# Painting the body of a DSLR?



## McCoyC

This may be an unusual question but I'm hoping that someone may have some useful insight...

I recently purchased a Canon T1i that I will be using on deployment with the Army in Afghanistan. I need to paint the body of the camera as well as my lenses using non-reflective tan paint. Black is a very unnatural color and believe it or not every little bit matters. I have spray paint and can get regular brush-on paint if you experts think that it would be better as I can control where it goes more precisely. I know that I will need to mask off the buttons, lcd screen, flash lens, and microphone holes on the body. Am I missing anything?

What about the lenses? Obviously the glass but what else? I do not know that technical names of parts but are the rings that you hold to manually adjust focus sealed or will spray paint get in there and ruin the lens?

I really appriciate any advice that you can give and I look forward to sharing some of my photos of Afghanistan.


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## pbelarge

I understand your concern, and we all do want you to be safe.

I would lightly paint it on with a somewhat dry brush. You do not want the overspray to go where you have not control to keep it from going.

Good luck - in all ways. If you do not mind, maybe a couple of photos when you are finished.


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## PhotoSteve

My biggest concern would be getting paint in-between any part that slides.  I'm thinking about lenses in particular, because they need to slide in and out.  I would imagine that every aspect of your camera needs to be camoflauged, but have no idea how you're going to paint the portion of the lens barrel that shows when it is fully extended.

Be careful not only with your cam painting, but of course, on deployment.

Thank you for your bravery and your service!


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## Leo4

My dad use to paint his camera with model paint and use a really fine quality brush. Took forever but the finally product was excellent. I have his old OM-1 and its paint is still in good shape. Been all over the world in his flight suit.

Good luck on your deployment, stay safe. 


I will be heading over in about 9 months and be using his method on a Leica X1 or maybe a Leica V-Lux 20.


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## Mustlovedragons

Not spray paint, definitely. God bless and thank you for what you do.


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## McCoyC

Thanks for all of the input. I suppose that I will get the brush on paint and really take my time. Painting or in any way altering anything that is expensive always freaks me out. I mean to watch those shows like "American Chopper" on Discovery it looks so easy to paint something simple but that, of course, is not anywhere near reality.

As far as the part of the lens that is only exposed when extended, I guess that will have to stay black. I cannot afford to ruin the lens so I will hand paint it at it's shortest.

I will post pictures of the finished product when I complete it.

Thanks Again.


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## Mustlovedragons

McCoyC said:


> Thanks for all of the input. I suppose that I will get the brush on paint and really take my time. Painting or in any way altering anything that is expensive always freaks me out. I mean to watch those shows like "American Chopper" on Discovery it looks so easy to paint something simple but that, of course, is not anywhere near reality.
> 
> As far as the part of the lens that is only exposed when extended, I guess that will have to stay black. I cannot afford to ruin the lens so I will hand paint it at it's shortest.
> 
> I will post pictures of the finished product when I complete it.
> 
> Thanks Again.


 

Just a thought but can't you use some camouflage cloth or netting even over the lens part, rubber banded on or taped into place? That way you can still extend it and keep it covered/camouflaged.


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## carvinrocks2

Thanks for all you do for our country!

I think they have covers or "skins" that you can put on the camera to make it that camouflage feel. Also, I know they have it for lenses. 

I'm not sure if regulation would allow, but it was just my 2 cents...


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## Mauravdl

I painted a p&s to send to my son in Iraq during his deployment (I threatened pink but I actually used the same matte tan you will probably use). First I cleaned the camera really well with alcohol and made sure to not get oil or anything on it that would interfere with the paint. 

I used a small, fairly dry brush and thin coats of paint, most of the camera took 2 coats but a few areas I needed to have three. I did not extend the lens and try to paint it and wouldn't advise it on a dSLR lens.

Don't forget the to paint the lens cap and buy several extras and paint them too. Same for an extra few body caps. 

The paint held up well during his year there and being shoved in BDU pockets and dropped multiple times. He's got it in Germany now, as he's recovering from a knee reconstruction.

Thank you for your service. My son graduated OSUT at Benning and, scared though I might be, he fights for us all - as do you.


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## Josh66

Krylon is your friend.

I don't think it would be much different that painting a rifle (which I'm sure you have done, or know someone who has).

Mask what you can, remove the rest.

The only worry I would have is that you would be painting over the decals that say what each button does - either mask that off, or memorize it all.

If you can disassemble the camera prior to painting, that would be best.  But, I don't know that it would be practical...

Black is very rare in nature...  I would concentrate on that (which is what most of a camera body/lens will be).

A little common sense will go a long way - try not to get it too thick around buttons/moving surfaces.  For the most part, I think it will be fine though.

Just memorize what each button does, or write it on there after painting with a sharpie or something.


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## Dieselboy

Quality paint, quality brushes, patience.


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## icassell

You might try calling Canon and tell them what you want to do.  I'll bet you're not the first and they may have advice (after they tell you that your warranty is void).  I'd love to see pix of your final product.

There are camo covers available for the longer lenses (Lens Coat) but I don't think they make them for the shorter ones.

EDIT:

http://www.lenscoat.com/


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## Airborne_Guy

Whats your MOS?


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## Morpheuss

I honestly wouldn't be worried about painting your camera tan... it would be like painting your m-4 tan... it looks cool but not really needed. There are alot of people here at kandahar that have nikon d90's and nikon d2000 and i have seen a couple canon eos t1i's and t2i's and they are black and just about every single person has a point and shoot.


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## Big Mike

I've seen several photographers who have used gaff tape to cover parts of their cameras.  One example is when they are shooting at an event that is sponsored by a different camera company...ie: a nikon shooter at a golf tournament sponsored by Canon...they won't want the Nikon logo appearing on camera so it might get covered up with tape.  

You'll want to use tape like gaff, that won't leave a sticky residue like duct etc.  

If you can find a tan colored tape, it might be an easier and less intrusive option than paint.


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## Idahophoto

Have you thought about Lenscoat.com? They have stuff to cover your lens, Im not sure about cameras but I would think you could. I have also heard good reviews about there products and think it would be the best path. You could then easily change from Black, to a forest to a desert Camo easily add protection to you equipment and not have to risk damaging it in the process. I have never used there products myself so maybe someone can tell you more about them, but it's a thought. Could be worth sending them a email atleast. Good luck and stay safe


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## Airborne_Guy

Morpheuss said:


> I honestly wouldn't be worried about painting your camera tan... it would be like painting your m-4 tan... it looks cool but not really needed. There are alot of people here at kandahar that have nikon d90's and nikon d2000 and i have seen a couple canon eos t1i's and t2i's and they are black and just about every single person has a point and shoot.


Yeah unless you're on a team or what not, there is no need for painting your weapon. And if people are out on patrol shooting there camera, I can almost guarantee that painting a camera is not needed. Even PAO pax do not paint there rigs.


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## Village Idiot

McCoyC said:


> This may be an unusual question but I'm hoping that someone may have some useful insight...
> 
> I recently purchased a Canon T1i that I will be using on deployment with the Army in Afghanistan. I need to paint the body of the camera as well as my lenses using non-reflective tan paint. Black is a very unnatural color and believe it or not every little bit matters. I have spray paint and can get regular brush-on paint if you experts think that it would be better as I can control where it goes more precisely. I know that I will need to mask off the buttons, lcd screen, flash lens, and microphone holes on the body. Am I missing anything?
> 
> What about the lenses? Obviously the glass but what else? I do not know that technical names of parts but are the rings that you hold to manually adjust focus sealed or will spray paint get in there and ruin the lens?
> 
> I really appriciate any advice that you can give and I look forward to sharing some of my photos of Afghanistan.


 
What about camera armor? They don't officially make one for the t1i, but the XSI one may work and you could paint the amor without painting the camera.

Canon Rebel XSi/450D


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## Mauravdl

Airborne_Guy said:


> Yeah unless you're on a team or what not, there is no need for painting your weapon. And if people are out on patrol shooting there camera, I can almost guarantee that painting a camera is not needed. Even PAO pax do not paint there rigs.


 
Now, see, that would explain why my son was laughing when he thanked me for the camera  Though I did think the silver was a bit ... bright 

Darnit - I SHOULD have painted it Barbie pink!


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## Airborne_Guy

Mauravdl said:


> Airborne_Guy said:
> 
> 
> 
> Yeah unless you're on a team or what not, there is no need for painting your weapon. And if people are out on patrol shooting there camera, I can almost guarantee that painting a camera is not needed. Even PAO pax do not paint there rigs.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Now, see, that would explain why my son was laughing when he thanked me for the camera  Though I did think the silver was a bit ... bright
> 
> Darnit - I SHOULD have painted it Barbie pink!
Click to expand...

 Yeah hot pink would of been..HOT!
We get a kick out of funny care packages. I just sent my buddy one. Im sure  he'll appreciate it.


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## Mauravdl

Airborne_Guy said:


> Yeah hot pink would of been..HOT!
> We get a kick out of funny care packages. I just sent my buddy one. Im sure he'll appreciate it.


 
He asked for chapsticks and such at one point and I sent him a care package with a few regular chapsticks, a whole bunch of Hanna Montana glitter chapsticks, girlie bandaids, little kid sunscreen and a couple of inflatable pool toys 

I did make it up to him with the next package that included a lot of cookies, crystal light and skittles....

- Maura


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## canon500d

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwZ_RleZ9Bw[/ame]

Guide on how to paint your DSLR pink.

BUT unsuccessful!!! 

just take a look please.


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## molested_cow

I design portable radios for tough environments and there's generally a stigma against using spray paint for your kind of needs. Spray paints don't last long and will deteriorate very quickly. Actually, most kinds of paints are not recommended. The color of the product is usually in the plastic, therefore there is no paint-rubbing issue.

I would recommend getting some kind of fabric casing that has the color that you want. Or, dye the fabric. That way it's pretty durable and you get the camo effect that you want. This will be very much like how we use plastic bags to weather-proof cameras in the rain.

I suppose you also want to consider tying your lens cap to the lens body and get rid of the shiny nikon or canon logo. You can just have the front sand blasted to get an even matte finish.


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## McCoyC

I am 35M and 11B. My last tour was as an Intelligence Section Combat Advisor to an Afghan Army Infantry Battalion.


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## McCoyC

Morpheuss said:


> I honestly wouldn't be worried about painting your camera tan... it would be like painting your m-4 tan... it looks cool but not really needed. There are alot of people here at kandahar that have nikon d90's and nikon d2000 and i have seen a couple canon eos t1i's and t2i's and they are black and just about every single person has a point and shoot.



I will be going on my next tour on a LRS (Long Range Surveillance)Team.  If you are not familiar with us, look it up. It is interesting for  people up to a challenge. We do paint our weapons as well as every other  piece of equipment that we carry including cameras. I know that it is  rare for someone to need to paint their equipment but there are some of  us out there.

I appreciate your feedback but my question more about the technical  aspects of painting a camera rather than the necessity of it. I know why  I am doing this, it's the how that I was questioning.


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## McCoyC

canon500d said:


> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwZ_RleZ9Bw
> 
> Guide on how to paint your DSLR pink.
> 
> BUT unsuccessful!!!
> 
> just take a look please.




That video is pretty funny and sadly I'm not sure that I could have done any better. Had I tried to spray paint it, I would not have taken it apart. I would have just tried to mask it better. 

Right now, I am leaning towards taking my time to properly mask it and paint it with a brush. It does not need to be completely covered, just as much as I can do to dull it a bit. I will take the advice to mask the button labels for my own ease of use as well as anyone else that needs to use it.


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## McCoyC

Simple pic from my last tour in Eastern Afghanistan...


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## Derrel

Here you go....

Krylon: Weathered Patina

Pick a paint finish and color, and mask off critical control buttons, then paint away...let us know how it turns out, okay?

I have painted many thousands of small objects using Krylon brand spray paints; one word of advice: TEST for compatibility on the surface you are painting..."some" surfaces react very badly with "some"paints, and "MANY" topcoats react badly with "many" paints...the painting is usually not a problem, but top coats, polyurethanes, urethanes,and many lacquers can often react when brands are mixed!


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## den9

Buy Camera Armor Camo (Camouflage) at Gadget-Bag

or camo tape.


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## den9

McCoyC said:


> Simple pic from my last tour in Eastern Afghanistan...



shouldnt your gun be spray pained?


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## McCoyC

No, painting my "Gun" was not necessary at that time. That was my last deployment, I will be doing a different job on this one.


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## StephanieHamar

It seems like you might be able to paint your lens hood and camera body, and leave the lens as is.  You could make some sort of light cloth tube that attaches (sticky-back velcro?) to the camera body and lens hood, allowing for lens extension - and the ability to move the focus ring - with no black visible. You wouldn't have to worry about painting the lenses at all, and it would be pretty easy to construct.


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## McCoyC

StephanieHamar said:


> It seems like you might be able to paint your lens hood and camera body, and leave the lens as is.  You could make some sort of light cloth tube that attaches (sticky-back velcro?) to the camera body and lens hood, allowing for lens extension - and the ability to move the focus ring - with no black visible. You wouldn't have to worry about painting the lenses at all, and it would be pretty easy to construct.




Thank you. That is good advice. That is what I'm working on now. The hoods are complete. I will be starting on the body this weekend.


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