Most people shooting video will go in for manual lenses in order to maintain constant, silent focus control —a lot of the really old, shallow depth of focus ones are $50 or less on Ebay, and some even use some of the CCTV lenses for security cameras.
It sounds like because of your eyes this manual lens route might not be quite your ticket, however.
I believe for your gritty camera sensor they make and sell cheaply on Ebay a special wipe resembling a tiny T-bar squeegee with a special cleaning solution but cleaning it manually requires extreme care.
I haven’t done it personally but there are over 3 specialists on TFFM (The Frugal Film Maker) who can coach you through manually cleaning your sensor properly, or give you a referral to a pro outfit that can do it affordably.
Thanks for the old lens tip and I will keep that in mind definitely. I’ve been on my Canon lenses since my 20D days.
My manual focus is about 50% right when I’ve done some testing against auto. Price of getting older and having eye trouble all my life. Lasik fixed a lot but not everything.
My problems these days aren’t really related to Lasik. My last eye doc visit was impressed how well it has held up for so many years. Believe it or not, I was a TV camera jockey. Mostly studio but once in a while, EFP/ENG. I later went into engineering.
I’ve found a good cleaning kit and it works really well and sounds similar to what you are talking about. I don’t need it that much, usually auto clean does the job. I try to avoid open sky. If it is something important, I will do a manual kit clean and keep a blower bulb on hand.
I also use neutral density filters which I have really come to love.
A software idea I brought up to a developer who worked with video applications was a fixing tool that had something like the clone stamp to fix annoying sensor grit problems instead of having to get pricey after effects. He thought it was a good idea. I lost touch with him.
For YT and personal stuff, a little dot doesn’t bother me but my stock submissions, I want them to pass.
I joined the frugal filmmaker group and check it every so often. Some good ideas there.
I’m going with the Lumix and get a dedicated lens for it of some kind. There are a couple in my price range.
There seems to be a love/hate thing with the adapters.
I’ve been a Canon person since always and love Canon stuff but it is probably time to shift gears. For stock sales, 4K sells at a much higher price.
I may start parting out my Canon stuff after testing the Lumix and getting the editing down. My new PC here should handle it. Some people I know ask if I would sell my 60D from time to time. I baby my equipment, keep dry, and in a bag when not in use.
The more I read of some other reviews of that camcorder I was looking at turned me off it.
Thanks again for the advice.