Coating issues with several of my protection filters...

[radiogooroo]

I've had issues with several of the protection filters I own. They've developed little holes in what I believe is the coating on the glass, and I'm wondering if something I'm doing is causing this. Surely they can't all be manufacturing defects.

I clean them with a Lenspen or lens cloth.

Interestingly, it's not all of the filters I own, just a few brands. So far, I have three Nikon NC filters that have developed this problem and one Hoya HD2 UV filter that has. I also have a Heliopan ES, B+W F-Pro and two Canon protect filters that haven't.

Any thoughts?

 

[Derrel]

Are they being stored in filter cases that have some kind of foam padding inside? Or stored in some kind of container that is outgassing?

 

[radiogooroo]

Are they being stored in filter cases that have some kind of foam padding inside? Or stored in some kind of container that is outgassing?

Nope. They're stored on the lenses, which have lens caps on when I'm not using them.

 

[KmH]

What brand are the filters?

Filters usually cause more problems than they solve.

If they are bargain basement filters it may be that the coatings are not what you think.

I do not recommend using a lens pen. It is to easy for grit to become embedded in the lens pen such that the particles then act like the grit on sand paper.
I also do not recommend using a cloth for the same reason.
IMO, a blower/brush and disposable one-use lens tissues are a better choice.

Any filter added to the front of a lens will promote lens flare, though high quality filters have coatings intended to mitigate lens flare.
Many of the cheap filters use glass that is not optically clear, and that is not flat. Consequently, they substantially reduce image quality in a variety of ways - soft focus, reduced light transmission, Newton's rings, and more.

By necessity, filters use glass that is much thinner than the glass the front lens element is made from.
So filters are pretty easy to shatter, and most times when a filter's glass shatters the sharp shards of glass are forced back into the lens the filter was supposed to 'protect'.

Lastly, if the filter threads and the lens threads are made of dissimilar metals, corrosion caused by electrolysis can make it very difficult to remove a filter that has been in place for an extended period of time.

If you want protection for your lens front element, use a lens hood.
A lens hood minimizes lens flare and offers a buffer zone of impact protection to the front of the lens.

 

[tirediron]

Sounds very odd; I've seen coatings be 'wiped' off of cheap filters, or even start to peel, but those are good quality items in your list. Can you post some pictures?

 

[GDHLEWIS]

At least the filters are the ones getting damaged and not your lens.

 

[radiogooroo]

Sounds very odd; I've seen coatings be 'wiped' off of cheap filters, or even start to peel, but those are good quality items in your list. Can you post some pictures?

Here's one of the Nikon NC filters...

 

[tirediron]

Bizarre!

 

[radiogooroo]

Bizarre!

Yeah, it has me stumped. I'm pretty careful. I have some decent glass and I always have a hood on. This one was on my 35mm 1.8G. I had the 58mm version on my 50mm 1.4G and it has developed the same issue, just in a different spot.

The aberration on the Hoya HD2 looks more like a dried up drop of water that won't go away. That one was on my 24-70mm 2.8G. I always shoot with the hoods on all three lenses.