Does filter quality matter?

[Disappointed_Horse]

https://www.filterfind.net/ is a great source for used filters.

 

[Huss]

I use older Nikon 37c and new BW MRC filters. The BW MRC filters are a thing of beauty,

But do you notice any difference?

Using B+W filters, if I shoot at night and there is a light source in the image eg street lamp or house light, I will get a reflection of it in the image. So I remove filters in such a specific case.
I'd assume this is the same for all filters, not just B+W.

 

[mshchem]

But do you notice any difference?

Using B+W filters, if I shoot at night and there is a light source in the image eg street lamp or house light, I will get a reflection of it in the image. So I remove filters in such a specific case.
I'd assume this is the same for all filters, not just B+W.

Oh heck no I don't notice anything. However, I bought some Tiffen bay 60 zero coating protective filters. What drove me crazy was when I looked at the filter mounted on the lens, it looked like a mirror. I bet the filter was reflecting several percent, something significantly back at me, and I'm scary looking

I like the mrc bw filters. I used to always buy Hoya, made in Japan coated filters. Now Hoya is a brand, made in Philippines, aluminum rings. Yuck.

I haven't shot time exposures at night in decades, but I know exactly what you are talking about. I need to get out and take some night shots, if I do I will be prepared to shed my filters.

 

[DREW WILEY]

It all depends. I have lots and lots of specialty filters for both black and white and color photography. In the field, I personally use only top quality coated glass filters (Hoya, B&W, Heliopan, etc); some are multi-coated, some single-coated. MC Hoya are the best bang for the buck. Their coating are generally harder than B&W. But don't screw in aluminum rings too tightly, really not brass rings either, if you're smart. Well-coated glass filters are easier to keep and have less flare. Otherwise, not every brand has the same selection, so you might need to select from more than one brand; and not all lenses have idea len shades, so there's that variable too, to consider. Tiffen has a great selection, but are the hardest glass filters to keep clean from haze, grime, or cold weather condensation; few of them are coated.

Does all this make a difference in the actual visual end result. You betcha.

As far as filterfind.net as a supplier goes, I've been in his little warehouse. He's basically a filter liquidator of extant stock bought up from other dealers all over the country. Lots of exotic items. But his inventory is mostly either "as new" for all practical purposes, or outright brand new, totally unused.

 

[shuddered]

I want to get a few colored filters for black and white film photography - yellow, orange, and red. These will be used with Konica Hexanon AR lenses on a Konica Autoreflex T4, and possibly also with my Pentax MX gear, using step up rings.

There are tons of used filters available on eBay at reasonable prices. Can I consider any filter which was "made in Japan" in the analog heydays to be of reasonable quality? Or would it be worth the extra time and cost to seek out a more modern filter from Hoya or B+W with multicoating? By "reasonable quality" I mean, am I going to see any difference in image quality between a moderate quality filter compared to the top shelf ones?

Right now I have my eye on a set of Toshiba brand filters, made in Japan, but I can't find any specific info to tell me if the Toshiba filters were "cheap" filters - or comparable to the ones Canon, Minolta, and Nikon were putting their names on back in the 1970s.

And how would the 1970s Canon, Minolta, and Nikon filters compare to modern filters by Hoya, Marumi, or B+W?

doesn't it defeat the purpose of having a great lens if the filter is not good? I would get B+W. schneider makes great lenses and quality filters.

 

[wiltw]

Look at these tests and decide for yourself if it matters to you...

www.kenandchristine.com/gallery/1054387_ucZqa/1

For me, under ordinary circumstances, filter quality may not make an appreciable difference, but there are demanding circumstances under which I would remove any filter which is not essential to making the shot. In any event, I avoid single-coated and double-coated filters, and all Tiffens -- the test demonstrates why.

 

[Louis Nargi]

I think most people have better things to do than to compare filters of different price categories from different decades. I would just get something that fits my budget and was recognised in its time as quality. If buying new I would look at B+W, Heliopan, Nikon or Hoya/Kenko.

AGREE

 

[Sirius Glass]

It is a good idea to have filter wenches in case a filter gets too attached. Besides the cost is low.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=filter wrench&N=0&InitialSearch=yes&sts=ma

 

[George Mann]

doesn't it defeat the purpose of having a great lens if the filter is not good? I would get B+W. schneider makes great lenses and quality filters.

My Toshiba's never seem to be upstaged by my B&W's.

 

[gone]

Expensive or cheap, I've never seen any appreciable (noticeable) loss of IQ from various B&W filters. Which makes sense, as I've owned a lot of lenses over the years that had chips, scratches etc on the front glass and never saw any loss of IQ. Haze or fungus in a lens, that's where you lose IQ from light diffraction.

 

[AgX]

I have wondered if using a gel filter in an unprotected holder, eg, without a hood or at the front of a bellows lens shade, would attract reflections or flare. Apparently not.

A gelatine filter yields basically the same reflection issues as a glass filter, however the diffeent gloss plasys a role. Furthermore is their thinness of optical importance.

 

[runswithsizzers]

Thanks for the helpful replies! (As for the unhelpful replies, ...)

I am going to try a couple of affordable Toshiba filters first, and if those fail to meet my expectations, then I can always buy a Hoya or B+W filter later.

 

[DREW WILEY]

Gels attract grime, scratches, dirt; and they aren't cheap. I would never personally use gels outdoors.

As far as "filter wrenches" go : the cheapest and most portable are a simple plastic Zip-Tie.

 

[Sirius Glass]

Gels attract grime, scratches, dirt; and they aren't cheap. I would never personally use gels outdoors.

As far as "filter wrenches" go : the cheapest and most portable are a simple plastic Zip-Tie.

Good idea but they only work once and are therefore not as cost effective as the plastic filter wrenches.

 

[Mike Lopez]

Gels attract grime, scratches, dirt; and they aren't cheap. I would never personally use gels outdoors.

As far as "filter wrenches" go : the cheapest and most portable are a simple plastic Zip-Tie.

An even cheaper option would be a simple rubber band that's wide enough to grip your filter. I can't tell you the number of times I've removed lids from jars with a rubber band.

 

[Mike Lopez]

A gelatine filter yields basically the same reflection issues as a glass filter, however the diffeent gloss plasys a role. Furthermore is their thinness of optical importance.

Could you please elaborate on that last sentence? (What does it mean?)

 

[AgX]

The thinness of a parallel plate has impact on two fenomon. As the lateral shift between the two reflection images, the lateral shift between front and rear part of an throughgoing ray.

In some optical applications thus foils or even pellicles are used.

 

[SchwinnParamount]

I go along with the best glass mentions. There was only one mention of brass mounts which I strongly agree with. Many filters are mounted in aluminum mounts. Brass is more durable and is worth the extra upfront cost. I have used Hasselblad filters as well as adapters with Heliopan and B-W filters along with other brands and can say that there may not be very noticeable differences in image quality but the difference in serviceability is worth the difference in cost in the long run.

http://www.jeffreyglasser.com/

http://www.sculptureandphotography.com/

Not only is brass more durable, it resists corrosion which means that you are far less likely to have a brass filter frozen on your lens or worse, due to miss-threading, strip the threads on your lens. If you stack filters for whatever reason, two brass filters stacked will unscrew from each other like soft butter. That's nice. So nice. Aluminum threads are so raunchy.

 

[Huss]

Speaking of cheap filters, I have three Vu 39mm UV filters that were gifted to me. None of them have the correct thread pitch - they will partially attach to any of my corresponding lenses (Leica, Fuji, CV) before binding.
I then looked at the reviews of this brand on B&H, and customers complained about this no matter which size they bought (or what lens brand they tried to attach it to).

Stay away from Vu!

 

[eli griggs]

I'll buy used, quality filters, Hasselblad, B&W, Heliopan, Hoya, Tiffen, and Kodak, both series and Wratten gels, when I can, but the condition and quality must be high.

So far, no disappointments and I've also found a good inexpensive maker of brass adapter rings, step-ups, bay to thread, vice versa, etc, that are affordable, no frills tools.

If I had my own small mill or lathe, I'd turn my own, and might even switch out glass from aluminium rings for brass, but life is short, I do no have the equipment to tinker with this and it's always the actual optic and how you use and protect them that matters most.

Pay for quality, care for it, and it'll give good service

I have bought quality filters used. Check for scratches or damage as well as return policy.

 

[grain elevator]

One brand that hasn't been mentioned yet is Minolta (only used, obviously). They made lenses and thus also filters in 55mm. I don't know any comparison but I expect them to be excellent, Minolta had high optical standards. Not super plentiful but can sometimes be found cheap.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

I would get the best new multi-coated filters I could afford. Why buy someone else's old crap with mars, scratches, fungus, messed up screw threads, etc.?

 

[Huss]

I would get the best new multi-coated filters I could afford. Why buy someone else's old crap with mars, scratches, fungus, messed up screw threads, etc.?

Same with lenses! Amiright? Never buy used lenses!

 

[bdial]

Same with lenses! Amiright? Never buy used lenses!

The last used lens I bought came in its original box, indistinguishable from new. (except for the price).

 

[AgX]

I would get the best new multi-coated filters I could afford. Why buy someone else's old crap with mars, scratches, fungus, messed up screw threads, etc.?

As Huss already hinted at: If one insists on the newest of the newest stuff fresh from the shelves, then one also has to refrain from buying old or even used lenses. Those only lenses that fit our old cameras...
Excep for two big Lee filters ALL my filters are bought used, locally. And I hardly come across samples as you describe. If cheap enough even a scratched filter may serve me, either to use just the filter ring, or maybe cut the glass for some effect filter.