Filter Advice, Please

[Beth Carter]

Well, Rhona managed to get a big scratch on her Canon lens. Kind of scared me a bit. Don't know how she did it, mind - especially as her excuse was the classic, "It wasn't me!".

does it affect the photos?
you've probably seen this before, it's made it's way around the internet a couple of times.
http://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2008/10/front-element-scratches

 

[Rob MacKillop]

Hmm...Is there any proof that a good filter reduces the quality of an image?

 

[Hamish Gill]

Take a photo with a filter, then without ... It's up to you to decide!
I stopped using filters after I started using a Nikon 17-55 2.8 lens. Awesome bit of kit, but I wasn't get as good results with one of the low profile Hoya hmc filters.

 

[Rob MacKillop]

Will do.

 

[Lesley Jones]

I'm one of the pro filter brigade. A good filter from a reputable company isn't cheap glass. I've seen very expensive lenses on a new Leica camera produce images so sharp you feel as though you could cut your eyeballs from looking at them. (Not in this forum I might add). And of course, all lenses come with their various good and bad points. I would rather know these and avoid the latter while protecting equipment that I can neither afford to replace, or it is (like my 76 year old 5cm Summar) irreplaceable

 

[Julian de'Courcy]

Toss a coin Rob and go with that If you are lucky it will be tails and you will be a few quid in.

 

[Hamish Gill]

I've just had this amazing idea for an invention ... I'm gonna call it a "lens-lid".

So what you do with this thing is put it on the end of the lens when your not using it ... It's acts to protect it!

Then after that you give me a slap for being such a facetious prat!

 

[Pete Askew]

If we lose it can we give you a kick too?!

 

[Hamish Gill]

You won't, I'm also going to invent a "lid-keeper" which will tie the filter to the camera somehow ...

 

[Pete Askew]

How about if you made the lid transparent? Then you could leave it attached all the time and just shoot through it.

 

[Hamish Gill]

I'd be concerned about the quality of the transparent material tbh Pete, I wouldn't want it negatively effecting people's photos

 

[Pete Askew]

I can't imagine it would but I guess you could take one shot with and another without and see for yourself!

 

[Rob MacKillop]

Round and round we go...

 

[Hamish Gill]

Brilliant thread! I really feel like we have come to a solid conclusion!

 

[Chris Dodkin]

I've done away with protective filters and lens-lids - I just put my lenses, lens-down, in my billingham bag, and call it a day

 

[Pete Askew]

And so much safer than putting them on a camera!

 

[Paul Lange]

Great, we certainly know how to nail our jellies to the wall on RPF.

BTW, I don't use filters, preferring to use lens hoods as I found that my filter had an obvious detrimental effect on image quality. However, I have no experience of the more expensive filters.