Filter suggestions

bluedog · Jul 2, 2008

After stepping up to MF I nearly died at the price of good quality 77mm filters. I have been looking at screw on ones like B+W but may have to look at Cokin which are quite a bit cheaper. I'm after a basic set of red, yellow & green filters for B&W photography. Does anyone have any suggestions on brands or screw on versus slide on?
Greg

Nick Zentena · Jul 2, 2008

Hoya if you need new. Otherwise red and yellow are very common used.

You don't want to see how fast prices soar above 82mm -(

Kevin Caulfield · Jul 2, 2008

Have a look at SRB, a UK company. Their filters and holders are reasonably priced.

Kevin Caulfield · Jul 2, 2008

It looks like SRB have slightly changed their name. Here you go -

http://www.srbfilm.co.uk/

Curt · Jul 2, 2008

(there was a url link here which no longer exists)

I found that they were fairly expensive. The way eBeg and other auctions are you'd think that millions of filters should be out there and relatively inexpensive, not so from what I've found.

Think about a polarizer, yellow and red.

Dave Miller · Jul 2, 2008

I've built up a set of 77mm filters over a period from eBay and secondhand dealers, takes time. New Kood filter are reasonably priced and good enough quality.

bwakel · Jul 2, 2008

In the past I've spent huge sums on B+W filters and they're very nice. I do find it's worth investing in their polarisers for colour work but for black and white I've bought a set in various sizes from 7dayshop.com:

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/default.php?cat=1&type=1300&man=96&filterwords=&go=SEARCH&comp=

For 77mm they're £4.99 each and the quality's entirely acceptable, certainly as good as a basic Hoya filter. Shooting towards the sun they've actually outperformed a Hoya HMC red filter which produced horrible flare.

Barry

Maris · Jul 2, 2008

I guess I must be the ultimate cheapskate. Filters in the 77mm screw in size are expensive so I did something different. Most of my lenses, MF and large format, have 77mm filter threads so I purchased a Cokin filter holder with the 77mm adapter.

Then I bought perspex off-cuts from the local plastic fabricators in red, orange, yellow, green, yellow-green, and blue. The whole lot cost $20! With a hacksaw I cut 84mm squares that fit the Cokin holder. Now I have about 40 filters at around 50 cents each.

To use a new filter I just peel off the protective paper and go. Perspex is virtually optically flat and does not degrade image sharpness; I checked. Unfortunately perspex is softer than glass but if a filter gets scratched I just throw it and reach for a new one.

Kvistgaard · Jul 3, 2008

Heliopan screw-on filters get good reviews - brass ring, high-quality glass, not quite as expensive as the B+W ones.

Just bought one myself, and I can verify that the build is very good. I can't speak to the optical quality, though, as I have not had time to test it yet.

Not sure if they are marketed in Australia, though. There's a contact form at www.heliopan.de,so perhaps worth checking.

Andy K · Jul 3, 2008

On my CV R3M I use B+W filters. For medium format I use Cokin.

Dan Henderson · Jul 3, 2008

I have had good luck with the Lee compendium hood and filter holder system. I bought a set of 4" filters, put them in frames, and can now adapt the system to any lens size on my MF or 35mm cameras.

panastasia · Jul 3, 2008

I have some B+W and Tiffen filters for my LF lenses and all Tiffen filters for my MF gear. The B+W seem to be more robust - heavier and thicker.

Tiffen has a wide selection and can be found on the second hand market. As far as image quality goes, to be honest, I can't see any difference between the two brands when I view large prints. I'm referring to the yellow, green and red filters used for B&W film.

Paul

RobC · Jul 3, 2008

Lee system. Unless you need to use several filters at once, then the best option with the lee system is to buy the lens hood with 1 or 2 filter slots in it. That then fits direct to the step ring which attaches to your lens.
That also means you don't need to buy the filter holder unit (but you can if you want). So you need just one lens hood, a step ring for each lens filter thread size you have and then just filters you need which are 100mm X 100mm. You have the option then of the cheaper filters, the more expensive acrylic/resin filters or some glass filters. All are cheaper than equivalent B+W filters. And you don't need other lens hoods for each lens you buy.
The system will fit on any 35mm or medium format system and I also use it on my 4x5 system.

Filter suggestions

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