UV filters are the commonest filters bought with each lens buy. You’ve most likely heard {that a} UV lens filter protects your lens from getting scratched. It’s definitely true, however have you learnt how to decide on the greatest safety lens filter to guard your digital camera lens?
The greatest safety lens filter to guard your digital camera lens is UV Safety Filter (Ultraviolet Filter). The standard UV filters shield your costly lens from bodily harm (scratches, bumps) and have minimal or no impact on picture high quality.
What Is а UV Filter?
Initially UV filters (Ultraviolet Filter) had been developed in movie pictures days. A UV filter was essential for the reason that filters blocked undesirable ultraviolet mild from hitting the movie. The picture suffered haziness and fogginess with out a UV filter, particularly in blue hues.
Since fashionable digital cameras have built-in UV filters on the sensor stage, the necessity for UV filters is minimal at the moment.
It’s a widespread perception that UV filters scale back chromatic aberration or colour fringing, however I’ve by no means seen any proof of that with my eyes. Based mostly on my expertise, if a lens is poorly constructed, no filter can appropriate the colour fringing it produces. And if UV filters do scale back chromatic aberration, the discount is simply too insignificant to make a distinction in picture high quality.
Immediately, the one operate that UV filters provide is safety. There’s little or no distinction between clear or UV safety filters.
Utilizing UV Safety Lens Filter in Fashionable Pictures
That is typically a subject of debate within the pictures group as a result of there isn’t any clear consensus about utilizing UV filters for cover functions in digital pictures.
Completely different photographers method UV protecting filters in a different way.
We are able to separate most photographers into three teams relying on how they use UV filters.
- Group 1. Some photographers by no means use protecting or UV filters as a result of they consider that including an additional layer of glass in entrance of an costly, state-of-the-art lens can probably degrade the standard of the picture. We name these photographers “the perfectionists.”
- Group 2. Photographers within the second group use UV protecting filters solely when essential. For instance, in the event you attend the Burning Man pageant within the desert, you’ll sometimes clear the entrance component of your lens round 100 instances each day. The sand and mud can probably harm your lens.
- Group 3. The ultimate group of photographers is those that instantly connect a UV safety filter once they buy a lens and by no means take away it. The logic right here is that the danger of damaging the lens far outweighs the minimal degradation within the high quality of photos and, because of this, is price it in the long term.
How I Use UV Safety Lens Filter
For a very long time, I belonged to the primary group of “perfectionists” and refused to make use of the protecting filter. I assumed utilizing the lens hood was higher to guard my lens from any potential bodily harm.
What modified my thoughts was my frequent travels to the West Coast of the USA. As a result of robust winds alongside the coast, saltwater mist is at all times current within the air, even when it’s not raining. Continuously wiping the entrance component of any lens can simply trigger harm to its coating, particularly when salt residue is current.
At this level, I’ve UV safety filters for all my lenses, however they principally keep in my bag. I solely use them when essential. Earlier than climbing alongside the coast, I at all times connect the filters to my lenses the evening earlier than. And earlier than driving by way of Loss of life Valley, I additionally guarantee all my lenses are protected with filters.
What are the Negatives of Utilizing UV Safety Lens Filter?
To reply the query in regards to the unfavourable uncomfortable side effects of utilizing protecting UV filters, we have to perceive the properties of glass in optics. They’re mild transmission and light-weight reflection. They point out the ratio of sunshine that comes by way of glass versus the sunshine mirrored by the glass.
As a basic rule, the optical flat glass transmits 95% of sunshine, and 5% is mirrored.
It implies that in the event you shoot by way of the optical glass, you lose 5% of sunshine and are at a better danger of undesirable lighting results akin to lens flare and ghosting.
In sensible phrases, you must use UV protecting filters with the highest transmission and the bottom stage of reflection.
What to Search for When Buying UV Safety Lens Filters
Filter Materials
You most likely seen that you may purchase a UV filter for as little as $2-3. The rationale for that’s they’re manufactured from plastic. The reflection price of plastic is far larger than even common glass and will be larger than 15%. Avoid plastic filters.
Even in the event you discover a low-cost ($10-15) UV filter manufactured from glass, it’s nearly assured it’s not manufactured from optical glass. It’s extremely seemingly made out of low-coast development glass.
It will be greatest to search for UV safety filters manufactured from optical glass. And to maximise the safety stage of your lens, the filter needs to be outfitted with tempered glass.
Nanocoating vs Multicoating vs Non-Coated Filters
As I discussed above, even high-quality optical glass could have a mirrored image price of round 5% or larger. To cut back the reflection, filter producers use numerous varieties of coating.
Proper now, yow will discover three primary varieties of filter coating.
Non-Coated Filters
This sort of coating is easy; it merely doesn’t exist. If the filter is provided with high-quality optical glass, you’re going to get a mirrored image price of about 5%. With a non-coated filter, it will likely be extra affected by lens flares and ghosting.
Multicoating Filters
Many of the medium and high-quality filters at the moment use multicoating. The mixture of high quality optical glass and multicoating can scale back the reflection price by as much as 1%.
Nanocoating Filter
Nanocoating is the late know-how used to scale back and even eradicate the reflection price for good. You will see that new nanocoating know-how in some costly high-end filters.
Counterfeit UV Filters
Watch out the place you purchase protecting filters. In the event you discover a high-end filter at a fraction of the retail price, it’s assured to be a counterfeit from China. Be sure you purchase your optics from respected retailers. Avoid eBay and AliExpress, the place most counterfeit optics are bought.
How A lot Ought to You Spend On UV Safety Lens Filters
The straightforward reply is as a lot as potential to buy a UV Safety Filter with high-quality tempered glass with multicoating or multicoating.
On the identical time, shopping for a $100 UV Filter to guard a $150 package lens wouldn’t be sensible. As a result of cheap lenses will not be constructed utilizing the best high quality glass and coating, the lens’s mild transmission is already low. The costly protecting UV filter received’t have the ability to appropriate lens flaws and imperfections.
Fortunately for us, there’s a easy rule of thumb in pictures. It states that, on common, that you must spend on a UV safety filter 10% of the price of the lens.
It implies that in the event you shoot with a $1000 high quality lens, you have to to spend round $100 to match lens high quality.
I discover that the rule works fairly effectively for me. For instance, once I was trying to match my greatest lens Fujinon 10-24mm, with the protecting UV filter, I discovered just a few fashions with excessive mild transmission charges at round $90-100.
And in the event you shoot with a $300-400 lens, the $40 Tiffen UV safety filter can be adequate.
The Greatest UV Safety Lens Filters
1. Tiffen UV Safety Filter (Greatest Finances Mannequin)
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: None
- Coating: Multicoated
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
A Tiffen UV Safety Filter is a necessary filter you’ll be able to personal in your digital digital camera lens. It provides an reasonably priced resolution for shielding your digital camera lens in opposition to scratches, filth, and mud. This filter is crucial for out of doors pictures and is ideal for preserving your digital camera lens in good situation.
2. Breakthrough Pictures X4 UV Safety Filter (Editor’s Selection)
- Materials: Colour-neutral optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: Climate-sealing
- Coating: Nano Coating / Low Reflection
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
The X4 UV Filter is the world’s sharpest and most superior UV filter. This filter ensures superior picture high quality and readability by that includes a SCHOTT Superwhite B270 optical glass made in Germany.
Moreover, the X4 UV Filter options nanocoatings and weather-sealing to supply extra safety in your lens. Extremely-slim and light-weight, this filter is ideal for any photographer in search of the very best in UV safety.
3. B+W UV-Haze Safety Filter (High Rated)
- Materials: Colour-neutral clear optical glass
- Ring materials: Titanium
- Water resistant: Sure
- Coating: Nano Coating / Low Reflection
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
The B+W UV-Haze Safety Filter reduces the adhesion tendency of filth particles and water droplets. The hydrophobic coating is an especially skinny, clear layer that covers your complete filter floor. This layer causes water droplets to bead up and roll off, making it tougher for filth particles to stick to the glass.
With its MRC nanocoating, the filter has an especially low reflection, guaranteeing that your photographs can be unaffected by glare and reflections. This filter is good for nature, panorama, and journey pictures.
4. Gobe UV Safety Lens Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Magnalium
- Water resistant: None
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
Gobe UV Filter’s high-quality magnalium-alloy ring ensures sturdiness whereas remaining light-weight. The steel filter case is ideal for storage and transportation, making it the best addition to your pictures package.
Gobe UV filters are made out of optical glass, characteristic 16-layer multi-coating, and forestall inside ghosting and reflections whereas selling readability.
5. Hoya HD3 Multi-Coated UV Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: None
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
Hoya HD3 UV Filter is the most recent and one of the vital superior filters in the marketplace at the moment. It reduces mud, moisture, and scratches from reaching your lens components. Plus, it doesn’t add any extra coloration or distinction to your photos so to obtain natural-looking photographs each time.
This light-weight and aircraft-grade aluminum filter body is ideal for any photographer to characteristic entrance filter threads that settle for lens caps and different filters for stacking.
6. Ok&F Idea UV Lens Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: Sure
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
This Ok&F Idea UV Lens Filter is the proper strategy to hold your digital camera lens shielded from scratches and different harm. The ultra-slim aluminum filter ring is designed to suit most lenses, and the tempered optical glass offers superior safety. The scratch-resistant multicoated nano resistance coating additionally helps hold your lens trying new.
7. Marumi EXUS UV Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: None
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
This Marumi EXUS UV Filter has a singular oil and water repellent coating that makes it proof against fingerprints and grease.
The anti-static and stain-resistant coating helps to guard the filter floor from mud, filth, water, and oils whereas additionally aiding in preserving your photographs clear and clear.
The Marumi EXUS UV Filter has a thin-profile filter ring that reduces the probability of vignetting when used with wide-angle lenses.
8. Hoya NXT HMC UV Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: None
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
The Hoya NXT HMC UV Filter is a high-quality basic protecting filter with a 3-layer HMC multi-coating to protect in opposition to scratches, filth, and flares. The low-profile aluminum body makes it splendid to be used with wide-angle lenses, and the high-transparency optical glass ensures wonderful picture high quality.
9. Zeiss T* UV Filter
- Materials: Optical glass
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: Waterproof
- Coating: Multicoating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
The high-quality glass incorporates a ZEISS T anti-reflective coating that helps to stop reflections. By lowering floor reflections, you’ll get extra mild transmission for sharper, clearer photographs. It’s excellent for panorama and out of doors pictures. The excessive match accuracy ensures a quick filter change, so you’ll be able to spend extra time taking pictures and fewer time fiddling together with your gear.
10. AmazonBasics UV Safety Lens Filter
- Materials: Plastic
- Ring materials: Aluminium
- Water resistant: No
- Coating: No coating
- Guarantee: Restricted 1-Yr Guarantee
The AmazonBasics UV Safety Filter is an entry-level finances mannequin for basic use. It’s manufactured from plastic and has no coating, however it can shield your lens from mud, filth, and scratches. Chances are you’ll contemplate it as an possibility for on a regular basis use when taking pictures with an affordable package lens.
The Greatest Safety Lens Filter: Conclusion
Do you have to use UV filters?
There isn’t any proper or mistaken reply right here. Every photographer should resolve for themselves whether or not or to not use a filter. Ask your self this query: Is sacrificing picture high quality definitely worth the danger of probably damaging the entrance component of your lens? In case your reply is sure, then apply the filter.
In the long term, it doesn’t matter whether or not or not you select to make use of UV filters or not; what issues is the standard of the filter you select. You probably have a high-quality lens that prices you round $1,000, it is unnecessary to stay a $10 filter on the entrance of it. You possibly can at all times apply the 10% filter rule, which states that your protecting filter ought to price roughly 10% of what you paid in your lens.
I’m curious… Do you utilize UV filters? Share your solutions within the feedback beneath.
