Lens Cleaning Fluid
In most camera stores you'll find an alcohol based lens cleaning fluid that is well worth having. It will help you to lift off fingerprints and other smudges without leaving streaks on your lens or filter.
I've used Kodak lens cleaning fluid with a Promaster cloth with squeaky clean success. The Promaster cloth is very absorbent, but I don't know what material it's made from (possibly cotton).
You can buy a number of commercial lens cleaning fluids or, if you can find them, you can use pure alcohols such as methanol, ethanol or iso-propanol.
If you do have to resort to using lens cleaning fluid, do so carefully. Put a few drops of the fluid on a lens tissue and then wipe the lens in circles from the center towards the edges.
Thats why my kit always includes compressed air, anti-fog lens cleaning fluid and an anti-static lens cleaning cloth. Wind-blown sand, dirt, snow and salt water are among the most common obstacles during extreme weather shoots.
If there's foreign matter actually stuck to the lens, then you'll need a drop or two of lens cleaning fluid. Apply it to the lens, then gently wipe it off with a piece of tissue or soft cloth.
lens cleaning fluid and tissues
lens filter
microfiber lens cloth
plastic bags of various sizes (for foul-weather protection)
portable digital storage unit for digital cameras
tripod
various lenses
weather-resistant camera cover.
One is wet cleaning the sensor with a non-abrasive, lint-free tissue wrapped around a spatula of some kind, and moistened with methanol or lens cleaning fluid.
If they're not too bad at all, then blow any large particles away with a blower brush, and use a soft, lint-free lens cloth to polish them. Otherwise, contact lens cleaning fluid might do the trick. Place them somewhere safe and clean.
Put a small drop of lens cleaning fluid on the end of the tissue. (Your condensed breath on the lens also works well.) Never put cleaning fluid directly on the lens; it might run between the lens elements.
 See also: Photograph, Camera, Lenses, Digital, Lens
  
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