steveirwin

I just bought a Leica lens for my Lumix gx8 and what to buy comparable quality filters for it. What brands should I consider?

PixelStan77 Loc: Vermont/Chicago

B&W or Hoya Steve.

Vince68 Loc: Wappingers Falls, NY

B&W, Schneider, Breakthrough Photography are all very good.

rjaywallace Loc: Wisconsin

Breakthrough Photography filters and adapters

queencitysanta Loc: Charlotte, North Carolina

I only use B&W filters

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

The only filters I prefer to use are those from B+W.
--Bob

camerapapi Loc: Miami, Fl.

What type of filter? If you buy one of those UV filters for "protection" I would not invest a lot of money. Polarizers or ND filters are a different story since they will go in front of the lens and automatically will become part of the optical system of your lens.
I like Breakthrough but there are many others of similar quality.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Filters vary in price widely. Many here will recommend B&W or more expensive glass. Tiffin makes a good all around quality. Remember, used filters sell for cheap and the mark up on some new filters is astronomical.
I was a pro for over 45 years, good glass will make most decent filters look great. B&H has sales on B&W filters from time to time and usually discount them from 50-70%. You may want to sign up to get their daily specials, there are good values there most days.

Wanderer2 Loc: Colorado Rocky Mountains

Hoya, B+W as already mentioned, also Marumi. The Lenstip website has good comparative testing of filters. I would suggest the top of the line within any brand.

repleo Loc: Boston

I was a fan of B+W until I got my first Breakthrough Photography filter. I especially like the BT circular polarizers. The knurled edge makes it much easier to adjust with a lens hood on than the B+W versions.

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

Price is a poor indication of quality. And no single brand makes the best filter in each category. What kind of filters are you looking to buy?

Here is a sample of a rating of quite a few popular filters, so you can get a sense of how price and quality correspond:

https://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2017/06/the-comprehensive-ranking-of-the-major-uv-filters-on-the-market/

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

I'll primarily focus on "Circular Polarizer" filters, since those are by far the most useful for digital photography (most other filters can be easily emulated in post-processing and serve little purpose).

B+W are made by Schneider Kreuznach... the celebrated lens maker with a rich history going back well before Leica.

They use high quality, Schott optical glass from Germany. It's mounted in brass frames, which are less prone to galling and getting stuck. Their "F-Pro" and "XS-Pro" series are multi-coated. The F-Pro have 8-layer coatings, while the slightly more expensive XS-Pro 16-layer "Nano" coatings that are a little more water/oil/dust/scratch resistant and easier to clean. The F-Pro use a standard, but fairly low profile frame. The XS-Pro use a slimmer frame, as might be needed on ultrawide lenses (but also may be more difficult to install and remove).

In both those series, their "Kaesemann" Circular Polarizers are among the best values available. They are as much as half the cost of similar quality filters from other brands. Hard to beat! They are also both now "High Transmissive" C-Pol, which are less dark than traditional polarizers and don't block as much light. (Last time I checked, they still offered an "MRC" version, basically the same as the F-Pro but with more standard level of darkening.) The F-Pro and XS-Pro C-Pol also both use special, extra fine polarizing foils and have extra sealing for weather resistance.

Heliopan SH-PMC C-Pol are very similar to B+W in most respects... So are Rodenstock filters. But both are typically a lot to a whole lot more expensive.

Top-of-the-line Breakthrough Photography "X4" series, Cokin "Nuances" and Hitech-Formatt "Firecrest" filters all have similar specs too: Schott glass, brass frames, etc.

Hoya's top of the line HD3 have similar specs too, though they instead use Asahi optical glass, which is said to be equal to Schott. They also don't use brass frames, but that may not be a problem since many modern lenses use plastic filter threads which help prevent filters from getting stuck. Tiffen has high-end C-Pol that appear to be similar.

I haven't used them, but Marumi filters have gotten a lot of praise, too. The tripod company Benro has also recently introduced a line of filters that I haven't used, but appear to be have high specifications.

Besides C-Pol, there really aren't any other types of filters that are necessary for most digital photography. (Note: While their C-Pol may be among the best value.... high quality at a reasonable price... B+W's pricing for other types of filters isn't all that different from what other manufacturers charge for filters with similar specs and quality.)

Some people like to use a "protection" filter (a "clear" or "UV" filter, typically).... but in my opinion it's sort of false security. How much "protection" can a thin piece of glass provide? I have and carry them, but only very rarely install them on my lenses when out shooting with them in a sand storm, a paintball battle or similar. I use them at the sea shore to keep "salt spray" off my lenses (it's hard to clean off... I'd rather clean a filter). My protection filters don't see a lot of use... Nowhere near as much as my C-Pol do. Mine are mostly B+W "010" or "UV" "MRC"... essentially older versions of F-Pro quality. I have a Hoya or two, as well.

Another type of filter that can be useful for digital, although fairly specialized, is Neutral Density. They are used for certain effects in images... to be able to use slow shutter speeds or large lens apertures in bright conditions, that would be beyond the range of adjustment available with the camera and lens alone (ISO, shutter speed, aperture). For still photography, one or two fairly strong ND filters might be wanted to be able to use slow shutter speeds (for things like making flowing water look "creamy") or to use large apertures for shallow depth of field/strong background blur effects (such as for portraits). Note: Not to be confused with Graduated Neutral Density, Center Spot Neutral Density and similar.... which are largely unnecessary with digital.

Variable ND filters are an alternative to the fixed strength type, but Vari ND are prone to have uneven effects and cause ugly color tints in images... plus tend to be expensive to ultra expensive. They really aren't necessary for still photography... one or two fixed-strength ND can usually do all a photographer needs. Because they have less latitude with other exposure controls, a videographer might want a Vari ND instead of having to buy a stack of different fixed-strength filters (though the latter will do a better job).

Currently I don't currently have any ND filters... I've used them in the past and will buy one again if and when I need it for certain types of shots.

Many manufacturers also make cheaper, lower quality filters, so be careful. Hoya makes something like 5 or 6 different grades of C-Pol. B+W makes some "SC" filters that are like F-Pro without multi-coatings, which might be fine for indoor use under controlled lighting, but I'd prefer multi-coated for outdoor, general use under who-knows-what lighting conditions). Breakthrough makes some lower cost "S2".

Bill P

[quote=camerapapi]What type of filter? If you buy one of those UV filters for "protection" I would not invest a lot of money. Polarizers or ND filters are a different story since they will go in front of the lens and automatically will become part of the optical system of your lens.

Perhaps you could explain your statement, as the so called protective filters go in the front of the lens just like polarizers and ND filters.

azted Loc: Las Vegas, NV.

B & H has a new line of filters that I just tried and am really impressed with. Previously I purchased B&W, but now I am all in on Chiaro filters. They tell you upfront what the light transmission is, and they use Schott glass, brass, etc. for top quality.

AirWalter Loc: Tipp City, Ohio