Pages: [1]   Go Down

Author Topic: Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?  (Read 3895 times)

degrub

  • Guest
Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?
« on: December 16, 2010, 09:54:08 pm »

When i was outdoors shooting film 30 years ago, i always had a UV filter on the lens for protection as much as anything. If i was shooting indoors - art, interiors, etc. i would remove it.

What are practices and  thoughts for / against with digital capture ? Any different ?

Frank
Logged

Graystar

  • Guest
Re: Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?
« Reply #1 on: December 16, 2010, 10:25:28 pm »

Digital sensors do not respond to UV light, so UV filters are not necessary.  Use a hood to protect the lens.  Use a clear protective filter when environmental factors can damage your lens. One example is corrosive mist or spray, such as ocean spray (salt) or Yellowstone park geysers (sulfur.)
Logged

lookit

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 22
Re: Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?
« Reply #2 on: December 17, 2010, 12:43:47 am »

I agree, a UV or other clear filter doesn't seem to improve the images, but is good for protection.  It can make the camera more convenient by requiring less care about whether the lens might (lightly) bump into something when remaining uncovered ready for use, or be placed in a bag without a front cap.  Avoid uncoated filters because they will cause a great deal of flare; multicoated is modestly better than coated.
Logged

Lost

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 71
    • Flickr snapshots
Re: Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?
« Reply #3 on: December 17, 2010, 06:03:43 am »

I read somewhere that filters can be worse on digital than film, because there is more light reflected back from the sensor in to the lens than with film**. This results in more fogging of the image than you might have seen otherwise as some of that light is bounced back in to the lens by the filter.

I certainly have problems with some older Minolta telephoto lenses on a u4/3 camera. One in particular is completely unusable with a UV filter attached, and still pretty poor even without it.

-- Mark

** but why is the sensor reflective at all? Surely an efficient sensor would reflect very little light, - yet the sensors in my cameras look almost like mirrors?!

Rod.Klukas

  • Full Member
  • ***
  • Offline Offline
  • Posts: 156
    • http://www.rodklukas.com
Re: Use UV / clear glass filters on lens with digital camera ?
« Reply #4 on: December 29, 2010, 10:49:02 pm »

The best filters such as B+W and Heliopan will never hurt the image quality as they are sliced from a core and therefore opiticly flat.  They have easy to clean multicoating as well, so there is very little reflection if any, as mentioned above.  They are also more protective of the lens as they use brass rings, much harder, for their mounting.
Remember when you buy one based on price alone, you are making images through it too. :)
Logged
Rod Klukas
US Representative Arca-Swiss
Pages: [1]   Go Up