M2P Lens Maintenance

[Auggie]

Still waiting for my 2 Pro but kitting out my bag of accessories and I'm curious on what tool(s) should I pack to maintain the Hasselblad camera lens?

I've read some posts suggesting a "lens pen", such as from LensPen (Original or MiniPro), to a typical DLSR camera cleaning kit, to a simple camera blower brush.

Most of my locations will be in the dusty climes of SoCal so I want to prepare for regularly cleaning that dust off...

 

[White Tiger Aerial Photos]

Still waiting for my 2 Pro but kitting out my bag of accessories and I'm curious on what tool(s) should I pack to maintain the Hasselblad camera lens?

I've read some posts suggesting a "lens pen", such as from LensPen (Original or MiniPro), to a typical DLSR camera cleaning kit, to a simple camera blower brush.

Most of my locations will be in the dusty climes of SoCal so I want to prepare for regularly cleaning that dust off...

The lens pen and maybe a couple of lens wipes would be my suggestion. I live in Florida, so beach sand is the most I get. However, I usually use a landing pad so that most of the sand stays on the ground. I use an extra large one because the drone kicks up dust in a wide area so it might not fit your needs. What exactly are you planning on filming in so much dust?

 

[Brockrock]

The M2P's camera has both a removable lens cover (clear glass) and the inner lens itself. The reason for the removable lens cover is both to protect the inner lens and allow for the placement of accessory lens covers such as ND Filters. I use typical lens wipes of the isopropyl alcohol variety to clean the outer lens cover, and since it does a very good job protecting the inner lens from particulates, the inner lens rarely needs to be cleaned, but the same wipes would work there as well.

The dusty areas where you plan to fly will be more of a factor for other parts of the copter such as the motors and inner portions as a result of dust finding its way into these areas. One way to mitigate this is to never takeoff or land on a dusty surface. Some use landing pads, while I takeoff from the closed lid of my aftermarket, GPC case, and I hand catch upon landing. That said, it is impossible to completely avoid atmospheric particles such as pollen, salt, and dust, so I use a household style vacuum to occasionally apply suction to each motor, and I also draw air through the copter's main housing via holding the vacuum's wand up to the front facing side vents. Importantly though, you should set the vacuum's suction to it's lowest setting when doing this. By sucking strongly forced air through the housing vents, it is possible that you could over spin the inner cooling fan to the point of damaging its bearings. I learned this the hard way cleaning a computer power supply one time. It was nice and clean after, but the fan no longer worked.

 

[Auggie]

The lens pen and maybe a couple of lens wipes would be my suggestion. I live in Florida, so beach sand is the most I get. However, I usually use a landing pad so that most of the sand stays on the ground. I use an extra large one because the drone kicks up dust in a wide area so it might not fit your needs. What exactly are you planning on filming in so much dust?

What brand of landing pad do you have, or did you DIY it?

I've already purchased a hard-folding PGYTech Landing Pad Pro but I've always thought its 20" dimensions were too small for the M2P; I think 4 foot diameter would be ideal. I bought it off Amazon so I can return it if there's a better one for my needs. I've read of some people using standard car mats, but I've got WeatherTech-style hard floor mats so no-go on that. I prefer something foldable instead of say a sheet of plywood or plastic as I won't have the space for it, and if I fly to my destination, can't lug those with me.

I am wading into drones for the first time for filming my overlanding and off-roading adventures, which mostly will be in the southwest: California, Arizona, Nevada. Planning also to do MOAB up in Utah. Hence, the primary operating environment of my M2P will be dusty, rocky, sandy terrain.

 

[White Tiger Aerial Photos]

What brand of landing pad do you have, or did you DIY it?

I've already purchased a hard-folding PGYTech Landing Pad Pro but I've always thought its 20" dimensions were too small for the M2P; I think 4 foot diameter would be ideal. I bought it off Amazon so I can return it if there's a better one for my needs. I've read of some people using standard car mats, but I've got WeatherTech-style hard floor mats so no-go on that. I prefer something foldable instead of say a sheet of plywood or plastic as I won't have the space for it, and if I fly to my destination, can't lug those with me.

I am wading into drones for the first time for filming my overlanding and off-roading adventures, which mostly will be in the southwest: California, Arizona, Nevada. Planning also to do MOAB up in Utah. Hence, the primary operating environment of my M2P will be dusty, rocky, sandy terrain.

Mine is DIY. Nothing really fancy, a bedsheet would probably work too, just that it wouldn't look very professional.

 

[White Tiger Aerial Photos]

Also, if you don't have a landing pad, the top of your car should be fine, except for the fact that it's metal and will probably cause interferrence. Never mind, don't do that. I don't want to be held liable. Probably the best thing to do would be always to fly with a filter on, and try to get a landing pad (or a sheet ).

 

[Auggie]

I carry a blue moving blanket in my truck to cover the contents in the bed (even though I have a tonneau cover, dust finds its way inside) and provide a soft cushion on the ground in case I have to get under the truck. It seems this may work as your sheet.