Photography, camera gear needs tender loving care

Recently, while I was teaching a wildlife photography workshop, I saw an unusual sight.

It was not a close-up of an animal exhibiting interesting behavior. It was not an animal silhouetted against a brilliant setting sun. It was the sight of one of the photographer's gear on the ground. The camera was resting on the dirty, dusty ground, and the photographer's two gear bags were open, getting a dusting as workshop participants walked by.

Fortunately, one of the other workshop participants came to the gear's rescue, informing the photographer that he really should give his camera tender loving care. He picked up his gear and got back to shooting.

We all need to treat our cameras with TLC if we want to get clean pictures; even a single speck of dust or other particle can ruin a film- or digital picture.

In a film camera, a particle can stick to the film and cause marks on the negative or slide. Tiny, sharp particles can scratch an entire roll of film.

In a digital SLR (a digital camera with interchangeable lenses), tiny particles on the image sensor (actually the glass filter over the image sensor) can show up as blobs in a picture.

The most effective method of keeping a camera clean is to store it in a sealed, clean camera bag. What's clean? Well, I vacuum my bag, inside and out, from time to time.

If you are in dusty conditions, keep your camera in a plastic bag until you are ready to use it. Occasionally, wipe down your camera with a clean cloth.

To clean the lens, use lens cleaning fluid and a lint-free cloth.

To clean the inside of your camera, use a blower brush and gently blow out the tiny particles.You might consider canned air, but be careful not to position the nozzle too close to the camera and to not aim the nozzle at the mirror in an SLR (single lens reflex) camera. You might damage it.

With digital SLRs, you can use the blower on a blower brush to remove particles from the image sensor. For removing stubborn particles on the sensor, try two products by Photographic Solutions that are designed for sensor cleaning: Sensor Swabs and Eclipse cleaning fluid. To use these products, you must follow the sensor cleaning instructions in your camera's manual (which basically tells you how to lock up the mirror and keep it locked).

Most digital SLR manufacturers don't recommend that you touch the sensor with anything. If you break the glass over the sensor, it's a costly repair. Instead, they recommend that digital SLR owners send their cameras to authorized service centers for cleaning.

So the next time you are out taking pictures, remember to give your camera the consideration it deserves. A little extra effort on your part will go a long way toward eliminating unwanted picture blemishes.