Fingerprints & VF Windows: Help? or Sympathy!

[WestMichigan]

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Hello Forum Folk,

let me begin by cursing, swearing, shouting, and bemoaning: I Hate Fingerprints On Viewfinder Windows! A Pox Upon Thee!

 

Now that I've Vented.

 

Does anyone have any tips or suggestions which might help?

I mean beyond simply learning to keep my frappin fingers off the dang things.

 

Are there any cleaners or treatments which might minimize the buildup, any doodads or add-on parts which might help, or maybe a way to electrify the frame window to zap me when my fingers wander where they're not supposed to be?

 

Sincerely,

Richard in Michigan

[pico]

Ah, I just keep a little lint-free little cloth in my pocket. I bought a few dozen when my local chap had them. A wipe and all is well. A clean T-Shirt works as well but I'm not going to admit that I wear them.

 

Honestly, it's no big thing to mung your finder windows. They still work and regardlesss, the later Leicas (all I've had since the M4) don't mind a cleaning with cotton cloth.

 

Not quite the same for wiping the early M7 ISO contacts which I use the same thing but people suggest "gold wipes" which I will get when I buy a buy enough Canadian coins and become so vain?

[jdlaing]

I just got into rangefinder gear and that is the FIRST lesson I learned, but have not perfected, about handling the camera.

 

Anybody finds out how to avoid it or remedy it let me know too!

[jaapv]

White cotton gloves.....

[earleygallery]

Strange question.......to avoid fingerprints on the viewfinder, don't stick your fingers on the viewfinder. It really is that simple. Or use gloves as suggested, or a tripod I guess!

 

Now, how do I avoid speeding but without having to stick to the speed limit, but still speeding?

[Michael Geschlecht]

Hello Everybody,

 

For all the equality that exists in the World Leica M's are blatantly built for right handed people except interestingly they do have ambi-eyed range viewfinder windows.

 

It is generally easier to use your dominant eye to look thru the ambi-eyed range/viewfinder window & handle the rest of the camera as a right handed person would.

 

It's easy to tell your dominant eye.

 

Altho many people have their dominant eye on the same side they have a dominant hand it is not unusual for a person to be handed in 1 direction & eyed in the other.

 

First look @ anything. While still looking @ whatever you choose. Hold 1 hand over the eye on that side. Without moving or closing either eye put your other hand over your other eye. Now lower the first hand.

 

Which eye showed what most looked like what you see w/ both eyes unblocked. You may have to repeat what you did a number of times to determine this.

 

The 1 eye that shows most of what both see together is the dominant eye. It is probably the 1 that will work best looking thru the range/viewfinder. Some people see pretty much the same thing w/ either eye. For them it doesn't matter which eye they use.

 

The best way of holding M's is: Left hand UNDER lens turning focussing mechanism. Only use your left hand to turn it.

 

Right hand advances film/releases shutter.

 

Dominant eye in the range/viewfinder window.

 

Best Regards,

 

Michael

[menos I M6]

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shirt/ t-shirt

[prunelle]

... Does anyone have any tips or suggestions which might help? I mean beyond simply learning to keep my frappin fingers off the dang things. ...

As already said, wear gloves. How do you manage to stick your fingers on the viewfinder anyway?

[stunsworth]

They wipe off, what's the problem?

[250swb]

Any item of clothing that is available, or a lens cloth. Sleeves and cuffs are usually good.

 

Steve

[adan]

IMHE, microfibre cloth does better at sponging up finger grease than other cloth. I have a little 5" x5" cloth (13cmx13cm) that has its own tiny stuff sack - just the right size to carry in one of those camera bag pockets that is too small for anything else useful.

 

Thye are available for purchase - but Zeiss, Leica and other companies also provide them as freebies at shows. Even my iMac came with one to get prints off the shiny glass front of the screen.

 

The pre-M6 cameras had the windows recessed - mounted on the inside of the body casting instead of flush on the outside. The recess somewhat protected the windows from fingers - but also made it harder to clean them completely once they eventually got fingerprints. (M3s have a ridge surrounding the window as well as the recessed glass.)

[garygsandhu]

Who's ever seen a scratch on the glass of a view/rangefinder or frameline or viewfinder ?

 

I haven't.

[adli]

Buy an M3.

[alun]

It's all in the handling. I've noticed that virtually anyone else who handles my Ms leaves fingerprints on the viewfinder (front). I don't (usually) because I've learned to keep my fingers off it. My left hand is usually palm up under the lens barrel (focusing), and when I change grip (to rewind film, for instance) I grip the viewfinder end of the body with thumb on the top plate and other fingers on the bottom plate. After a while it becomes second nature to avoid the viewfinder windows, but even then sometimes you smudge them. As others have said, virtually any soft cloth that's to hand will clean away the prints.