Protection: The Age Old UV Filter Debate

It was cool to have KristiC visiting Las Vegas again for a spell earlier this June. So we got to shoot a few times before she left. ©2016 Terrell Neasley

Most photographic accessories are designed to aid you in your photographic endeavors in terms of improving or increasing your ability to take a photo. Protection measures are implemented in order that you may continue your photographic endeavors or at least compensate you when you suddenly can not do so.

So lets start with an ongoing argument on the polarizing viewpoints of the UV filter. Should you put a piece of glass that was not originally factored into the lens' design over the manufacturer's precision-ground and chemically-coated lens elements? Good question.

Art Model, KristiC ©2016 Terrell Neasley

Exactly what is a UV filter anyway? UV stands for Ultraviolet. This is the radiation from the sun that makes you need sunscreen when you're outside for extended periods of time. Its the same stuff from the sun that you soak up to get a tan. However for cameras, its a little different. The ultraviolet rays from the sun could indeed affect the chemical composition in film from the film camera days. In some cases, UV radiation could cause slight color shifts, as well as affect the overall quality of the image as it hit the exposed areas of film while you're taking a picture. You can see why this might be a problem for pro photogs who shoot film.

Well, most of us don't use film in our cameras. So why is there still some who insist on UV filters for digital cameras? Okay, let me admit. There are several reasons why. First let me say I am a proponent of UV filters. All my glass has them. But this question as to "why" has been severely distorted over the years by two main factors.

Art Model, KristiC ©2016 Terrell Neasley

During the early age of digital photography, this was still a means of making money for camera store owners. These owners don't make a lot of margin on cameras and lenses. Some of that margin could be made up in photography accessories and UV filters were part of it. So you had camera store owners pushing these filters onto consumers.

The next part of the mix-up has to do with manufacturers. Profits are still the name of the game. And when you can stamp out cheap circles of glass at varying diameters and sell them to new and unsuspecting consumers who need cameras, well it can set a bad precedence for the industry. They called it PROTECTION. You need to protect that brand new lens you just bought (or that comes with your camera).

Art Model, KristiC ©2016 Terrell Neasley

To be honest, there is actually some elements of truth to what store owners and manufacturers think in this regard. However the answer to this protection question was NOT to make cheap glass stamp-outs and put them on the front of your lens. The real fact is that even the cheapest lens out there currently is still likely a good lens. They still channel light down to a specific point on the sensor with accurate precision. Cheap and inferior UV filters affect how light passes through them and hit the actual lens. A defect in the in poor quality UV filters can result in poor light refraction that can cause light rays to hit the front element of the lens at bad angles, striking the sensor in a way not designed or intended. Next thing you know, you're searching Google for a photoshop technique to quickly remove chromatic aberrations and lens flare.

So here's the deal via my experience as a pro shooter AND from working in a camera shop with an owner who's more interested in making profits the RIGHT way moreso than BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY.

B&C Camera in Las Vegas, Nevada has a plethora of UV filters. Some of them are inexpensive but NONE of them are poor quality. But even with that said, here's the deal. You don't go all in on high end lens gear and then use the least expensive UV protective filter. And nobody there is going to talk you into ceramic UV filters when you buy an entry level camera that comes with a $200 lens. Neither of those cases make much sense and an educated consumer paired with a knowledgeable salesperson, at a camera store run by a fair-minded owner will equal out to more satisfied customers who come back for more gear later.

Art Model, KristiC ©2016 Terrell Neasley

I see a lot of broken UV filters come through the store. I also see many lenses coming in for repair from drops. Every last one of the customers coming in with a busted UV filter is MORE than happy to let the guys behind the counter use special tools and expertise to remove a UV filter that's busted, bent, and won't come off by traditional means after a serious drop. You should see the look on these guys' faces when the lens is revealed to be okay. They buy another UV filter and leave the store much happier than when they came in.

My advice? Get a high quality UV filter. Spend $70 to $120 on a good one comparable to the lens you are placing it on. Again, you don't buy a high end sports car and go to Wal-Mart looking for the cheapest tires you can find. I absolutely love the HGX UV filters by Promaster. These come in a red case and are guaranteed against scratches. That's how hard these things are. Special coatings on on these filters, front and back, made from hardened glass, with a flat black coating on the barrel ring to absorb stray light so it isn't reflected into your lens at bad angles. I have high end Sony glass and all my lenses have the Promaster HGX UV filters on them with zero color shift.

They also make other UV filters of varying quality. If you have an entry level lens, feel free to get the green-case multi-coated UV filter. A mid-range lens would benefit from the orange-case Digital UV filter. If you're paying a $1000 or more then get the red-case HGX UV filter with the guarantee. Scratch it...bring it in and get a new one. Simple as that.

Art Model, KristiC ©2016 Terrell Neasley

Indeed you will hear about those who have had their lenses for YEARS and have never dropped, banged up, or had an accident that resulted in sending in a lens for repair. That's good for them. I personally, don't like taking the chance when a simple, but QUALITY UV filter can extend the life of the lens. They may not break the lens, but I can assure you that over time, that glass will get pitted from sand, grit, and acidic elements in the air that will degrade the coatings on that lens. So to me, its worth it to protect my good glass, especially when there is ZERO quality loss in the process.

My Take on UV Filters, Short Answer - Use Them!

Panda Portrait,  © 2012 Terrell Neasley

I've spent the last 4 days trying to write about some challenges I have here in Nicaragua with my final days looming near. I've rewritten it each time and conclude that I just need to blog about something else. And the next big thing that keeps nagging at me to talk about is UV filters. I have heard no end to opinions on the pros and cons of the use of UV filters. I know they shall persist even after this post. So yeah. Here is my spin on UV filters and whether or not you need one on your lenses or not.

Panda,  © 2012 Terrell Neasley

WHAT ARE UV FILTERS?
Back in the days of film, images could sometimes be affected by ultraviolet light that might cause images to either look hazy or maybe add a blueish hue. That's mainly because blue colors are more affected by UV than red or green.While UV light is invisible to the eye, the chemicals in the film emulsion could still be sensitive to it. This effect was more pronounced in higher altitudes, where I learned about this in Colorado, or maybe in places where the effects of the sun are strongest. Maybe like a desert (Vegas), or on a beach or in snow, where light is reflected and thereby amplifying the affects. UV filters where made to block as much UV light as possible, if not all of it, to reduce or eliminate this effect.

Today's digital sensors are less sensitive to UV light. So why do we still need them? I've heard it said that the only purpose they serve today are to line the pockets of camera store owners who want to "push" them as protection for lenses. I've heard some say that it is a needless carryover from the film days and that only the old guys use them today. I've also heard that lenses are so sharp and have their own coatings that its pure folly to add an EXTRA piece of glass in front of a lens designed with such precision and technology. I hear all that. All the time.

Panda,  © 2012 Terrell Neasley

WHY I USE UV FILTERS
Alright, let me predicate this point with a few facts. One, I love photography. If I was homeless in the streets, with only one thing of value to own, it would be a camera. Two, outside of being a pro, I don't let anything compromise the quality of my images. This is my art and I want the best quality I can get for the project I'm shooting. With that said, I can now address this point. During my film days, I did not use UV filters...(I know...when I needed them most). I didn't use them until a friend of mine banged the front element of a $2000 lens into the corner of a metal cabinet. I put filters on all my lenses after that, but I didn't have many at the time, but that made me start researching UV filters.

Soon after, I began work part time at my local camera store, for my good friend, Joe Dumic of B&C Camera in Las Vegas. In the two days per week that I worked there, I watched people pile in with busted cameras and lenses, mainly from drops. But here is the difference, many of the ones with no filters became paperweights. Conversely, UV filters saved many of these lenses. The UV filter would be busted, but the lens itself tested fine. Impact protection? Yes. This is the first reason I put UV filters on my lenses.

Panda,  © 2012 Terrell Neasley

But I also learned that all UV filters were not made the same. Joe would not let me put cheap UV filters on my lenses, especially after I started getting better glass. Putting bad glass on top of good glass is stupid. No getting around that. Buy a lens for $1500 or more and then put a $20 UV filter on it, and I will talk bad about you for the rest of your days. I started out using good B+W filters on my gear. Its some of the best made, there's no getting around that. Today, I use Promaster HGX series in the red box. Promaster gear is known for its generic or off-brand quality. They have a reputation of making photographic accessories at cheaper prices, but not so much camera body and lenses, but just about everything else. Recently, they outdid themselves with UV filters when they came out with a series rated by the color of the packaging. The HGX series in the red box is the best and to me, its even better than B+W. So much so, that I no longer have B+W filters.

Promaster filters back in the day were no different from some of the other cheaper filters on the market. Trust me, they've re-branded. I own several of their products because of the increase in quality AND the guarantee they put behind them. Working in a camera shop gives me the advantage of better insight in this matter. I get to see products first-hand and how they hold up over time. Why switch to the HGX series from an already great B+W product? Well first it started when I was switching over from Canon gear to Nikon gear. I sold many of the Canon lenses with the filters as a bonus. The Promaster HGX series came out at about the same time or not long after. They have three things I like. I a lifetime guarantee. A coating on both sides of the filter that REPELS dirt, grime, and debris. That's right, its like a wax job on your car. Nothing sticks to it and everything wipes right off. And three, the ring has another black coating on it that helps absorb stray light coming into the lens, thus reducing the possibility of flare.

Panda,  © 2012 Terrell Neasley

I live in a desert. There is dust fly around all the time. Right now, I'm in Nicaragua. the winds are high on the coast and shit is flying around all the time in the inner city as well. My lens cap was in my bag when it was stolen a few weeks ago. If I had not bought this HGX filter for my 35mm f/1.4 lens, I might be a little worried, but I'm using my shirt to wipe the front of it all the time. You DO NOT wanna be doing that on the front element of the lens itself. I like my glass and I want to keep my lenses for a long time, or at least be able to sell them in good condition. I don't care who you are or how good care you take of your lenses. If you do not use a good UV filter, your lenses lifespan is reduced. So unless you plan on keeping and using your lenses in one of those vacuum, dust-free rooms NASA uses, get a friggin' filter. And don't be cheap about it. Ugy, (pronounced OO-GEE) at B&C West store does an excellent job of explaining the benefits of UV filters and can show you the Promaster line and why they are so friggin' cool. If you're on the East side of Vegas, Tony can show you th ropes. Both are managers of their prospective stores. Ugy...Tony...got that. Remember them. The only other filters I might use on my lenses would be circular polarizers and Neutral Density filters. More on that later. Check out this good read as well, UV Filters by Bjorn Peterson, B&H Article.