anotherview Loc: California

Hoya.

ksmmike

My vote would be for Breakthrough Photography, good products and customer service is excellent.

lamiaceae Loc: San Luis Obispo County, CA

Heliopan or B+W (Schneider), both German schott glass. [spelling is off there?]. Used are reasonably priced.

bleirer

This list is a few years old, but gives you some ideas. Covers clear and uv filters.
https://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2017/06/the-comprehensive-ranking-of-the-major-uv-filters-on-the-market/

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

Nikon no longer make a full line of filters- the ones the manufacture are top-quality

Many Japanese based cameras and fewer manufacturers outsource their accessory production to other companies. Most of their Speedlights are made in China. Hoya makes optical glass, lens optical components for other companies and I suspect they make many of the camera name-branded- filters are made by Hoya as well. All my Hasselblad filters are made by Zeiss. I think B+W is a subsidiary of Schneider. Many of the store-branded filters are made in China.

Since I don't need as many filters anymore, I only buy the top-of-the-line brands and categories.

I don't know of too many folks around here remember gelatin filters- thin, optically perfect, and mounted at the back of view camera lenses so there were no flare issues. Back in the day, many transparency films labelled with starting filter packs- each emulsion batch had a slightly different colour balance requirement. The gels were kinda disposable.

b top gun

I have Nikon clear and CPL filters; have used them since film days; used them because I have Nikon lenses and bodies. My logic, their lens, their filters. However, last I looked I could not find them on B & H's site any longer. B+W is my second choice.

Cookie223 Loc: New Jersey

I use B&W (clear) filters on all my lenses strictly for protection purposes only. There are many that don’t support using filters, but if you read the posting by Marge “I almost cried” then you’ll see why many people use them.
Good luck.

CHG_CANON Loc: the Windy City

Lens hoods are for Disneyland, filters are for life.

bleirer

I'm ashamed to say I use the Nikon NC clear on my Canon. Blasphemy! It was the highest transmission under $100 at the time. I keep the lens hood on to hide my indiscretion.

Fredrick Loc: Former NYC, now San Francisco Bay Area

foathog Loc: Greensboro, NC

Another Gem from Paul. LOL this one though was a stretch. LOL

superdadplano Loc: Dallas, TX

I read this article a few years ago and found it to be very useful:

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

WayneL Loc: Baltimore Md

Without spending big bucks check out Fotasy filters on ebay. Low cost and multi coated glass.

aellman Loc: Boston MA

Curious: why clear rather than UV? Thanks. Alan

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

If you are thinking of a filter for "protection" of your precious new lens, in my opinion that's largely a waste of money. See and decide for yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0CLPTd6Bds

The lens cap and matched lens hood do a better job protecting a lens than some thin piece of glass ever could. (Depending upon what lens you are getting, some Canon lenses include the hood... others don't. Basically, all the L-series include a hood, but with their non-L lenses it's a separate purchase I'd highly recommend.)

If you're looking for another type of filter for occasional use in situations where it will actually enhance the scene.... such as a Circular Polarizer.... then I'd recommend B+W F-Pro or XS-Pro as among the very best values. They are top quality filters in all respects, but available at considerably lower cost than comparable filter from other manufacturers. Right now B&H Photo is offering the B+W F-Pro CPL for $90 and the XS-Pro for $104 in 77mm size. Both these filters use top quality German Schott glass, fine Kaesemann polarizing foils and are edge sealed for weather resistance. They also are both "high transmissive", which is a relatively new type of CPL that's not as dark as they've been traditionally, so they "cost" less light loss. Where standard CPL would reduce light by approx. 1.33 to 2.33 stops (depending upon how you adjust them), the new high trans type reduce it roughly .75 to 1.5 stops, and they do so without any loss of polarizing efficiency. The extra 2/3 stop of light can make quite a difference (though it does not make the filter one you should leave on the lens all the time for protection, as some manufacturers suggest... there are many times when no filter should be used and even some times when the last thing you want is polarization... such as when trying to capture a rainbow or a reflection). Like all B+W filters, both these CPL also are mounted in brass frames, which are less prone to galling and getting stuck on lenses than aluminum frames used by many other manufacturers.

The difference between these two B+W filter series is that the less expensive F-Pro has good, but standard 8-layer multi-coating and uses B+W's standard brass frame (which are pretty low profile, I've never had problem using them on ultrawide lenses). The more expensive XS-Pro uses a "slim" frame ideal for ultrawide lenses and 16-layer "Nano" multi-coatings that are more dust, oil, water and scratch resistant, as well as a bit easier to clean.

B+W also offers an "MRC" CPL for slightly less... currently $87 at B&H Photo. This is identical to the F-Pro in all respects, except that it isn't "high transmissive", doesn't use the Kaesemann polarizing foil and isn't edge sealed for weather resistance. For the $3 difference in price, I'd opt for the F-Pro (if not the XS-Pro for a few dollars more).

One more series of filters B+W offers includes their "SC" CPL at an even lower price. That's the same as the MRC except it's a single coated filter that might be fine for indoor use under controlled lighting, but I'd recommend multi-coated for outdoor use.

B&H Photo has 43 different multi-coated CPL filters from various manufacturers in 77mm size: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/products/Polarizer/ci/115/N/4026728357?filters=fct_circular-sizes_27%3A77mm%2Cfct_design_2321%3Amulti-coated%2Cfct_polarizing-type_35%3Acircular Look carefully though. Very few of those have all the features that B+W do. And the ones that do, tend to be a lot more expensive (check out Heliopan, which are quite similar quality and features, as well as Hoya HD3 and Breakthrough Photography X4 CPL that are very close in what they offer). There are some less expensive, but most will lack some or many of the above features. Some of the others are new brands that I don't know. I've used B+W filters for many years and have never been disappointed by them.

Adorama has some filters B&H doesn't, and vice versa: https://www.adorama.com/l/Photography/Lens-Filters/Polarizing-Filters?sel=Circular-Filter-Size_77mm|Polarizer-Type_Digital-Circular_Circular|Coating_Multi-hyphen-Coated

Another popular type of filter for digital photography is Neutral Density. Those can be used to allow longer shutter speeds for deliberate blur effects (to make moving water appear "creamy" or to make cars and pedestrians "disappear" from a city shot)... or they can allow an extra large aperture to be used in bright light (for shallow depth of field effects, such as a strong background blur for a portrait). Those are available in a number of the same brands and series within the brands, although there's not as much difference in pricing... no real standout values I can point to.

Shop around... you can find these and other filters elsewhere, though I think you'll have a hard time beating the prices at Adorama and B&H.

Overall, there are so few types of filters needed for digital photography, I think it's worthwhile to invest in top quality... to not skimp. An inexpensive, lower quality filter can have negative effects on every image taken through it.