Talked to an old timer in Portland who made me rethink how I clean my lenses

I was chatting with a guy who's been repairing cameras for 40 years at his shop in Portland. He told me he never uses those expensive lens cleaning solutions, just distilled water and a microfiber cloth. He said all those chemicals can actually strip the coating over time. Made me wonder if I've been wasting money on fancy cleaners. Anyone else ever hear this from a veteran repair person?

2 comments

2 Comments

charles_price14d ago

Hang on @perry.jessica, are you sure about this? I've heard the opposite from a couple of old school guys myself. Distilled water is fine for a first pass, but it doesn't break down the oils and fingerprints like a proper solution does. The real trick (and I learned this the hard way) is to never spray anything directly on the glass, always on the cloth. And that coating issue? I've seen more lenses get scratched from dry wiping with a microfiber (even clean ones) than from a good quality cleaner. I think the "chemicals strip coatings" thing is way overblown, especially for modern multi-coated stuff. A little bit of soap and water is probably fine, but I'd still spend the money on a trusted brand just to be safe.

perry.jessica14d ago

Wow, I was totally buying the expensive stuff too but this honestly makes way more sense.