A client's comment about my lens cleaning method made me rethink everything

I was cleaning a Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L for a regular last week, using my usual microfiber cloth and a quick puff of air. He watched me for a minute and said, 'You know, that's just pushing the dust around the edges. You're going to get grit in the zoom mechanism.' I realized he was right. Now I always remove the front element ring first and clean from the center outward with a proper brush. Has anyone else had a simple tip completely change their routine?

3 comments

3 Comments

richard_west53mo ago

Guess I've been polishing my own ignorance for years. Who knew you could mess up wiping a circle?

reese_thompson743mo ago

Oh man, @richard_west5, you've just described my entire life philosophy. Turns out you can buff that ignorance to a real high shine if you try hard enough.

wadeowens29d ago

Whoa, hold on there, Reese. I gotta respectfully disagree with you and Richard on this one. I mean, sure, there's a joke there about being willfully clueless, but I don't think that's really how living life works. Ignorance isn't something you can just buff away or polish into something shiny. It's more like a fog that clears when you actually take the time to look at something from a different angle. I've found that the more I'm willing to admit I don't know something, the less heavy that fog gets, you know? It's less about polishing and more about just being okay with saying "I don't get it" and then actually trying to get it.