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Baja Mexico / Dust
Searching for opinions on Dust. I have a new d300s , and a now back up d200. I am about to travel to Baja and of course will be taking one , or both bodies. My concern is the amount of dust in Mexico, should I leave my d300s at home ? Any input would be greatly appreciated.:dunno
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Having spent several months in the deserts in Utah and New Mexico, I am aware that dust can be a real concern.
If your vehicle is capable of being kept closed with the AC on, that is preferable to an open vehicle. Do you have a choice? You may not. Or are you going to be on foot?
The road to Toroweap is 90 miles of gravel and silt, and can be extremely dusty. Keep your vehicle windows closed if possible. When the dust starts pouring in through your air conditioning vents, turn off the AC. Youo will have to wipe down the inside of your vehicle, maybe more than once. Been there, done that, and I will be doing it again in April. Great fun.
Keep your camera in your camera bag unless you are shooting. Use a micro fibre cloth and a small paint brush to clean the outside of your camera. The micro fibre cloths I use to clean the outside of my camera come from Sam's in a big bag for $10-12 - blue, yellow plush micro fibre cloth. They work great!
Clean your lenses with a lens brush and little else, unless you have real glop on your lens front. Some folks use UV filters for protection - I don't, but I never miss using my lens hood. If you MUST clean your lenses with lens cleaning fluid for fingerprints or grease, make sure there is no grit remaining on them before you clean them with lens cleaning fluid, and a micro fibre cloth. Zeiss, Nikon and others make optical grade lens cleaning cloths, for fine optics. Lens cleaning solution can be found in any optical shop. I make mine from distilled water and a little iso propyl alcohol. ROR - Residual Oil Remover is great, but not cheap. Google is your friend.
Don't change lenses more than necessary, and try to do it inside a vehicle or sheltered area. You really don't want sand or grit inside your camera on the sensor anti aliasing filter. Stay out of the wind and dust with your camera body open!
If you have a pro camera with seals you are much better off. The same is true for lenses.
When I went through Antelope Canyon several years ago, the sand fell from 130 feet high above us for several hours. My camera was red from the sand and grit. I cleaned it and the lens with a small fine paint brush and a micro fibre cloth and it is still at work today
If you are really going to be in extended dust situations, consider plastic garbage bags, or Zip lock bags to protect your gear.
Sand and grit need to be paid attention to, but are not a reason to avoid getting out and capturing great pictures.
If you have two bodies, take them both, one with a long lens, and one with a wide lens. It helps decrease lens swapping, and helps you get shooting faster as well.
Moderator of the Technique Forum and Finishing School on Dgrin
Based on your input I have decided to take both bodies. I like the idea of not having to change lenses and I will also use the Ziplock bag idea.