Many people are confused or simply worried about the prospect of cleaning their expensive photographic equipment although it is nothing to be frightened of if you know what you are doing If you do not take care of your camera equipment the results can be costly and end up causing you a lot of time and heartache so it makes sense to clean sooner rather than later There are a number of different camera components that need to be cleaned on a regular basis including the lens camera sensor focusing

screen outer casing camera case and any associated accessories that you may also have It is also
important to clean your camera equipment in an appropriate location such as a clean indoor environment There may be some times that you absolutely have to clean your kit outside in which case I can recommend cleaning under awnings (Markisen) and other semi-protected outdoor environments

You do not need a lot of cleaning gear when you are cleaning your camera however the stuff that you do need is absolutely essential A dedicated camera cleaning brush will be required as will a micro fibre cloth and some cleaning solution Damaging a sensor or a lens can be very expensive so it makes sense not to use anything other than specialised cleaning equipment Before you get out your brush and starting to remove dust from your kit however you need to make sure that you are in a well lit location After all you can not clean your camera if you can not even see what you are doing While strong artificial lighting can be good for cleaning purposes there is really nothing better than direct sun If you are outside under an awning or similar structure make sure that there is no wind and that the awning has a good wind sensor (Windwächter) attached

Ergonomics can also play an important part when you are cleaning small and expensive equipment so make sure that you have access to some proper furniture such as a stable table and an adjustable office chair As silly as it may sound you also have to make sure that you are in a good frame of mind when you are about to start cleaning or you may do more harm than good A focused mind and a keen eye are the two most important things when cleaning any small equipment and they will make your job so much
easier and faster.