Quick Tips

[SwissJon]

Just something that cropped up in the last couple of weeks that I thought I'd pass on..

You know all those white paper packs of silica gel that arrived packed into just about anything these days.. You know the ones, they're marked "Do not eat" and "Throw away"..

Well don't eat them, but don't throw them away either.. Stick them in your camera bag.. They're very effective at preventing the kind of moist conditions in your bag that encourage mould and fungal growth. When they turn pink, they're full of water, stick them in your oven at 150 degrees C until they turn blue or colourless, let them cool down and put them back in your camera bag so they can do their job once again.

This stuff absorbs up to 40% of it's own weight in water.. Doesn't sound much? Well considering it actively draws water from the environment, a few sachets of this in your camera bag is enough to absorb the water drawn in to the bag on a wet day out, and dry out your equipment without damaging it.. Best of all, it's free.. (Use it to dry boots after a wet walk!)

Anyone else got any quick tips to share?

[milosh]

Yeah, I use silica gel as well, I always have 5 or 6 of them in my camera bag. But I thought that their moisture absorbing fades away with time and they're supposed to be replaced, I didn't know about drying them in the oven..

The best way to dry your boots is to stuff them with newspaper paper (the regular newspaper paper, not the modern shiny stuff!). If your boots are really damp inside, take a few sheets, crumple them loosely and stuff them in your boots. Take them out the next day and put new sheets in, you'll notice how damp these are when you take them out. Repeat for few days if necessary. I learned this from mountaineers and I do it all the time.

[faeriegodess612]

You didnt know this? The two that came in my bag when I got it, I left in there.

Except they arent blue here. Because,...... Cobalt Chloride (II) is Silica Gel that comes in a "Blue" color and this "blue" Silica Gel has been linked as being possibly carcinogenic to humans and been labeled as hazardous material in some countries. ( Taken from a thing for them on Amazon. )

For the newbie's though, this is something good to point out. You can also buy them for pretty cheap if you want.

A tip,...don't buy cheap cleaning things for your camera. If you want/need to clean the inside of your DSLR, it's better to take it to a professional cleaning service, than to try and do it yourself. They can give your camera a lil tune up like you would your car. A good lens cleaning cloth is essential.

[Izzy]

I use a 2lb bag of flower drying crystals. Have only had to "recharge" them once in 5 years of use.

[SwissJon]

Originally Posted by faeriegodess612

You didnt know this? The two that came in my bag when I got it, I left in there.

I did know it, what I didn't know is that other people didn't know it.. That's my major find revaluation. I thought it was common sense, apparently not.

A tip,...don't buy cheap cleaning things for your camera. If you want/need to clean the inside of your DSLR, it's better to take it to a professional cleaning service, than to try and do it yourself. They can give your camera a lil tune up like you would your car. A good lens cleaning cloth is essential.

Lol.. Nobody touches my car.. I was fortunate enough to have a good friend who taught me motorbike mechanics before he was killed in a hit and run (he wasn't even on his bloody motorbike, poor sod) and ever since I've done my own servicing of all the family vehicles..

Let's put it this way, would you rather know how the inside of your car works and be able to do it yourself, or leave it to some teenager with a hangover and an attitude? Same goes with a camera, I've every intention of teaching myself how to service it..

But your point about cheap tools is well made.. Cheap tools can do a lot of harm, stripping threads, causing damage and so on. If you're planning to open up your camera, LEARN WHAT YOU'RE DOING FIRST, then use a quality set of tools, not the cheapest you could find on fleabay..

[NgaiHill]

Originally Posted by SwissJon

I did know it, what I didn't know is that other people didn't know it.. That's my major find revaluation. I thought it was common sense, apparently not.

I did know those things were good for sucking up the moisture but it never occurred to me to stick em in my camera bag - so thanks for that tip.

Originally Posted by SwissJon

Let's put it this way, would you rather know how the inside of your car works and be able to do it yourself, or leave it to some teenager with a hangover and an attitude? Same goes with a camera, I've every intention of teaching myself how to service it..

I have very little idea how the inside of my car works, thats what mechanics are for!! My mechanic is a very pleasant family man, who is older than me - no attitude except he hassles me about checking my oil every time I see him (cos I forgot for a long time and nearly ran out)

[Biomech]

I left the ones in the bag/s that came with the lenses, but after reading up on lens fungus about 5 days ago, I went around the house and robbed as many as I could find from all the shoe boxes and filled my camera bag up. There's at least 2 in each lens case too :P

[dvtldav]

I have a small LED flashlight clipped to my camera bag and a small multi tool (the kind with scissors, pliers, file, screwdrivers, ETC. I think mine is made by Gerber or Leatherman) also attached to my camera bag. The flashlight comes in handy at night & the multi tool comes in handy if you need to cut something or tighten or loosen something. Just remember to take the multi tool off if you are flying and your camera bag is a carry-on which it should be.

Dave

[Biomech]

Oh we're adding tips?
Yeah, no knife in the carry on airline bag; well, getting in/out of the UK they don't even look, but certainly the Icelandic airport guys are on the ball :P

I have these in my bag, nice and flat.

[__Legion__]

LOL and I thought I was the only crazy paranoid one!

I've been the silica thing since I started, the bottom of my bag is stuffed with them.

I live in a sub tropical rainforest though and I am paranoid about lens rot...