Personally, I only use UV filters when my lens could get dirty (mud, sand, water). Whenever I do people or landscapes I most certainly don't. Why should I put cheap glass in front of my good lens? No no, most times a lens hood is safe enough...
Manufacturers can and do produce products in different qualities. It just depends on the price tag. It's really easy to produce good/expensive and bad/cheap products in the same factory. Not a big deal for a manufacturer these days... You can see this in various factories... food, computer, displays...
@remyramml Awesome. We are talking about glass, a metal ring and a coating, not a car or computer. If you don't believe me, buy a cheap one as well as an expensive one, take a picture of the same thing and tell me if you can see a difference? If it makes you feel better paying $30 more for the same thing go ahead.
@remyramml BTW- The accessories manufacturer who explained this to me said that due to the "economies of scale" it was cheaper to just make the same ones for everyone.
I have a B+W filter, which is kinda like a premium filter. It is much better than those cheapo filters from ebay. It is easier to clean and retains less smudge and haze. The only cons is the price.
Buying cheap filters is a false economy. They have little or no anti-reflective coating, so you will experience ghosting and a lack of contrast. If you're going to use them, use a decent brand - B+H, Heliopan etc. Or you will greatly compromise the IQ of your expensive lens. All filters are *not* the same.
@SLRist Ironically it was a friend at B+H that told me about this. There are a very few handful of companies that make 90% of all UV filters and brand them differently. Do you really believe B+H, Canon or any of the other top of the line "names" actually manufacture UV filters? Of course not. They hire a company that specializes in filters to stamp their unique logo on it. But if you prefer to spend more money on brand name stuff....go ahead!
@MichaelTheMentor - you mean in the same way that Sony manufactures sensors for many brands of camera - even though these are manufactured to the specific requirements of these companies (e.g. Nikon) and in the latter case perform better than those used in equivalent Sony camera bodies. The question is not who is manufacturing these items, but what the specification and budget is for them. Plenty of companies who manufacture quality goods are also capable of churning out dross.
@SLRist Actually not in the same way. We are talking about a UV filter, not a sensor. There isn't a whole lot to a UV filter, but if you believe paying $30 more for a "brand name" UV filter is actually justified in the manufacturing process, be my guest.
Another consideration is by adding a filter you are adding another element or layer of glass for light to pass through on its way to the cameras sensor. So you lose a tiny amount of light as the filter although probably multicoated will still reflect some fraction of the light cone. Shooting with a lot of available light obviously this would be less of a factor than if you are shooting in a very low light environment.
Imo the protection is a illusion. Normal lenses (especially L-lenses) are quite rough and can take some scratches (which you never see on a photo).
I know many people who ruined their lenses with a UV filter since the glas of the filters is - compared to those of the lenses - quite fragile. The lense falls down or you crash into some obstical during the look through the vierfinder
1) the broken glas make BIG scratches on your lense
@DaveRemmel A lot of this is personal preference. I would agree if you are in safe shooting conditions, but if you are one the beach, or in a super dusty environment - its much easier to clean the UV filter instead of the lens itself. Sometimes I use them, sometimes I dont. Just depends.
I totally agree with Mike - its added protection that will save you THOUSANDS of dollars if you have nice gear. At bestexposures we use filters even for indoor shoots - If you don't mind me adding a few extra notes - When photographing children, they will try to touch your camera. And once in a while their fingers smudge your lens- if you have a UV on - instead of taking time to clean - just unscrew the filter and your fingerprint free instantly! time is money - and you look like a pro
@BlaineVlog Its mostly a workflow issue for the product, not so much we are shooting to post on youtube.com. We shoot these in SD for DVD products which we sell, which are typically 3-4 hours in length. The lessons come right off the DVDs. There are a number of other reasons as well, but that is the main reason. We get asked this a lot and I have answered it many times already. Thanks
Buy b+w they're the best uv filte
pickachukabalooie 1 month ago
Personally, I only use UV filters when my lens could get dirty (mud, sand, water). Whenever I do people or landscapes I most certainly don't. Why should I put cheap glass in front of my good lens? No no, most times a lens hood is safe enough...
Labradorhund 4 months ago
Great advice. Love ebay but recently I've been using amazon.com and most of their prices are cheaper than ebay and free shipping.
Isolino 4 months ago
Thanks for the vid. I already got suckered but... next time
judutchinski 4 months ago
thanks my friend
zyrilo 4 months ago
Manufacturers can and do produce products in different qualities. It just depends on the price tag. It's really easy to produce good/expensive and bad/cheap products in the same factory. Not a big deal for a manufacturer these days... You can see this in various factories... food, computer, displays...
remyramml 4 months ago
@remyramml Awesome. We are talking about glass, a metal ring and a coating, not a car or computer. If you don't believe me, buy a cheap one as well as an expensive one, take a picture of the same thing and tell me if you can see a difference? If it makes you feel better paying $30 more for the same thing go ahead.
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago 2
@remyramml BTW- The accessories manufacturer who explained this to me said that due to the "economies of scale" it was cheaper to just make the same ones for everyone.
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
I have a B+W filter, which is kinda like a premium filter. It is much better than those cheapo filters from ebay. It is easier to clean and retains less smudge and haze. The only cons is the price.
aluxious 4 months ago
@aluxious Uh....do you know you can find B+W filters on Ebay for a fraction of the cost that they are sold in stores?
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
best comment on them i've heard, 'why put a $10 bit of glass, on a $500 lens..??
TheMrbean76 4 months ago
@TheMrbean76 My lens cleaning cloth also cost $10. If your logic holds, then why clean a $1500 lens with a $10 cloth? Answer: Because it works.
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
@TheMrbean76 my answer would be a bit different... it's easier to replace a scratched 10 dollar glass than a 500 dollar lens...
truknayr23 4 months ago
Buying cheap filters is a false economy. They have little or no anti-reflective coating, so you will experience ghosting and a lack of contrast. If you're going to use them, use a decent brand - B+H, Heliopan etc. Or you will greatly compromise the IQ of your expensive lens. All filters are *not* the same.
SLRist 4 months ago
@SLRist Ironically it was a friend at B+H that told me about this. There are a very few handful of companies that make 90% of all UV filters and brand them differently. Do you really believe B+H, Canon or any of the other top of the line "names" actually manufacture UV filters? Of course not. They hire a company that specializes in filters to stamp their unique logo on it. But if you prefer to spend more money on brand name stuff....go ahead!
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
@MichaelTheMentor - you mean in the same way that Sony manufactures sensors for many brands of camera - even though these are manufactured to the specific requirements of these companies (e.g. Nikon) and in the latter case perform better than those used in equivalent Sony camera bodies. The question is not who is manufacturing these items, but what the specification and budget is for them. Plenty of companies who manufacture quality goods are also capable of churning out dross.
SLRist 4 months ago
@SLRist Actually not in the same way. We are talking about a UV filter, not a sensor. There isn't a whole lot to a UV filter, but if you believe paying $30 more for a "brand name" UV filter is actually justified in the manufacturing process, be my guest.
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
Another consideration is by adding a filter you are adding another element or layer of glass for light to pass through on its way to the cameras sensor. So you lose a tiny amount of light as the filter although probably multicoated will still reflect some fraction of the light cone. Shooting with a lot of available light obviously this would be less of a factor than if you are shooting in a very low light environment.
saxonlight 4 months ago
Imo the protection is a illusion. Normal lenses (especially L-lenses) are quite rough and can take some scratches (which you never see on a photo).
I know many people who ruined their lenses with a UV filter since the glas of the filters is - compared to those of the lenses - quite fragile. The lense falls down or you crash into some obstical during the look through the vierfinder
1) the broken glas make BIG scratches on your lense
2) you can't remove the filter any more
DaveRemmel 4 months ago
@DaveRemmel A lot of this is personal preference. I would agree if you are in safe shooting conditions, but if you are one the beach, or in a super dusty environment - its much easier to clean the UV filter instead of the lens itself. Sometimes I use them, sometimes I dont. Just depends.
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
@DaveRemmel dont buy cheap shit uv filters buy good 1s, hardened glass 1s r good
alreacon 4 months ago
Can youu make a video on Neutral density filters and what they look like and stuff?
DGizzle4life 4 months ago
@DGizzle4life Grad ND Filters are covered on the Accessories DVD. Thanks!
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago
I totally agree with Mike - its added protection that will save you THOUSANDS of dollars if you have nice gear. At bestexposures we use filters even for indoor shoots - If you don't mind me adding a few extra notes - When photographing children, they will try to touch your camera. And once in a while their fingers smudge your lens- if you have a UV on - instead of taking time to clean - just unscrew the filter and your fingerprint free instantly! time is money - and you look like a pro
captainjman1976 4 months ago
Thanks for the advice! Why don't you publish your videos in a higher quality (720p) ??
BlaineVlog 4 months ago
@BlaineVlog Its mostly a workflow issue for the product, not so much we are shooting to post on youtube.com. We shoot these in SD for DVD products which we sell, which are typically 3-4 hours in length. The lessons come right off the DVDs. There are a number of other reasons as well, but that is the main reason. We get asked this a lot and I have answered it many times already. Thanks
MichaelTheMentor 4 months ago