How do you handle your filters?

erich6

Just curious. How do you handle your lens filters out in the field?

In my case, I usually keep a UV filter on the lens all the time but when I'm shooting outdoors I like to use polarizers. The problem is that my polarizers are thin so they don't have a mount for a lens cap. So I usually end up having to replace the UV filter back on and then put the cap back on before putting the lens back in the bag.

Switching between UV's and polarizers all the time seems cumbersome to me. Do you guys have a different approach? Do you just have a polarizer for each lens and just keep it on and not worry about the lens cap?

Erich

ian408

I swap as required.

Mike Lane

erich6 wrote:

Just curious. How do you handle your lens filters out in the field?

In my case, I usually keep a UV filter on the lens all the time but when I'm shooting outdoors I like to use polarizers. The problem is that my polarizers are thin so they don't have a mount for a lens cap. So I usually end up having to replace the UV filter back on and then put the cap back on before putting the lens back in the bag.

Switching between UV's and polarizers all the time seems cumbersome to me. Do you guys have a different approach? Do you just have a polarizer for each lens and just keep it on and not worry about the lens cap?

Erich

Pros have advised me not to use the UV filter unless you need it. Use the lenscap as lens protection, that's what it's for.

Read more here.

larry l

Very interesting information and something I have been thinking about a lot lately, thanks!

cyoung

So is this what explains those speckles on the girls chest, because of my UV filter I have on my lens....I figured its a reflection of something, just not from the filter and the lens...

Mike Lane wrote:

Pros have advised me not to use the UV filter unless you need it. Use the lenscap as lens protection, that's what it's for.

Read more here.

DanielB

Mike Lane wrote:

Pros have advised me not to use the UV filter unless you need it. Use the lenscap as lens protection, that's what it's for.

Read more here.

THAT should be in the hall of wisdom right there. that was veryyy helpful.

did ya hear that andy?



:giggle

erich6

I've heard this recently from a pro photographer also. Certainly having another piece of glass can cause problems. But I would think that it depends on the quality of the filter.

Reichmann pointed out that if you put a piece of sticky paper on the lens you probably won't see it. That's because it is an objective plane. That means the filter itself should have little effect on image quality.

The key issue is if the filter does not have sufficient antireflection coating on the backside. I would think some of these highly expensive filters have this figured out (I'll have to track down some reflectivity spec sheets).

At any rate, that still doesn't help me if I have a polarizer filter on (which I definitely like to have in landscape photography) and it doesn't let me put on a real lens cap on because it is too thin. I still end up having to take it off whenever switching lenses. I guess not having to put on yet another filter would help....

I'd like some of the other sages in Dgrin to weigh in on this!

Erich

erich6

cyoung wrote:

So is this what explains those speckles on the girls chest, because of my UV filter I have on my lens....I figured its a reflection of something, just not from the filter and the lens...

Definitely looks like ghosting effects. It would be interesting to set up a test and see what happens with filter on vs. off. This could have been caused by internal elements.

Erich

davev

erich6 wrote:

I've heard this recently from a pro photographer also. Certainly having another piece of glass can cause problems. But I would think that it depends on the quality of the filter.

Reichmann pointed out that if you put a piece of sticky paper on the lens you probably won't see it. That's because it is an objective plane. That means the filter itself should have little effect on image quality.

The key issue is if the filter does not have sufficient antireflection coating on the backside. I would think some of these highly expensive filters have this figured out (I'll have to track down some reflectivity spec sheets).

At any rate, that still doesn't help me if I have a polarizer filter on (which I definitely like to have in landscape photography) and it doesn't let me put on a real lens cap on because it is too thin. I still end up having to take it off whenever switching lenses. I guess not having to put on yet another filter would help....

I'd like some of the other sages in Dgrin to weigh in on this!

Erich

I bought a used thin Hoya polarizer that has no front threads, but it came
with a rubber lens cap that fits over the outside of the filter.
Maybe your local camera shop would have a similar cover.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=129975&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

pathfinder

Mike Lane wrote:

Pros have advised me not to use the UV filter unless you need it. Use the lenscap as lens protection, that's what it's for.

Read more here.

I absolutely agree with Mike and the article on the Luminous Landscape. Use a filter only when necessary.

Clean lenses carefully with a lens brush when they are dusty.

cabbey

erich6 wrote:

Switching between UV's and polarizers all the time seems cumbersome to me. Do you guys have a different approach? Do you just have a polarizer for each lens and just keep it on and not worry about the lens cap?

Back when I lived in the Mojave desert I bought my first polarizing filter, after fighting with one that didn't work well with my lense caps for the better part of two months I took it back and paid almost twice as much for a different brand that didn't share that same problem. These days, all my filters accept lense caps, so I don't have to worry about it. That wasn't intentional, it's just worked out that way.