Dirty lens

[Godsongz]

When a lens gets dirty on the inside, what can really be done about it? if its not a particularly expensive lens (say <$200 used) is it even worth having someone take it apart in a clean-room to clean the optics?

[Jason Dunn]

Great question! I wish I had an answer. ;-) Since the Digital Rebel is the first DSLR that I've had, so far I haven't had this problem. My personal pet peeve is dust and crud that gets in/under the viewfinder of point and shoot digital cameras...I can't figure out a good way to clean them!

[aroma]

Jeeez... that's a tuffy. But when your talking about < $200 you are getting into the ranage of it not being worth the cost. Probably cheaper to just purchase a new lense, or live with the one you've got and PhotoShop the dust spots out later.

- Aaron

[Godsongz]

Thought so. I saw a used 70-300mm EF lens on Ebay that had this problem, and briefly considered it for $60. Nah, that same lens brand new is $180 at my local camera store. $60, plus shipping, plus (potentially high) cleaning fees, plus a heckofa headache... not worth it.

[aroma]

I've been very tempted to take advantage of some nice deals on lenses I've seen on Ebay, but I've been very leary of buying such a sensitive piece of equipment sight-un-seen like that.

- Aaron

[Godsongz]

Agreed. Its almost a borderline call, but if I have to spend less than $30-50 more to buy something like a lens at a local camera store over an online outfit, I'm probably more likely to spend the extra money just for the piece of mind of seeing it and playing with it first. Not to mention a face and a name to go along with the sale if I have problems with the product afterwards.

[Suhit Gupta]

Damn, how did you get crap inside the lens? There are a couple of places in NYC that do this but the cost is prohibitive. The guy just said that he regularly cleans lenses that are >$4000 and the cost to clean those is about $200. This appears to be more than the cost of your lens. OTOH, this is a professional place, so you may be able to find a mom-n-pop store that /may/ do this for cheap. No guarantees of course...

If this lens is a lost cause and basically unusable, perhaps you could see if there is a guide to lenses at your neighborhood Barnes & Noble or Borders, and try and open it up yourself?!? :?

Suhit

[Suhit Gupta]

It appears that www.ecost.com has some nifty deals on a couple of lenses (ones that are <$500). I have also found that typically www.bestpriceaudiovideo.com has good deals too.

Suhit

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

There are many ways for dust to get inside a lens. They aren't that well sealed you know. Points of entry are normally the zoom ring, the manual focus ring, the rear of the lens (ah, learn to change your lens quickly if you're in a dusty envrionment).

Dust normally isn't a big issue. Basically take your lens and view through it (note, through it, not on it): if the dust obscures your vision, it's time for a nice CLA.

[Godsongz]

if the dust obscures your vision, it's time for a nice CLA.

Lost me at the end there... CLA stands for...?

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Ah, sorry, CLA stands for Clean Lube Adjust. It's basically what is done during a through camera maintainence (ok, lubrication is rarer nowadays, term is a carry over from the days of mechanical cameras).

[Suhit Gupta]

CLA = Clean Lube Adjust. Fairly expensive process to clean up lenses. It is recommended when one buys a second hand lens.

Suhit

[Godsongz]

Thanks, hadn't heard the term before, but I guess I hadn't needed to until now :)