WaterBear – keep your lenses clean

I’m sure you’ve been out taking photos and glanced at the front of your lens to see dust, smears and all kinds of debris on the glass. The correct thing would be to use a blower and lens cloth. The actual thing that happens is we rub the lens with a bit of our shirt or, even worse, blow on it, thereby depositing spit on top of the grime. I’ve just received a handy tool called the WaterBear that will keep a lens cleaner close at hand.

What is a WaterBear?

I came across the WaterBear through the Kickstarter website. I had followed Kuvrd, the makers, after they sent me some of the generic lens caps a few years ago. The pitch for the WaterBear was to have a ‘Teeny Cleaning tool for every lens and screen’. At $25, it wasn’t a massive investment to see if I could always have a lens cloth at hand.

The principle is simple. On one side of the WaterBear is a soft chamois, nano-carbon-active, polyamide synthetic tri-blend material with omnidirectional fibre loops to clean any glass without scratching. On the other is a silicone adhesive gel that allows it to stick to any surface. Going beyond the technical description, on one side, it’s sticky and on the other is a handy material that removes debris from your camera lens, mobile phone screen, or laptop screen.

Coming in two sizes, the bigger version is 3cm x 3cm, and the smaller one is just 1.5cm x 1.5cm; they can be stuck onto pretty much every device. I have the large one stuck underneath the keyboard of my laptop. The smaller ones are attached to the battery cover of my camera and on the back of my mobile phone. Now I always have a way to keep my lenses and screens nice and clean, no matter where I am.

Using the WaterBear

Like many of the best inventions, the WaterBear is simple to use in three steps, peel; wipe; stick. Just peel it away from the device you have it stuck onto. Turn it over, so the sticky side is attaching it to your finger, and gently rub the other side on whichever screen you are keeping clean. When you’re done, stick back on the device, ready to be used again. The makers state that each water bear can be used dozens of times. When it starts to lose its stickiness, simply give it a rinse in water, allow it to air dry and then it’s ready to go again.

Where can I buy a WaterBear?

The funding for the Kickstarter campaign has been completed, and the items have been shipped, so now it’s available on general sale. You can order here where you can get a pack of 2 large pads and four smaller ones for $13

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About the author

As well as running Edinburgh Photography Workshop, Rich Dyson is a professional photographer. His photographs are regularly used in newspapers such as The Times, Guardian and Daily Telegraph. He also had two solo exhibitions and was featured in a members-sponsored exhibition in the Scottish Parliament. You can see and buy his photography at richdysonphotography.com.