This is a good question, and I'd be interested to hear what others do. I
too have had nightmares about the dreaded fungus spreading amongst my OM
collection.
I keep two bodies and a couple of Zuiko zooms ready in a Lowe Pro Nova
shoulder bag for quick use. All my other bags, back packs etc are kept
empty ready to fill when needed for a trip or a day shooting. Which bag
gets selected depends on what gear is needed (which depends in turn on
likely subject matter) and also how far and how long I have to carry it or
if I can work from the car etc
Because I couldn't find anything available commercially, I decided to make
my own "serious" storage solution. Now I keep most lenses and bodies in
Tupperware "Square Keeper" airtight containers (30cm x 30cm x 15cm ? deep)
between uses.
For padding in the SquareKeepers, I purchased some inexpensive high density
foam camping sleeping mats (8mm thick?), along with some nylon tenting
material and 15 metres of 1 inch wide velcro from a local camping store.
For each container I then cut the foam into 2 pieces each 30x30 cm to make
a flat layer on top and bottom of the container, and also a number of
strips that would stand on edge inside the square keeper (4 equal length
pieces for the outer "walls" to make a hollow square, and numerous shorter
pieces of different length to give me flexibility in arranging compartments
to hold different size lenses). Each piece of foam is then covered with the
nylon material and strips of velcro sewn on with a sewing machine. I have a
number of these containers, each with adjustable compartments. (It must
have been hilarious watching me trying to learn how to drive the sewing
machine!!!!). The more generous you can be with the velcro, the more
flexible the end result is.
I have one container like this for Flash gear (TTL connectors,
multiconnectors, TTL cables, T20s, F280s, T28, T Power Control etc),
another for macro lenses/65-116 TAT/ext tubes, another for wide angles,
another for zooms, another for bodies etc etc.
Each container has 3-4 sachets of silica gel, which I re-dehydrate every 6
months or so in the oven (they go blue when they are dry). As far as I
know, the gel can be re-used indefinitely without deterioration.
Shorter lenses I store vertically, front down (I have heard that this stops
lubricant gravitating to one side but don't know if this is right), longer
lenses and zooms lie horizontally. Makes it very easy to pack for a trip or
select special items that you may need.
The only things that don't work stored this way are the OM bellows and the
T8 reflectors which don't fit and/or take too much room. The bodies are OK
to store "standing up" as long as MDs or Winders aren't attached. With
these film burners attached, they have to lie on their backs and then take
up a lot more space. The rubber OM lens hoods are also a bit of a pain. If
you leave them fitted (or even reverse them), and then store the lens lying
horizontally, the lens hoods tend to deform (not permanently). I personally
much prefer metal hoods.
This system works for me. Until I decided to store my camera bags (I have
about 5 or 6 - I'm sure they breed in the closet!) empty I used them for
gear storage. Packing for a trip or a day shooting was a pain which
involved shuffling gear from one bag to the other, hunting for bits of kit
and trying to remember which pocket in which bag it had been stashed in
last time it was used. Now I can select gear easily as it is all laid out
and organised, have my pick of which bag to use, and can generally find any
piece of gear very quickly. It is also very easy to put things away after a
day shooting or a trip.
After a trip, each lens is inspected and wiped down to remove any residue
from sweaty hands, dirt, dust etc etc before they get placed back in the
airtight containers. I keep good quality filters (Hoya MC, B+W, Oly) on all
my lenses except high mag macros which I use mainly indoors, and I always
use lens hoods wherever possible.
It took me probably three weekends to experiment and design and make all
the dividers and velcro bits etc, plus some ringing around to source the
bits to make them, which many might think is a waste of good photo-making
time, but with the cost of OM gear these days (and not to mention the
labour of love involved in tracking down good condition examples of some of
the rarer OM items) I think it is worth looking after my gear properly. I
hope to get many more years of use and enjoyment out of my OM system. I
still have my very first OM-1, purchased nearly 20 years ago now and I have
been adding bits and pieces for a good few years now.
How do others store and look after their OM goodies?
peter
>On a related matter... can the fungus spread from lens to lens? If so,
>should I destroy the 50mm so that it cannot infect any of the other Zuikos
>on the planet? If I do destroy it is there some sort of ritual that must be
>followed? :-)
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Jerry Stackhouse [SMTP:jstack@xxxxxxxx]
>Sent: Tuesday, June 08, 1999 6:09 PM
>To: Olympus (E-mail)
>Subject: [OM] How to protect my Zuikos?
>
>I've heard about fungus that can infect a lens but had never seen it unll
>recently. I bought a parts body and the 50mm/1.8 that was attached to it
>has a bad case of fungus. This has scared the heck out of me.
>
>I live in New England where the humidity goes from real low to real high. I
>keep my equipment in a dark case, in a dark camera bag, in a dark closet
>(which cannot have wonderful ventilation simpy because it's a closet).
>
>Anyways, since that poor 50mm has given me "religion", I need your advice.
>I assume that you could put silica gel packets in the camera bag, but how
>long do these things last before they stop absorbing. How can you tell if
>they are good? I can get gel in a large container and put it in some sort
>sock or something but would need to keep it fresh. Can't keep lenses in the
>sun or dust would be a problem.
>
>What do you do to store and protect lenses, bodies, and accessories?
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