Lens Protection

kkamin

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What do you call the lens protectors? They screw on like filters but are obviously clear glass. Where can I buy quality but inexpensive ones for my Canon lenses?
 
Usually IR filters, but you can get actual clear glass ones... I dunno what you would call those, however, since usually people just get IR filters.

Just keep in mind it changes the properties of your lens a little bit, and can and will have an effect on the image.

B&H and Adorama have a nice supply of these. Just get the diameter of the lens from inside the lens cap (usually something like 77mm) and order the right size to fit.
 
I think he means UV filters, not IR filters.
 
Quailty but inexpensive is an oxymoron.

Use a lens hood.

Screw-in filters provide only limited protection and can actually cause damage to your expensive lens objective glass if the filter shatters from an impact.

Case on point.
 
^That suuucks

however, there are cases where something could jump up and hit the filter, and just put a ding in it, that would have been on the lens instead. So it's really situational. Like "if he were wearing his seatbelt he wouldn't have been ejected from the car" and "oh he strangled because he wore his seatbelt".. poor analogy but hopefully you get where I'm going with it lol.
 
I stopped using UV filters to protect my glass and now just try to keep a lens hood on. On the other hand, I had an ostrich peck my CP at close range and scratch it up -- might have messed up my front element if I hadn't had the filter on (also might have messed up my hand if his aim was better) ....
 
i can't believe people rely on lens hoods to protect their lenses. there is no viable data to show that any filter reduces the quality of an image. and it only takes one little branch to cost hundreds or thousands of damage a $80 filter could have prevented. i could throw a $5 Quantaray filter on my 18-50mm f/2.8 and post a with and without and i guarantee no human could tell the difference; or any analysis software either for that matter. just put a UV or clear on there for protection and be done with it.

canon makes a few protective filters
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?ci=112&N=4294540717+4291570227
 
The front element is the cheapest piece to replace on any lens. As for filter, they do reduce IQ, particularly if they're cheap. And they most certainly increase the risk of flare (that much is common sense if you understand why lens flare occurs).
 
The front element is the cheapest piece to replace on any lens. As for filter, they do reduce IQ, particularly if they're cheap. And they most certainly increase the risk of flare (that much is common sense if you understand why lens flare occurs).

i've never heard of any lens repair being cheap. and are you able to prove filters reduce IQ? because i've never seen proof of such a claim.
 
i can't believe people rely on lens hoods to protect their lenses. there is no viable data to show that any filter reduces the quality of an image. and it only takes one little branch to cost hundreds or thousands of damage a $80 filter could have prevented. i could throw a $5 Quantaray filter on my 18-50mm f/2.8 and post a with and without and i guarantee no human could tell the difference; or any analysis software either for that matter. just put a UV or clear on there for protection and be done with it.

canon makes a few protective filters
UV, Haze & Protection


:popcorn:
 
i can't believe people rely on lens hoods to protect their lenses. there is no viable data to show that any filter reduces the quality of an image. and it only takes one little branch to cost hundreds or thousands of damage a $80 filter could have prevented. i could throw a $5 Quantaray filter on my 18-50mm f/2.8 and post a with and without and i guarantee no human could tell the difference; or any analysis software either for that matter. just put a UV or clear on there for protection and be done with it.

canon makes a few protective filters
UV, Haze & Protection

There's also no viable data that any filter has 'saved' a lens either.

Just because a filter shatters doesn't mean the lens would have even been touched.
 
It boils down to a religious issue. There are believers and non-believers (and some agnostics). I put myself on the agnostic fence -- I used to use them and now I don't. It is a question of "How much do I believe they change IQ" vs. "Can I afford a new lens/lens repair if I made the wrong choice". My CP possibly saved my lens, but I'll (thankfully) never know. I do know that I had to pay for a new CP.
 

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