Today I want to talk about something small, but surprisingly enough, not trivial. Lens caps. Yep, those little plastic covers for the front and rear of your lens. Easy to ignore, but they've got a story. Yes, of course they're there to make sure you don't scratch your lens, but there's more than meets the eye. And despite saying this, if you've ever traveled with me, you already know I'm not exactly a fan of front lens caps. Let me explain.
I do use rear lens caps, absolutely, but front ones, not so much. Why? Because I lose them. Constantly. And when I lose them, I stress out. So for my own sanity, I've just stopped using them. Instead, I protect my front lens with a clear filter or a UV filter. That works just fine for me. And once they get really scratched up, I buy a new one. For me, that works great.
Now, I'm not saying this is the right way to do things. You gotta make your own decisions when it comes to gear. But I'll say this. Rear lens caps, I absolutely recommend them. Every time. There's really no other way to protect the rear element of your lens. And if you scratch it, well, unlike a scratched front element, the lens is likely toast. So that rear element is critical. But the fact is, rear caps,
are actually way harder to lose than front ones. When I'm swapping lenses, I take the rear cap off the new one and pop it right onto the lens that I just removed. It's a natural swap, so there's less chance of losing anything. That said, I did manage to drop a rear lens cap into a crack on a boat once. Yep, gone. So now I travel with the spare, just in case. Lesson learned. Speaking of lessons, years ago,
I was reading a lens manual that said you should never leave your lens in direct sunlight without a cap on it. And I thought, really? That seemed kind of silly. I mean, the sun doesn't get hot enough to melt glass, right? And I've shot in heat and direct sunlight a lot. So what up? But it wasn't about the glass. The warning was actually about focus to light. Manufacturers are worried that if light hits your lens at just the right angle,
It can focus like a magnifying glass. And yeah, start a fire and burn your house down. Yep. It said it. Yeah. I laughed it off until it happened to me. Okay. I didn't burn down a house, but a couple of years ago, I was traveling in Mexico, riding in a van, camera bag in the back seat. The bag was open. One of my lenses, surprise, no front lens cap, was catching some sunlight through the window.
I wasn't paying attention, but the sun hit it just right. The light focused through it and stayed there long enough to burn a hole right into my rear lens cap. No joke. It didn't burn all the way through, but it was definitely on its way. I wished I'd kept it as a souvenir, but it's disappeared somewhere along the way. Fortunately, the bag didn't catch fire. The rear glass just got a little smoky,
but still a huge wake-up call. The manual warning? Not so silly after all. So here's the takeaway. Whether you use a lens cap or not, be mindful. If you're like me and often skip the front lens cap, make sure your gear is covered. Zip the bag, throw a jacket over it, something. Because a little sunlight at just the right angle can really do some damage.
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