Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Adjust? A UV?

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

I'd be even more prone to protect an expensive lens with a filter...

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

Yes.
If your wide has a limit of N filters before you get vignetting, you'll now have N-1 as your limit.
Telephotos are not affected as much because of the narrower field of view.

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

Test the benefits of UV filters your self. Take a small scratch the filter and then do the same for the lens. Which carlsed the most pain?

At the top of the page there is a search ... type in UV filter and read many pages. The filters range in price one study I read scientifically done showed the most expensive was middle of the road... do not fall for the popular UHH myth "ya get what ya pay for."

While I realize that science is politically incorrect... lock the door and read this
https://www.lensrentals.com/blog/2017/06/the-comprehensive-ranking-of-the-major-uv-filters-on-the-market/

The following says that Tiffin is the best value ... 58mm Photo Essentials Kit with UV Protector, 812 Color Warming, Circular Polarizing Glass Filters and 4 Pocket Pouch all for $27 !!
https://www.bestreviews.guide/uv-filters

dpullum Loc: Tampa Florida

oops double entry

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

On a digital camera, forget the UV filter. If you want to protect your lens, use a clear filter. UV filters were designed with film in mind.

gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast

I use mine just to protect the lens glass. It has no effect that I can tell on the image itself.

Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States

photoman022 Loc: Manchester CT USA

people will vehemently defend the use of UV filters to protect the lens and others will just as vehemently object to the use of UV filters claiming that they will degrade your photo.

You've done your experiment; the choice is yours. Use it or not, it's up to you.

alfeng Loc: Out where the West commences ...

Nice list, but ...

1. It is not necessarily true that because something does not "IMPROVE image quality" that it detracts from it ...
2. ... Probably BECAUSE in the past knowledgeable people used "colored" filters to enhance the grayscale when shooting B&W negatives ... others who shot color film might want another type of filter ... YOU do know that Nikon sold filters for their lenses, don't you?
3. Gee, based on THAT comment one has to wonder why lens hoods were NOT included with all lenses in the past!
4. !?! ¿ HOW is the dust which you are referring to getting from-one-side-to-the-other of the installed filter? Osmosis? One must presume that there was dust on the backside of the filter(s) when you put it/(them) on the lens(es).
5. So, are you saying that you have lenses which are impervious to condensation?!? Sweet!

Nice list ... especially, until one examines reality.

burkphoto Loc: High Point, NC

This is a summary of the "best practices" used by top working pros who seek optimal technical quality.

> There is no optical advantage below about a mile above sea level, unless you use film. Digital sensors don't pick up a lot of UV. There isn't enough UV at low altitudes to affect digital exposures.

> A UV filter is habitually sold by camera stores, because the store probably makes more money on filters than they do on camera or lens sales. These days, they should be selling a *clear glass* "filter" (lens protector) for the reasons they tell you that you should use a UV filter...

> Although a clear glass filter is better for lens protection than a UV filter (on DIGITAL camera lenses), in a pinch, a UV filter can protect your lens from flying debris, splashed liquids, sand, many drops, and other mishaps. It removes about 1/6 of an f/stop of light. Clear glass removes about half that.

> For night time street photography or astrophotography, or any time you have a lot of point source lights in a scene, REMOVE all filters if the situation makes it safe to do so. Filters can cause light to bounce off the front surface of a lens, reflect off the back side of the filter, and then be picked up by the lens in a different place. This can cause a weird "double image" flare, halos, or ghosting.

> Know that any filter can add significant flare to scenes with specular reflections (mirror-like reflections of light sources off of metal or glass or liquids) or light sources visible in a scene.

> Use filters when you need them for a specific purpose. Avoid them when you know it is safe to do so.

> ALWAYS use a lens shade.

> Use a clear glass filter, or a circular polarizer, or a neutral density filter, when the situation calls for it. At 6000' or higher, use a UV filter.

> Use special effects filters only if you can't get the effect in post-processing. Post-processing options are almost infinite these days. Recording and developing raw files maximizes your options for different end uses.

In my film days, I carried up to 40 filters in my bag, for B&W effects, special effects, and color correcting various light sources for both Daylight and Tungsten balanced Ektachrome films.

> In the digital world, white balance and hue controls (in the camera and in post-processing software) get rid of the need for color correction filters.

> B&W images may be created from raw files in many different ways, with near-infinite variations, so the old red, yellow, orange, and green filters used at the camera are unnecessary — in fact, undesirable — for their former effects. Just record raw files and convert them EXACTLY the way you want them, in Lightroom and Photoshop or your choice of good post-processing software.

In short, UV filters play a very minor role in the digital world, unless you're in the mountains. CLEAR GLASS "filters" or lens protectors should be used instead, and only when needed for protection. Lens hoods should ALWAYS be used, unless you're using an extreme wide angle lens where vignetting might be an undesirable effect. The most common "effects" you can't get in post-processing are circular polarization, which darkens blue skies at right angles to the sun and removes glare from foliage and water, and neutral density, which allows wider apertures, or slower shutter speeds, or lower ISO, or some combination of those.

Paul J. Svetlik Loc: Colorado

If you go to the altitude - let us say above 6000 Ft, take the UV filter with you or use the CPL filter.
UV rays are too strong there, making your photos washed out in a funny, blue way.

Paul J. Svetlik Loc: Colorado

If you go to the altitude - let us say above 6000 Ft, take the UV filter with you or use the CPL filter.
UV rays are too strong there, making your photos washed out in a funny, blue way.

LWW Loc: Banana Republic of America

Seriously?

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

Hi Lance,

And welcome to UHH. Let me introduce you to the Search function here. Questions about UV filters and their usefulness have been asked and answered here several times a week since the Internet was invented.

People use them for "protection", which IMO is rather silly and ill advised.

There are strong opinions both ways, but very little actual proof that a thin piece of glass provides significant "protection".

Decide for yourself by watching Steve's video, where he actually tests the effectiveness of UV filters for protection and the durability of lenses with and without them, as well as briefly discussing both the benefits and drawbacks of using them in a digital world:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0CLPTd6Bds



This was the case with film... It is not the case with digital.

On very rare occasion a UV filter may help reduce a blue haze in the distance in a scenic shot. But this is not the same as the over-sensitivity of film to the UV spectrum.

Years ago I used UV, "Sky", 81A, 81B (warming) filters a lotwhile shooting film, especially while living and shooting at high altitudes in Colorado. Shooting digital I no longer use them for that purpose, regardless of altitude. BTW, if using Auto White Balance, it will cancel out any warming filter's effect anyway. I now carry "Warm Cards" and set Custom WB for the purposes those filters served: https://www.vortexmediastore.com/pages/warmcards-white-balance-system.

I do carry high quality, multi-coated UV filters to fit most of my lenses... just in case they are needed. They're stored separate from my lenses most of the time, ready in case I find myself shooting in a sandstorm, out in the rain, at the sea shore or photographing a paint ball battle, where the filter might actually offer some form of protection for the lens. I also may use one on rare occasion for a scenic shot. However, UV filters are probably one of my LEAST used accessories. 99.9% of the time my lenses are either bare or I'm using a much more purposeful filter, such as a high quality, multi-coated circular polarizer (which needs to be used with care at high altitude because it can make the sky "go black", which may look rather odd).

I virtually always use a lens hood while shooting and a lens cap when not shooting. Those give far better protection than some thin piece of glass every could. In fact, somewhat ironically, when using a filter it's important to use the lens hood and cap to protect the filter!