Please please please learn from my mistake!!

[naeno]

I did a large family shoot this past weekend. I did not clean off my lens prior to the shoot like I normally do. I have 2 small children, and apparently one of them actually got their little fingers on my lens!! I didn't see the smudges until I got the pictures on my computer at home! Grrrr. Just please learn from my mistake, clean your lens prior to every shoot you do!! I'm looking at a lot of post work that very easily could have been avoided if I'd followed this bit of advice. The smudges are over a lot of faces, which are not easily tidied up! Sigh!

[douglas]

Feel for your "sigh"
It can be a problem and easily missed. I keep a good UV filter on my lenses, and carry a small microfiber cleaning cloth. The trick is remembering to use it LOL

[candidrachel]

Oh No!! Unfortunately is one of those lessons you learn really quickly. I learnt always to check that my camera bag is zipped up properly before picking it up. I once picked it up in a hurry and my lenses dropped out onto the pavement (sidewalk you call it).

[jeff.amadon]

These lens wipes from Zeiss are awesome and cheap. I can even get them at walmart. They're packaged pre-moistened, like those hand wipes you get at BBQ restaurants. I always keep a couple in my camera bag.

I've learned to make "check for smudges" part of my pre-shoot process, along with pre-setting ISO and all that stuff.

So were you able to salvage anything? Or is this a re-shoot?

[Athas_orm]

I've actually been wondering what's the correct way to clean lenses? Lens wipes (such as spectacle wipes) are okay? I haven't seen any threads about it maybe I'll do a search now

Wes

[naeno]

Originally Posted by jeff.amadon

So were you able to salvage anything? Or is this a re-shoot?

I was able to salvage most, but there were several that would have been really good if it hadn't been for the huge smudge.

Thanks for the link, I'll have to check those out.

[beatles2]

I feel your pain.I made a major blunder with a shoot last year that took me two days to fix .It's a good thing we learn from our mistakes.

[Swisstony10]

I have a couple of "Spudz" cloths. One sits in my camera bag as a kind of spare, one hangs from my camera strap so it's always handy for the lens, and another hangs somewhere about my person, because I wear glasses, and I find that using the camera a lot makes them smudgy (on the outside from contact with the camera, and on the inside from being gently pressed against my face). I regularly check my glasses, and the camera lens, for dust and smudges - it's surprising how much gunk they can pick up sometimes, no matter how careful you are.

Russ.

[naeno]

Originally Posted by Swisstony10

I have a couple of "Spudz" cloths.

Russ.

I've never heard of those before, but after reading about them I've very likely to pick up a few! Thanks for the tip!

[mitchcook]

I have yet to actually see any problems with my images even with a fairly dirty lens!!!
Will have to tell my 8 month old nephew to stop playing with my 5D, as you have struck the fear in me.