I am having trouble deciding which filter to buy for my lens. Does anybody anything about these companies and which ones have good filters - Cokin, Canon, Hoya and Sigma.
i use a cheap filter to protect my kit lens eg. hoya, kenko etc. if you are willing to pay a premium, check out the B+W and Nikon filters
Filters are fine if you know what you want to achieve-but filters for their own sake are less advisable. For example using a Skylight or UV filter on a digital camera simply tp protect the lens is in the second category. You can protect the lens with a lens cap. Using a polarizing filter to suppress light reflections and glare from shiny surfaces is in the first category. Lenses are designed to produce the sharpest pictures with just the glasses in the lens. Additional glasses or elements including filters will impair image quality. Your best lens will in theory be off-specs if you mount a filter because the lens is now of a different configuration with the extra filter glass elements. The only filters you should carry are polarizing and neutral density filters, and even then you only mount them when taking a picture that specifically requires its use, afterwhich you take it off. Remember, a high quality US$10,000 lens with filter will have an image quality worse than an average US$500 lens without filter.
i thought Kenko just OEM Hoya filters. their filters and the packing almost look identical. B+W is the best but very pricey.
Other than a polarizing filter I don't think filters will be of much use for digital cameras. BTW, a filter is a flat pc of glass in a round shape. A lens design has many elements, and none of them are flat. Using a filter is like taking a picture through a glass window. Bypass the window and step out to take the same picture, you should get a better picture.
I've just bought 2 UV(N) filters. One by Kenko and the other by Hoya. For me they are really good! Firstly, both of them are multi-coated and most importantly they are cheap!
I don't really know the difference sealman. I bought them because they were made of glass. They were multi coated without any color. And of course, they were in acceptable price. You know, I broke a few of them in the past two years. Therefore, I will never buy anything expensive for my workhorses.
not sure about red. but many people get filters for protection. as illustrated here. some people use their gear so much (like professionals) that the chance of having something hit the front element is much higher than others.
as kwun and i mentioned. it's simply for protection! someone might think b+w filters will give better protection to our lenses. coz their filter rings are stonger. but if u drop your lens on to the ground. that glass will still be broken. and it takes more time to remove that filter ring from your lens. let me tell you something taneepak. whenver there is dirt, mark, fingerprint dust or even sand on my lens (filter). i will do nothing but rub it away instantly with my clothes then keep on shooting. that's what a filter for.
I do have filters on some of my lenses...it's to stop the children from reaching out and touching the glass.
For protection of the lens against knocks and prying fingers from kids, a collapsible lens hood is more useful. For medium and long focal length lenses such filters are excellent lens protectors. However, there are rare times when filters may come in useful-taking pictures in a sand storm, against a strong sea breeze or spray. A powerful air pump/blower and some lens cleaning tissues are also must have accessories. Use the air pump/blower each time after opening the lens cap and again each time before you close the lens cap. This will keep your lens in good condition. But a filter degrades image quality. It is like forcing yourself to take pictures through a glass window or glass barrier each time you take pictures. Use it only when absolutely necessary. Putting it on the lens permanently as a protector of the lens is not a good idea, especially when you have very high quality lenses. A lens hood is a better protector of the lens.
I also use a lens hood as well. Children have small hands. However, I must say, when I was at the HK Open, I didn't use the filter for those shots.
Lens hoods and filters are not "mutually exclusive". Therefore I use both of them together for most of the time. Filters of those long focal length lens (i.e 300mm or longer) are always put behind the rear element and they were purely built for a purpose other than protection. And yes! If u are taking pictures for your own pleasure. You can always use a dust blower to blow away dust and sand whenever you want. But it isn't a good idea for professionals during assignments. You know, there are always 2 kinds of photographers in the world. And they always have their own definition of "quality". I guess mine is different from yours.
okay...jusat read this thred. I would go filters to protect the lens for anything thats not really important. If I try for something specific, or the photos are important, remove the filter.