dust to the glass, you’ll soon realize that more often than not you’ll need something more substantial to deliver a decent blast of air. This is where a proper lens cleaning blower, such as the Hurricane or a Rocket blower can work miracles.
Large, brushless, bulb-like blowers such as the Hurricane or Rocket just require a quick and forceful squeeze in order to squirt a jet of clean air through their nozzle. This air will blast away stubborn bits of dust and larger pieces of grit or sand. When purchasing a blower, look for the type that has a dust filter on the intake area of the device, and this will ensure that you are not circulating the same bits of dust back onto the lens. And don’t bother with a small blower; get a large one for the best result.
Before you start wiping the lens with a cleaning cloth, you need to make sure that all solid debris have been removed from the lens, or they’ll leave scratches on the glass. Keep one of these brushless blowers in your camera kit at all times; they are cheap and handy gadgets that make it easy to remove dust from the surface of the lens, as well as areas that are more difficult to access, such as the filter ring. Just remember to avoid touching the delicate glass of the lens with the end of the blower, or you may mark the protective coating that the manufacturer has put across the lens.
These manual blowers are better than cans of compressed air because microscopic drops of chemicals in the compressed air could land on the front element of your lens and cause extra problems. Being under considerable pressure, the air from these cans could also shoot dust into the seams around the lens element and the filter ring. Manual air blowers are safer than cans of compressed air because the puff from a manual blower isn’t as pressurized as canned air, yet it’s tough enough to make a difference.
After you have cleaned up your lens, look inside your lens cap and blow that area too. It would be a waste of time to remove all the dust from your lens and then put a dirty lens cap over the top of it again. Your camera bag is another haven for dust and specks of sand; occasionally use a vacuum cleaner to remove all those particles that could eventually find their way onto your lens again.
Step 2: Brush it Away
Regardless of how hard you squeeze a blower, some bits of grunge is going to be too stubborn to shift in this way. These larger blobs that are difficult to remove are probably the ones causing the main ‘soft’ spots on your images, so you have to take the next step and try to brush them away. But don’t use any old brush! Proper lens brushes that are designed for cameras have bristles made from soft, thin, camel hair which won’t damage the glass. Gently swirl the brush around the surface of the lens until you’ve removed any loose dust. Move it in a gentle, circular motion. Make sure you also brush around the edges of the lens where dust likes to gather and then use your blower again to remove the dust and muck that has been dislodged by the brush.
And when you are using your brush, avoid touching the bristles with your fingers because the natural oiliness of your hands can stick to the brush, and when you move it across your lens you are likely to put a smear on the glass. Store your blower brush in a sealed plastic bag to keep it clean; don’t just throw it into your camera kit and expect it to maintain its purity.
Almost identical to the Polar Pro Drone Pen is the Retractable Brush Pen that most camera shops sell. The brush slips back into the casing when you’ve finished using it, meaning that it is safely stored away and this removes the possibility of it collecting dust between uses. At the other end of the pen is a cleaning pad that is impregnated with an invisible carbon compound that safely and easily gives the lens a final polish as you rub it against the glass. The cleaning compound is located in the cap of the pen and each time you replace the pen into the cap, give it a twirl and the pad is instantly replenished with the carbon cleaning agent in readiness for its next job. The curved shape of the cleaning tip glides over the surface of convex lenses, maximizing the surface area that is being shined. For best results, keep the pressure light and be patient. The pen is small enough to slip into a pocket of your camera bag and you’ll find yourself reaching for it often. With a long life of around 500 applications, it’s the ideal cleaning tool that every serious photographer should be carrying around with them whenever they go shooting outdoors. It’s safe for all types of lenses, including those featuring multi-coated surfaces, and you can also use it to clean other optics such as binoculars and telescopes.
Now that your lens is free from dust, it’s time to tackle any other marks that could be causing ‘soft’ areas on your images. High-pressure air from a blower, and moving a soft brush across the lens won’t fix fingerprint smudges and other smears; special lens cleaning fluid and wipes are required to shift those problem areas. Let’s look at those now.
Step 3: Rub it Away
The surface of our skin contains more oils and moisture than you can imagine, so it’s not too surprising that the front of the camera can be tagged with a fingerprint occasionally. Fingerprints on the lens can’t be removed by a blower or a brush, so they have to be dealt with using a lens cleaning fluid. Most lens cleaning agents dry quickly without leaving any streaks. But don’t use fluids too often as there’s a slight risk that they will affect the special protective coating that is put on the front of the lens by the manufacturer. And it’s important to remember not to squirt the cleaning fluid straight onto the lens — simply place a drop onto a lens cleaning cloth and gently rub the lens in a circular motion. If you drip the fluid straight onto the lens, the liquid might run into the gap at the edge of the glass. And if it gets on the inside of the front element it could leave a light residue that would be impossible to access.
It’s tempting to take the lens cleaning fluid that you’ve used on your spectacles and use them on your camera too, since glass is glass, right? Wrong! Eye glasses and camera lenses are very different; they have varying optical properties. Spraying standard cleaning fluid for eye glasses on a camera lens can ruin the special coatings that manufacturers put on the top element of the lens.
One of the best types of fluids to use on a camera is Zeiss Liquid Lens Cleaner. Simply put a drop or two onto a lens cleaning cloth and rub the lens gently. Zeiss also have pre-moistened Lens Cleaner Wipes which are ultra convenient. They are individually wrapped and provide spotless results. Rather than risking the possibility that your cleaning cloth already contains grit, these sachets of specialist material are ideal for worry-free cleaning. They are designed for single-use, so they are a bit wasteful, but they take up minimal space in your camera bag and they leave a crystal clear finish.
Another great alternative is Purosol. It’s a natural solution based on plant extracts, and the manufacturer states that it changes the molecular bonds that hold dust and mineral deposits to the surface of the lens. It doesn’t leave streaks or any hint of residue. Most important of all is that it doesn’t contain harmful solvents, alcohol, ammonia, or acids that could damage coated lenses. Purosol was originally designed for cleaning precision optics during NASA’s space missions, so it must be good!
Step 4: Wipe it Away
Finish off your cleaning with a gentle bit of a wipe using a clean microfiber cloth. The microfiber material incorporates a special weave that captures fine particles of dirt and oil, yet it is soft enough to use on a high quality lens. Make sure though, that you only use the microfiber cloth once, then give it a wash before using it on your lens again. But don’t just throw it into the washing machine with your other laundry items. Washing these cloths with other fabrics can ruin the fibers of your microfiber cleaning cloths by abrading the fibers and leaving lint on the surface of the cloth. Using fabric softener ruins microfiber cloths because the chemicals in it tend to coat the fibers of the cloth, clogging the open spaces in the weave and making the fabric useless. And residue from fabric softener will leave streaks on your lens. The best way to refresh your microfiber cloths is to soak them in a mild detergent, agitate them, then rinse them in clean, hot water.
When you are using a microfiber cloth on your lens, be careful not to press too hard. If you haven’t managed to blow away all of the grit from the glass, you could be pushing it around and scratching the surface. When you have your face pressed against the back of the camera you’re likely to end up with some oiliness on the LCD screen, so a separate microfiber cloth can be used for cleaning that part of your camera too.
Some microfiber cloths, such as the Visible Dust Magic Cleaner Cloth, have been specifically designed for camera lenses. This type of specialist cloth has an ultra-fine 0.1 denier microfiber weave and it is sensationally soft. It’s a highly recommended piece of cleaning equipment for your cleaning kit.
It probably goes without saying that you should never use facial tissues on a lens. Even though they look soft, they are actually abrasive and contain fragrances and other additives that can harm a lens. Normal cleaning cloths may seem soft enough to use on a lens, but they will shed fibers that have to be wiped away with a microfiber cleaner anyway. Microfiber cloths should be regarded as an essential part of your camera gear, so always carry a couple of clean ones, especially when you are shooting on location.
Extra Tips
We’ve talked a lot about how to remove dust and smears from your camera, but it’s probably even more important to understand how you can avoid getting spots and marks on your lens in the first place. The most obvious of these ideas is to make sure you replace your lens cap when you are not actively shooting. This may seem fiddly, especially if you know you are going to use the camera again in a few minutes, but during that period of time the lens can attract grit and grime, or it could be knocked and damaged, especially if you are traveling in an area with a lot of tourists jostling to get the best spot for a picture. And if you are changing lenses, make sure you also place the rear lens cap into position before you put the lens away in your camera bag, or dust is sure to be attracted to it.
When you buy a new lens, purchase a high quality, protective UV filter at the same time. Put this filter onto your lens straight away; it’s a form of insurance against damage. Cameras get bumped, brushed against, and dropped — not many people can say they haven’t had one or all of those things happen to their camera! A UV filter is often the difference between a small repair bill and a hefty one.
Lens hoods aren’t just to minimize the risk of having the sun create unwanted light flares; they are important on rainy rays too. A lens hood greatly reduces the risk of rain drops and mist leaving water spots on the lens.
Conclusion
Maintaining your camera is essential to keep it working well and to make sure it is able to provide the clearest and sharpest images. It’s inevitable that cameras are going to attract dust, but please remember that if you are constantly wiping away every speck of dust, you will eventually scratch the lens and cause more problems than you started with. Only clean the lens when there are visible particles of dust or smudges from fingerprints, and use a gentle touch. The protective coating that manufacturers put on the front element of a lens can be sensitive, so only clean it when necessary. And regardless of whether you are a hobbyist or a professional photographer, a good camera cleaning kit is one of the best investments you can make — it will keep your expensive lenses working well and giving sharp results for many years to come.
