Filter Time

M

Michael Olsen

Veteran
So, it's come time for me to get a set of filters...not going to the MB route yet.

UV - I recall someone posting a big shootout of UV filters by a well known photographer which has surprising results - a traditional favorite was beaten by what is commonly considered a subpar brand, or something like that. Anyone still have that link?

Vari-ND - I don't want to go the premade route, I'd rather just buy a circular and linear polarizers and stack them. What are recommendations here?
 
Michael Olsen said:
UV - I recall someone posting a big shootout of UV filters by a well known photographer which has surprising results - a traditional favorite was beaten by what is commonly considered a subpar brand, or something like that. Anyone still have that link?
Click to expand...
http://www.lenstip.com/113.4-article-UV_filters_test_Description_of_the_results_and_summary.html

The results weren't that surprising. Hoya is considered a top brand, perhaps the most popular in the world. B+W has a better reputation, but its products are way more expensive. On reputation alone, photographers expect B+W products to be among the best of the best, which is why I'm sure that many readers didn't appreciate the fact that the cheaper Hoyas did better. The real surprise, IMO, was the lackluster performance of so many name brands. Half of the tested products didn't perform better than regular window glass, and a few (such as a Tiffen) actually performed worse.

Vari-ND - I don't want to go the premade route, I'd rather just buy a circular and linear polarizers and stack them. What are recommendations here?
Click to expand...
http://www.lenstip.com/115.4-article-Polarizing_filters_test_Results_and_summary.html

Marumi DHG for the circular polarizer, Kenko for the linear polarizer. Kenko is the brand that Hoya uses in Japan, so the products are exactly the same, but you can get imports that are cheaper than corresponding Hoyas.

In circular polarizers, B+W really is the best, but not by much, not enough to justify the price premium, IMO.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top