UV Filters and Focus...

  • Thread starter Thread starter Dinsdale
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Dinsdale

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Guys,
I'm still a bit of a newbie and need some advice about UV filters etc.
One tip I got from a camera buff years ago was to protect my lens front element by putting either a UV or Skylight 1B filter on it. So like a good boy I've installed Hoya UV (digital) filters on all three of my lenses. Last night my lovely wife presented me (I'd been whinging) with a new Nikkor 35mm f1.8 lens... yum! Using it without a filter out in the garden I noticed the colours were much clearer, the focus was better and all round a better picture. Very pleased!

This got me thinking... :thinking:




I've looked at the photos in these forums on a number of occasions and marvelled at the clarity of focus most of them have, whereas my photos never really grab me as being that well focussed. My questions therefore are:
  1. Are the UV filters affecting my autofocus and should I be using them as a matter of course?
  2. Is the effect of the UV filter worth the drop in focus quality?
  3. Am I just expecting too much from my lenses (Nikon AF-S Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED-IF; Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6 G; Nikon AF-S DX Micro Nikkor 85mm F/3.5G ED VR) bearing in mind I'm using them on a D300S?
  4. None of the above, great focus will come with experience/time.
Can anyone shed any light on this please? Many thanks in advance. :thumbs:
 
Option 5: You're about to get different people disagreeing on all these things :D

Honestly try each lens with and without, see how you feel it effects AF, look at picture quality afterwards and make a decision you're happy with.
 
a Cheap filter can defect your picture annoyingly, esp with flares :bang:
I don't use it in important situation. But normally, I will just put it on for protection, and I don't use branches other than BW and Hoya :D


btw, the 35f/1.8 will -no doubt- produce much better image quality than your zoom lenses, I don't think it's the problem of the filter in ** case.
 
Guys,

Thanks for the responses. I guess the answers were obvious really :bonk:
 
Dinsdale said:
Guys,
I'm still a bit of a newbie and need some advice about UV filters etc.
One tip I got from a camera buff years ago was to protect my lens front element by putting either a UV or Skylight 1B filter on it. So like a good boy I've installed Hoya UV (digital) filters on all three of my lenses. Last night my lovely wife presented me (I'd been whinging) with a new Nikkor 35mm f1.8 lens... yum! Using it without a filter out in the garden I noticed the colours were much clearer, the focus was better and all round a better picture. Very pleased!

This got me thinking... :thinking:




I've looked at the photos in these forums on a number of occasions and marvelled at the clarity of focus most of them have, whereas my photos never really grab me as being that well focussed. My questions therefore are:
  1. Are the UV filters affecting my autofocus and should I be using them as a matter of course?
  2. Is the effect of the UV filter worth the drop in focus quality?
  3. Am I just expecting too much from my lenses (Nikon AF-S Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6G ED-IF; Nikon AF Nikkor 70-300mm f/4-5.6 G; Nikon AF-S DX Micro Nikkor 85mm F/3.5G ED VR) bearing in mind I'm using them on a D300S?
  4. None of the above, great focus will come with experience/time.
Can anyone shed any light on this please? Many thanks in advance. :thumbs:
Click to expand...

#1 Probably not and No
#2 No
#3 Yes and no. They won't be as sharp as the 35mm 1.8
#4 Better focusing will of course get better the more you practice.

I never use a UV. Modern DSLR's do not need them. I have lens protector filters on my lens' ONLY when they are in my bag in case the cap comes off. As soon as my lens comes out of my bag the filter comes off.

I do use filters when shooting Landscapes but in that case i would use a Polariser or a Graduated neutral density filter.

For me... some will disagree,a lens hood is protection enough. Unless you are likely to get splattered with mud/stone/gravel i wouldn't use a protecting filter.

This is of course just my opinion. The choice is yours.:thumbs:
 
Merc said:
#1 Probably not and No
#2 No
#3 Yes and no. They won't be as sharp as the 35mm 1.8
#4 Better focusing will of course get better the more you practice.

I never use a UV. Modern DSLR's do not need them. I have lens protector filters on my lens' ONLY when they are in my bag in case the cap comes off. As soon as my lens comes out of my bag the filter comes off.

I do use filters when shooting Landscapes but in that case i would use a Polariser or a Graduated neutral density filter.

For me... some will disagree,a lens hood is protection enough. Unless you are likely to get splattered with mud/stone/gravel i wouldn't use a protecting filter.

This is of course just my opinion. The choice is yours.:thumbs:
Click to expand...

Your opinion is very much appreciated. Many thanks. :thumbs:
 
Well, i use a hoya pro1 UV filter on both my lens(for motocross ***!) and never found it a problem so far with image quality and focusing....;)
 
  1. No UV/'protective' filter can possibly improve image quality.
  2. All UV/'protective' filters will degrade image quality.
  3. The severity of the degradation tends to decrease as filter cost increases.
  4. In some situations the degradation may be small enough to not be noticed.
  5. In some situations even the best filter will cause noticeable degradation.
 
Mickwreay said:
So, are hoods the way ahead?

I have also bought filters for protection.

Micki
Click to expand...

This debate will never be settled. Some say yay for filters and some say nay.
I say nay. As said above unless you are likely to be peppered with mud/gravel, then a Lens hood is all the protection i want for my lens.

One thing is for sure, you're camera does not need a UV filter. It can only degrade the image. Depending on the quality of lens and filter will depend on how much but it will certainly degrade the image.
 
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