Fungus in a lens

[kiwidad]

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How quickly can it grow?

I have a 28mm Leica lens that has fungus. To tell the whole story I purchased it from a Leica store used having had a Leica CLA performed in 2023.

i dint closely examine it when I purchased it given it came from a reputable source. 
today I am told it has fungus on the inner elements and I question this as being less that 6 months old. Lens while in my possession has not exposed to heat or cold or moisture , rain etc

so my question is …. Should argue this point with the Leica dealer, Leica themselves if it under the 24month service warranty or panic about my other gear and get dry storage unit?

Edited yesterday at 01:53 AM by kiwidad
Typo

[GFW2-SCUSA]

First thing I'd do is make certain it has fungus. If it does I would return it to the selling store for a refund. My experience with fungus  is that it is very difficult to get rid of and can etch the glass.  Don't panic until you know for certain it is fungus! 

My "cure" for the fungus was putting the lens in direct sunlight, wide open for a couple of days. The UV killed the fungus. Most of it went away, but the lens is not as good as new. It was a Nikon lens, not that it makes a difference. 

[gbealnz]

Agree with the reply above, establish first it is or isn't fungus.

If it is (and if it were me of course) I'd send it back, or have a conversation with them. It's one of those things that once you've seen it, you can't un-see it. It would annoy me.

[jankap]

5 hours ago, GFW2-SCUSA said:

My "cure" for the fungus was putting the lens in direct sunlight, wide open for a couple of days. The UV killed the fungus. Most of it went away, but the lens is not as good as new. It was a Nikon lens, not that it makes a difference. 

But be very careful not to light a fire.

Edited yesterday at 07:55 AM by jankap

[pgk]

7 hours ago, kiwidad said:

How quickly can it grow?

This depends. Basically fungus appears to like dark, warm, humid conditions. If you have stored it in such conditions it will grow at its fastest. But fungus, like any other living thing, also requires nutrients and I am very doubtful that the coatings on optical glass offer anything other than traces of what is needed, so in general living on lenses is unlikely to be a good fast growing habitat so fungus is unlikely to grow quickly here. All of which suggests to me that unless you are storing the lens in a very humid, warm dark place then its more likely (IMO) to be a longer term problem and the lens may well have had traces of fungus when you bought it. If no other lenses have any fungus this again would support the idea that this particular lens was already infected. If it has a good warranty you should take it back and argue the point if there are any objections.

Do make sure that it is fungus and not something else like separation though, which can occasionally look similar.

[jankap]

How can he make sure, that it is fungus? By loading a smartphone photo here?

[kiwidad]

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these is what I see

 

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[jankap]

Did you clean the lens surfaces? Please, be careful, if you do it now. Also, the surface at the back?

This is my Canon 28mm f/2.8 from 1968(?).

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Edited 23 hours ago by jankap

[jankap]

I only clean my lenses for dust, with a blower. In your case, even I would use something, that is wet. If it was my lens, I would here take a spectacles cleaning tissue. Wipe very carefully, without pressure.

 

Edited 22 hours ago by jankap

[kiwidad]

Lens was cleaned externally I am tol.

lens should be back in my possession today. Hopefully with the paperwork showing the 2023 CLA date.

i understand the CLA has a 2 years warranty but not sure about this.

[pgk]

1 hour ago, kiwidad said:

these is what I see

That does not look like fungus to me - fungus usually shows as 'tendril-like' growths. It could be the result of severe condensation which has dried out and left residue for some reason, or some other material which has somehow got inside the lens. It looks as though the lens needs a clean including the internal lens surfaces. A better way of photographing it might be to use 'dark field illumination' by putting a light source under it then using a dark disk between the light and the lens so that the light is effectively a ring light and illuminates from the edges. This will show anything up as lit but on a darker background which should make it easier to see.

[wizard]

vor 1 Stunde schrieb kiwidad:

these is what I see

Does not look like fungus to me either, more like condensation (if it is inside the lens) or some cleaning agent residue (if on the outer surface of the rearmost lens element). Take a clean cloth and a drop of water and gently wipe the outer surface of the rearmost lens element and see if what you see changes. If what you see is inside the lens, it has to go to a professional.

[sometimesmaybe]

18 hours ago, kiwidad said:

these is what I see

 

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agree that's not fungus. it does look like drying marks. maybe they did a slightly sloppy job with the CLA when cleaning that element 

[jakontil]

Definitely not fungus

[kiwidad]

43 minutes ago, sometimesmaybe said:

agree that's not fungus. it does look like drying marks. maybe they did a slightly sloppy job with the CLA when cleaning that element 

I wondered.... the dealer I bought it from said it had no fungus, but if this isnt fungus then??? 

My eyes not really up to the task of checking and maybe not a good technique either. I looked at the lens tonight and I can't see this. 

As I understand it CLA have a 24 month warranty, wondering what the odds of me getting Leica to redo it 5 months after warranty expired. It actually had a lot done more than just CLA when it went to Leica. the paperwork says they spent 4.370 hours, repaired focusing and cleaned it and fixed helens head. I do wonder if that the remnant of a German fingerprint lol.

When shooting I also see no problems at all. contrast and sharpness are great just like when I bought it back in February.

 

[250swb]

If only there was a sticky with the title 'How to photography fungus and lens separation'.

I can't tell from the photographs, without a proper view I veer slightly away from fungus, or separation, but something reminds me of the marks condensation leaves after it's formed on the residue of a cleaning chemical etc.