I don't think I'd go so far as to call it a "scam." For me, it just wasn't my style, and the cleaning agents I mentioned do a great job, if you learn how to work with them properly. ROR seems to require a more delicate touch, ClearSight seems to be a panacea for most any lens cleaning situation, and the MC2 - until I discovered ClearSight - worked best on some multi-coated filters.
The micro-fiber and other "magic" cloths seem no better than a properly washed and dried 100% cotton T-shirt. I think the biggest scam is lens cleaning tissue. It's relatively rough - almost abrasive in some ways - and has been known to contribute to micro-scratches on some lenses. I ruined a ST 20mm using that Kodak lens tissue and cleaning fluid. Newer lenses with more advanced and harder coatings may be able to endure more turns at being cleaned with lens tissue, but with products like ClearSight and others, why take a chance. One thing of note: a lot of people feel it's not necessary to clean a lens or a filter too often. I've been on the set of a couple of major motion pictures over the years, and found it interesting to see how the filters and sometimes the lenses were cleaned after each set up. OTOH, if you ever saw Nachtwey shoot, in awful circumstances, you might notice that he sometimes doesn't even use a lens hood. One motorsport photog I met had the filthiest filter on his lens that I'd ever seen (I'd have just thrown it away!), yet he was selling his photos. So, IMHO, it seems that there's a lot of leeway when it comes to techniques and materials. ClearSight and the properly laundered and dried 100% cottonT-shirt do it for me. Shel > [Original Message] > From: Paul Stenquist > I agree. I think the lens pen is a scam. It does absorb some oil, but > I think it could damage a coating as well. It might also fill some > scratches, which might make the lens look better, but it won't work > better. > I use a solvent, which is probably similar to that on the site Shel > referenced. It's called Delta 1 OFR Oil Film Remover, and it's > formulated to cut oil, which is the major problem on lens surfaces. > And I use it with a microfiber cloth. It does a superb job, and it's > available at good camera stores. You'll also find it here: http:// > cinemasupplies.stores.yahoo.net/de1ofrlecl20.html -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List PDML@pdml.net http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
