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Finger Oils = Serious damage


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Hey guys. I heard a fellow DP say today that he cleans finger prints off his lenses as fast as he possibly can because he says they "damage and degrade the fragile outer element lens coating"

 

Is there any truth to this? I've got some stubborn finger oil on my lens. I'm going to buy a LensPen tomorrow to get it off.

 

Is that finger oil 'eating away' at my HVX200 lens?

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Hey guys. I heard a fellow DP say today that he cleans finger prints off his lenses as fast as he possibly can because he says they "damage and degrade the fragile outer element lens coating"

 

Is there any truth to this? I've got some stubborn finger oil on my lens. I'm going to buy a LensPen tomorrow to get it off.

 

Is that finger oil 'eating away' at my HVX200 lens?

 

Yes

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Yes

 

 

 

are you sure? This is scary. Because the oil won't come off when I use my micro fiber. I mean it's not COVERING the lens but yes, there is some sort of oil on it, obviously from my hand or something.

 

How much damage will this do and will I see a drop in image quality?

 

 

Lens care is just the most stressful thing.

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are you sure? This is scary. Because the oil won't come off when I use my micro fiber. I mean it's not COVERING the lens but yes, there is some sort of oil on it, obviously from my hand or something.

 

How much damage will this do and will I see a drop in image quality?

 

 

Lens care is just the most stressful thing.

 

Yes, it can and will do damage. Get some good lens fluid and tissues and clean your lens properly. Microfibre clothes don't really do all that much good except for remove dust and large amounts of liquid.

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Panchro and rosco lens tissue

 

So you are all absolutely sure I've already damaged my lens? I wonder if ffinger oils damaging the lens coating is covered under panasonic's warranty

 

Will lenspen remove finger oil? I'm purchasing one today.

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So you are all absolutely sure I've already damaged my lens? I wonder if ffinger oils damaging the lens coating is covered under panasonic's warranty

 

Will lenspen remove finger oil? I'm purchasing one today.

 

You're worrying too much. Just clean it with some lens cleaner. I don't know much about video lenses but I can't recall ever seeing a lens for a movie camera with a finger print that I couldn't get off or damage from finger oils. Obviously you want to clean it off as fast as you can in case it does eat away some of the coating, It's just that I've never seen it. The lens in all likelihood is not permanently damaged.

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Panchro and rosco lens tissue

 

 

Kimwipes are better :)

 

DS, just go out and get some Panchro lens cleaner fluid and some Kimwipes lens tissue. Spray some Panchro onto a sheet of tissue then wipe the lens in a circular motion from middle of the lens out.

 

It may take a couple passes, but it should wipe off eventually. I wouldn't fret too much about it.

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Kimwipes are better :)

 

Yes they are.

 

To the OP: you are worrying way too much. The oil will harm the lens if you leave it on long term. Days won't matter. Weeks probably won't matter either. Don't bother with the lenspen. They are trash and are just asking for you to drag a chunk of grit across your lens and scratch it. Get a bottle of pancro and a box of kimwipes and learn to clean a lens properly. Do a search of this and the camera assistant's forums. We've talked about it a lot and fairly recently, as well.

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I think what's underneath the concern about finger oil and lenses is that some people have perspiration that is acidic. In the old apprentice system for teaching young machinists, a student was washed out of the program if a clean piece of steel had rusty finger prints on it after they handled it.

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Guest Robert Skates

Most fingerprints and oils from skin can be cleaned with pancro and good lens tissue. Every now and then you encounter a situation where the offending fingerprints and oil are of a nature and chemical make up the will not clean off. A few years ago a set of Zeiss super speeds came back from a location scout. The DP had his own finder and a PA was swapping lenses for him during the scout. Someone palmed the rear element of nearly every lens. No amount of pancro would remove the oil. It just smeared around the surface. The solution was very scary.

 

Please remember that I work at a rental house and this cleaning method was performed by a trained tech and owner of the lenses and rental house. A small bit of rubber was secured in a small vice. The rubber was set on fire. The oily lens element was held safely and well, well above the burning rubber. The soot/smoke of the burning rubber was allowed to coat the lens. When the soot was wiped away the body oils were gone. Do not try this at home. Fire bad!!! This a method of last resort that should only be done by a trained professional.

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Once you get your lens clean, get a clear glass filter to screw on the front of your lens to protect it for the times when you don't use any other filters. Its much easier and cheaper to deal with if this gets damaged than your lens.

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I wouldn't keep a flat on the front of it, myself. An HVX has such a tiny sensor that the filter will often be in focus, as well any every bit of dust that gets on it. I'd just keep the lens clean.

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I wouldn't keep a flat on the front of it, myself. An HVX has such a tiny sensor that the filter will often be in focus, as well any every bit of dust that gets on it. I'd just keep the lens clean.

 

 

That is a good point. I have seen that problem every once in a while.

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I wouldn't keep a flat on the front of it, myself. An HVX has such a tiny sensor that the filter will often be in focus, as well any every bit of dust that gets on it. I'd just keep the lens clean.

I have an EX1, which has a 1/2" sensor (as opposed to the HVX's 1/3" sensor). Would it be subject to the same problem?

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I have an EX1, which has a 1/2" sensor (as opposed to the HVX's 1/3" sensor). Would it be subject to the same problem?

 

Hi,

 

Use the inbuilt ND filters, the only issue will be heavy back light that hits the lens filter.

 

Stephen

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Use the inbuilt ND filters, the only issue will be heavy back light that hits the lens filter.

I was referring to the use of a clear glass filter to protect the lens itself.

 

Actually, using the inbuilt filters can produce problems with backfocus on at least some units; here's an article explaining the problem and solution (not a solution for the faint of heart, though!)

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Actually, using the inbuilt filters can produce problems with backfocus on at least some units; here's an article explaining the problem and solution (not a solution for the faint of heart, though!)

Thanks for the link Jim, it explains a lot of the back focus issues I've been having with the EX1 and EX3. I've been using the FB adjust on these cameras for every shoot though, didn't even realize it was "hidden" maintenance menu option!

 

I had to laugh when I saw the pics in the article though - I have EX1 test footage showing the exact same problem with the exact same Videofax backyard background. Maybe there's just something about their bushes that makes the lens go out of focus. :lol:

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I was referring to the use of a clear glass filter to protect the lens itself.

 

Actually, using the inbuilt filters can produce problems with backfocus on at least some units; here's an article explaining the problem and solution (not a solution for the faint of heart, though!)

 

Using the inbuilt ND Filters for a wider stop, at T4 there is less chance of seeing dirt on the protective filter than at T16, the image willalso be sharper due to defraction at T16.

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Using the inbuilt ND Filters for a wider stop, at T4 there is less chance of seeing dirt on the protective filter than at T16, the image willalso be sharper due to defraction at T16.

 

Oh, of course. I should have thought it through a little more before my reply. Thanks for the clarification.

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Thanks for the link Jim, it explains a lot of the back focus issues I've been having with the EX1 and EX3. I've been using the FB adjust on these cameras for every shoot though, didn't even realize it was "hidden" maintenance menu option!

Are you finding it necessary to recalibrate for every shoot, or just doing it as a precautionary measure? I got the impression from the article that running through the procedure at each of the ND settings would cure the problem. I haven't tried it myself yet, as I'm a little reluctant to do anything that might void the warranty.

 

I had to laugh when I saw the pics in the article though - I have EX1 test footage showing the exact same problem with the exact same Videofax backyard background. Maybe there's just something about their bushes that makes the lens go out of focus. :lol:

LOL! Or maybe it's a cinematographer's trait to be attracted to that kind of background!

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Are you finding it necessary to recalibrate for every shoot, or just doing it as a precautionary measure?

Well, I check it before every shoot, and if it's off then I recalibrate with a Siemens star chart. But I'm usually inside with no ND, shooting green screen with EX1 and EX3. I've been using the same bunch of cameras from the same rental house (VMI in Sunnyvale, CA), and they were always way off no matter how often I calibrated them.

 

The producer I work for recently bought an EX3 and that camera gets used exclusively for interiors, and it seems to be a bit better. I don't see how doing a backfocus for each filter helps unless you can save each setting independently though. Each setting will be a little different because of the FFD shift. I was just planning on doing a new backfocus whenever we change filter settings.

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