Should I get UV filters or lens hoods on these lenses? Hi, I bought the micro-4/3 camera Olympus E-M1 Mk2 together with these 3 lenses: 1. Olympus macro 30mm F3.5 2. Olympus 45mm F1.8...

katastrofa Loc: London, UK

Hi,

I bought the micro-4/3 camera Olympus E-M1 Mk2 together with these 3 lenses:

1. Olympus macro 30mm F3.5
2. Olympus 45mm F1.8
3. Olympus 75-300mm F4.8-6.7 ii

Should I get a UV filter or lens hood for any of them? I will be using the camera for wildlife photography, some macro (flowers, insects), some landscapes and family portraits.

nikon_jon Loc: Northeast Arkansas

Both, on every lens, always. UV filter is not essential strictly for the purposes of photography. They will make some difference in color rendition but nothing extreme or objectionable. But, as a handy way of preventing damage to the surface of the lens glass they excel. Regarding the lens hood. Have you ever seen clips of movie production and the big cameras they use? Ever see one without a lens hood on? NOT! They prevent extraneous light, that is incidental light from the side angles of the scene, from causing flairs that hamper image clarity. Buy the hood for each lens's focal length and it will be the size and depth needed to do the job for that lens. You can usually find a pretty good deal on these on Ebay or Amazon. Do a search for the lens focal length and aperture and you will find a suitable hood. Search example: Olympus 75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 lens hood.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

Definitely, and I'd recommend B+W filters. I'd also recommend lens hoods made specifically for those lenses. Additionally, learn when and when not to use them. The UV filters will provide a level of protection for the front element of the lens.
--Bob

katastrofa wrote:

Hi,

I bought the micro-4/3 camera Olympus E-M1 Mk2 together with these 3 lenses:

1. Olympus macro 30mm F3.5
2. Olympus 45mm F1.8
3. Olympus 75-300mm F4.8-6.7 ii

Should I get a UV filter or lens hood for any of them? I will be using the camera for wildlife photography, some macro (flowers, insects), some landscapes and family portraits.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

Welcome to the Hogg! Lots of good stuff on here! Some factual,some opinion...

Uv filters are typically of no value,few exceptions,when used on dslrs. Hoods are usually recommended by most.

Soon there will be tons of posts on the various philosophies of using clear filters for lens protection,it happens several times a year! Enjoy,LOL!

MikeMck Loc: Southern Maryland on the Bay

I use both on my lenses. A hood is not always necessary, so I have the extra protection of a 'clear" filter. Don't get cheap filters, they will distort the image. I use Hoya always. Good luck.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

I'll bet a dollar that none of us saw the others post before sending ours. (Up thru 06:26:2 LOL!)

katastrofa Loc: London, UK

Thanks guys.

More questions:
1. which other brands than B+W are good? Many years ago in Poland I used Hoya filters. What about Marumi?
2. if the lens hood prevents the installation of the UV filter, which should be preferred?
3. is it absolutely necessary to use a petal hood on a short prime lens? it is not easy to find petal lens hoods for less common filter thread sizes e.g. 46mm)

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

I would`be doing some research before spending a dime on uv filters,don't take my word for it...plenty available.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/explora/photography/tips-and-solutions/when-not-use-uv-filter?

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

katastrofa wrote:

Hi,

I bought the micro-4/3 camera Olympus E-M1 Mk2 together with these 3 lenses:

1. Olympus macro 30mm F3.5
2. Olympus 45mm F1.8
3. Olympus 75-300mm F4.8-6.7 ii

Should I get a UV filter or lens hood for any of them? I will be using the camera for wildlife photography, some macro (flowers, insects), some landscapes and family portraits.

I'd get both. If you only get one, then the lens hood. But the filter protects the front element from dirt and damage. This is not theory, I have had several "incidents" in the past where the filter took the hit. Replacing the filter, was about $40. The one lens that did not have a filter on it that fell cost me over $400 to repair. The nature of the damage, the filter thread, took the hit and needed complete disassembly, hence the high cost.

Also, you can follow the advice, based on you get what you pay for but negates the individual merits of an item compared to another one, or you can do the research and maybe save some $$.

Here is a great place to start - the testing rated the Hoya 72 mm HMC UV-0 over all other filters tested, including B&W.

http://www.lenstip.com/113.4-article-UV_filters_test_Description_of_the_results_and_summary.html

leftj Loc: Texas

DaveO wrote:

Welcome to the Hogg! Lots of good stuff on here! Some factual,some opinion...

Uv filters are typically of no value,few exceptions,when used on dslrs. Hoods are usually recommended by most.

Soon there will be tons of posts on the various philosophies of using clear filters for lens protection,it happens several times a year! Enjoy,LOL!

And it has been demonstrated time and time again that UV filters provide very little protection and reduce the IQ of the lens. A lens hood serves a twofold purpose in that it provides a significant level of protection and does a very good job of eliminating stray light impacting your image.

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

leftj wrote:

And it has been demonstrated time and time again that UV filters provide very little protection and reduce the IQ of the lens. A lens hood serves a twofold purpose in that it provides a significant level of protection and does a very good job of eliminating stray light impacting your image.

I am kind of giggling already about this subject. Plenty of pros and cons and I have a few clear filters,not used,but I do use the hoods. I understand the pros and I would say to each their own,but I see no point in uv's for my use.

leftj Loc: Texas

DaveO wrote:

I am kind of giggling already about this subject. Plenty of pros and cons and I have a few clear filters,not used,but I do use the hoods. I understand the pros and I would say to each their own,but I see no point in uv's for my use.

Yes, I too have a few UV filters. Wish I'd spent the money on something else.

ejrmaine Loc: South Carolina

katastrofa wrote:

Hi,

I bought the micro-4/3 camera Olympus E-M1 Mk2 together with these 3 lenses:

1. Olympus macro 30mm F3.5
2. Olympus 45mm F1.8
3. Olympus 75-300mm F4.8-6.7 ii

Should I get a UV filter or lens hood for any of them? I will be using the camera for wildlife photography, some macro (flowers, insects), some landscapes and family portraits.

I don't use either hoods nor UV filters. UV's filters have their own issues as mentioned above. If sun glare is a problem I use my cap or a reflector to shield the lens from the sun's rays.

mborn Loc: Massachusetts

What Again

DaveO Loc: Northeast CT

mborn wrote:

What Again

LOL!