Cleaning Marks?

[healyzh]

How do cleaning marks on a lens manifest themselves? I just received the 90mm Summicron-M (e55) I was waiting on. It was advertised as LN-, and it's pretty darn close (however, according to the dealer that rating means the glass should be spotless). Looking at the glass as is I really don't see anything, but when I breath on the front lens there are two long 'smudges' that won't come off. There also seems to be a spot on the rear element, not sure if it's real, or if I simply can't reach it well enough to clean it.

I finished up a roll of film today, and made it about half way through a second. I'll develop the first once my wife gets back, but am wondering if I should be concerned.

OTOH, wow is my M6 TTL a beautiful camera with a genuine Leica lens on it! 🙂 Now I just need to replace the soft release, as it looks even tackier now.

 

[xwhatsit]

Probably oil/grease if they show up with a bit of moisture on the lens. I'd leave it personally -- my theory is by trying to clean it I'd add scratches and the lens would perform worse than whatever tiny, minor effect the almost-invisible oil stains have.

 

[healyzh]

I'm still trying to tell just how new the lens is, but since it's an e55 lens rather than a e49. The second version was made between 1980 and 1998, but I don't know when the change-over to e55 took place. S/N is 3687xxx

 

[Shac]

An E-55 90 summicron should have modern coatings and they are tough (unless you have sand dust on the lens and try scrubbing the surface😱) - try a lens tissue dampened with lens cleaner fluid. Then use a clean dry tossue.Sometime it helps to breath on the glass before using the dry tissue to remove the wet tissue "marks".
My guess is that if you only see the marks when you breath on the lens - even if they can't be removed, the chances of them affecting lens IQ is negligible to zero

 

[healyzh]

I went to my favorite "local" camera store today, and got a new cleaning 'kit' from them. Basically a bottle of really good stuff, and a Schneider Optics cleaning cloth. I just finished the 90mm Summicron, and am happy to report that it does in fact appear to be LN- (if not LN). 😀

While there I got a killer deal on a 15mm Voightlander and a 135mm Leica Hektor. The Hektor will help me decide if I want to search out a better 135mm.

 

[mathomas]

Just for fun:

http://kurtmunger.com/dirty_lens_articleid35.html

 

[maddoc]

While there I got a killer deal on a 15mm Voightlander and a 135mm Leica Hektor. The Hektor will help me decide if I want to search out a better 135mm.

Talking about 135/4.5 Hektors ... 😉

No hood, no filter just straight into the light. I also have a 135/2.8 Elmarit-M, very heavy and difficult to see a difference stopped down.

 

[healyzh]

My problem is for the main project I'd use a 135mm for I need a faster lens. With TMAX 3200, I'd be at f/4. The Hektor looks good for normal use though.

 

[maddoc]

Zane,

for everything "inside", concerts, events, speaker, the 135/2.8 is necessary without any doubt and the googles really help when having a 0.72x VF.

 

[healyzh]

I'm want it for shooting a Rodeo at night! 😀 Last year I used my M6 TTL with a 50mm f/2 J-8. The shots I got at night on TMAX 3200 were better than I could have done with my Nikon D300 (at least in my opinion, I've included one below). This year, if we're able to make it I'll be packing the 90mm f/2, and maybe a 135mm f/2.8. I'm also thinking about getting a magnifier to aid in focusing. The 135mm I'm most interested in, is the version with the googles.


Wild Horse Race #3 by Zane's Photography, on Flickr