Questions on this topic has come up again and again. And I have cut and paste this infor quite a number of times. Finally decided to create this thread to help the newbies when buying filters.
Filter Price Guide
First and foremost, for the sake of convenience, I will list Clubsnap's Filter price guide as maintained by our hardworking mods. The price guide to filters can be found here:
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=263716
What are Filters for?
No we are not talking about the ones you put into your coffee machine, or the ones that goes into your car.
The Filters we are talking about pieces of glass or optical resin (plastic) that we put in front (and on rare occassions, inside) of our lenses to achieve a specific effect or for protection.
Filter Brands - The Good the Bad and the Ugly
Filters have cheap range, medium range and high end range. All depends on your budget but I would recommend you to get at least a medium range one.
Examples of some popular/well known/notorious brands/models:
very cheap range: Vitacon, Emolux, Steinzeiser, Sunblitz
cheap range: tokina, Hoya uncoated, hoya both sides coated, Kenko standard, Marumi standard
Medium economy range: Hoya HMC, , Kenko MC, Marumi DHG,
Medium high range: Hoya Pro1D, Kenko Pro1D, Marumi Super DHG
Hi end range: B+W MRC, Hoya HD, Kenko Zeta, Rodenstock, Heliopan
Filter Brands are like Cars
Continental cars are expensive and generally perform very very well. Continental cars also have higher and lower models. eg. S-class, A-class.
Continental cars: B+W, Rodenstock, Heliopan, LEE, Schneider Optics
French cars are ok and reasonably priced but sometimes performance is not the best in certain situations. The car makers also sometimes go into financial crisis and eventually get bought out by Japanese car makers.
French cars: Cokin
American cars quite a few are very good, but quite a number are lemons. Some are good but just not worth the money. Some offer custom hot rods that are extremely expensive.
American cars: Tiffen, Singh Ray
Japanese cars: some are cheap and perform not so good but better than the ones from China or cheap OEM. medium priced ones are quite good and very reliable. some are top of the line (like Lexus, Infiniti, Acura) and perform very well, and some of those top of the line even exceed the performance of continental cars.
Japanese cars: Nikon, Canon, Hoya, Kenko, Marumi, Tokina
China cars: Used to be very cheap copies of more expensive brands, quality depends on the specific car. Some are terrible. But if you find a good one, it will be good and worth many times the low price you pay for it. More recently as technology catches up, several Chinese brands are coming up fast and up to par or even exceed with their more expensive European/Japanese/American counterparts.
China cars: Haida, Nisi, Kase, Tianya. (Haida deserves a special mention to be class leading in ND filters especially their 10-stop ND)
Malaysia/Singapore cars: Brands are owned/founded locally in MY or SG. Usually most of the parts are OEM by other companies. Supposed to be very cheap. Salesman always try to tell you it is very good and give you the wrong impression that it is made in Germany or Japan. And will try to sell you at a much higher rip off price. Performance is just so so. Some are totally terrible. Some are not bad.
Malaysia/Singapore Cars: Steinzeiser, Vitacon, Emolux.
About Hoya and Kenko
Hoya and Kenko (and Tokina) are very closely related companies in Japan. They are most likely in the same keiretsu. Many of their filters share almost the same model names, and some of them are almost identical. *Update: Kenko and Tokina has merged into a single company called "Kenko Tokina" in June 2011. They still maintain very close ties to Hoya. Kenko and Tokina brands and product lines are still maintained separately.
Not all Hoya filters are made equal. Not all Hoya filters are priced equal. Not all Kenko filters are made equal. Not all Kenko filters are priced equal.
Also note that Tokina filters are on the lower end and they do not offer any of the higher performing filters.
Also note that Tokina manufactures all of their own, Hoya's and Kenko's filters using Hoya's glass
Know what you are buying.
Current models...
Hoya (from cheap to expensive):
Hoya both sides coated (single coating on each side)
Hoya HMC (Hoya Multicoated - basic multicoating)
Hoya SMC (discontinued?, good multicoated)
Hoya Ultra (discontinued?, thin ring, good multicoated)
Hoya Pro1D (advanced multicoating matt thin ring with knurling edge, optimized for digital)
Hoya HD (multicoated and hardened, scratch and oil resistant. around price levels of B+W MRC)
Kenko (from cheap to expensive):
Kenko standard filters (no coating),
Kenko MC (Basic Multicoated),
Kenko Pro1D (equivalent to Hoya Pro1D)
Kenko Zeta (equivalent to Hoya HD)
Kenko Zeta EX (extra thin/slim CPL filters)
Form factor of Filters - Shapes
Filters come in several shapes and how you use them varies. I will cover the two more popular types here.
Round screw-on filters:
This is the most common type of filters. They are round in shape and You screw them on to the front of your lens. They look like THIS
Advantages of round filters:
-Generally smaller and more compact.
-Usually cheaper.
-Easy to store.
-Convenient to leave them on the camera if needed. No need to remove when storing the lens (or camera) with the filter on.
Slot-in filters:
These are rectangular (or square) filters. You usually need an adapter ring screwed on to your lens, and a filter holder will be attached to the adapter ring. On this holder, you will be able to slot the rectangular (or square) filters in or out. They sort of look like THIS.
Advantages of square filters:
-One filter can cover multiple filter thread sizes over multiple lenses.
-Very fast to slot in and out after filter holder is set up.
-ability to move the filters within the holder to get desired effect (especially useful for GND filters - will cover later)
-May save more money in the long run if shared for multiple lenses.
Size of filters
Round screw-on filters
Round filters come in different diameters (called thread sizes). You need to look at your lens to see the thread size for your lens. This is denoted by a special symbol that looks like a small circle with a line slashing through it vertically (symbol Ø). So if you see "Ø58mm" or "Ø58", it means the thread size for your lens is 58mm.
Slot-in filters
Rectangular filters are measured by the width of the shortest side of the filter. They generally come in a few fixed sizes. You will also need a Filter holder with slots the same size as your filters, and you will need an adapter ring that works with the filter holder and have thread size similar to your lens' thread size.
Here are the filter sizes (width of the rectangular filters) more common in photography:
67mm (Called A series by Cokin) - Good for small cameras, rangefinders
75mm (Called RF75 by Lee Filters) - Made for small cameras and rangefinders.
85mm (Called P series by Cokin) - Good for APS-C lenses >18mm, 4/3 cameras, NEX, m4/3. (With P series wide angle holder by Cokin - APS-C lenses >13mm, FF lenses >28mm)
100mm (Called Z-pro series by Cokin, 4-inch or 4" filters by Hitech or Lee)- Good for FF wide lenses, APS-C, UWA lenses, Medium Format
130mm (Called X-pro series by Cokin) - Good for FF super UWA lenses, Large Format, Professional video cameras
150mm (only available from LEE, called SW150) - made for 14-24/2.8 UWA lens for Nikon FX use.
*sizes in BOLD-RED denotes the most popular sizes
Multicoated or Non-Coated?
Many have been asking on the forum if it is wise to buy a cheap un-coated filter or pay more to get a multicoated filter? Some very cheap brands also claim to be multicoated, but in fact, are only coated once, or not coated at all. Please read the link below to understand how multicoating works and why it is important. And from the article, you will realize that coating on the inside of the filter (the side facing the lens elements) is actually very important as well. It will be best to have no filter on your lens, but if you really want a filter over your lens, do get at least a multicoated one from a reputable brand.
Please read
Why are MultiCoated Camera Filters worth the Money?
Filter Price Guide
First and foremost, for the sake of convenience, I will list Clubsnap's Filter price guide as maintained by our hardworking mods. The price guide to filters can be found here:
http://www.clubsnap.com/forums/showthread.php?t=263716
What are Filters for?
No we are not talking about the ones you put into your coffee machine, or the ones that goes into your car.
The Filters we are talking about pieces of glass or optical resin (plastic) that we put in front (and on rare occassions, inside) of our lenses to achieve a specific effect or for protection.
Filter Brands - The Good the Bad and the Ugly
Filters have cheap range, medium range and high end range. All depends on your budget but I would recommend you to get at least a medium range one.
Examples of some popular/well known/notorious brands/models:
very cheap range: Vitacon, Emolux, Steinzeiser, Sunblitz
cheap range: tokina, Hoya uncoated, hoya both sides coated, Kenko standard, Marumi standard
Medium economy range: Hoya HMC, , Kenko MC, Marumi DHG,
Medium high range: Hoya Pro1D, Kenko Pro1D, Marumi Super DHG
Hi end range: B+W MRC, Hoya HD, Kenko Zeta, Rodenstock, Heliopan
Filter Brands are like Cars
Continental cars are expensive and generally perform very very well. Continental cars also have higher and lower models. eg. S-class, A-class.
Continental cars: B+W, Rodenstock, Heliopan, LEE, Schneider Optics
French cars are ok and reasonably priced but sometimes performance is not the best in certain situations. The car makers also sometimes go into financial crisis and eventually get bought out by Japanese car makers.
French cars: Cokin
American cars quite a few are very good, but quite a number are lemons. Some are good but just not worth the money. Some offer custom hot rods that are extremely expensive.
American cars: Tiffen, Singh Ray
Japanese cars: some are cheap and perform not so good but better than the ones from China or cheap OEM. medium priced ones are quite good and very reliable. some are top of the line (like Lexus, Infiniti, Acura) and perform very well, and some of those top of the line even exceed the performance of continental cars.
Japanese cars: Nikon, Canon, Hoya, Kenko, Marumi, Tokina
China cars: Used to be very cheap copies of more expensive brands, quality depends on the specific car. Some are terrible. But if you find a good one, it will be good and worth many times the low price you pay for it. More recently as technology catches up, several Chinese brands are coming up fast and up to par or even exceed with their more expensive European/Japanese/American counterparts.
China cars: Haida, Nisi, Kase, Tianya. (Haida deserves a special mention to be class leading in ND filters especially their 10-stop ND)
Malaysia/Singapore cars: Brands are owned/founded locally in MY or SG. Usually most of the parts are OEM by other companies. Supposed to be very cheap. Salesman always try to tell you it is very good and give you the wrong impression that it is made in Germany or Japan. And will try to sell you at a much higher rip off price. Performance is just so so. Some are totally terrible. Some are not bad.
Malaysia/Singapore Cars: Steinzeiser, Vitacon, Emolux.
About Hoya and Kenko
Hoya and Kenko (and Tokina) are very closely related companies in Japan. They are most likely in the same keiretsu. Many of their filters share almost the same model names, and some of them are almost identical. *Update: Kenko and Tokina has merged into a single company called "Kenko Tokina" in June 2011. They still maintain very close ties to Hoya. Kenko and Tokina brands and product lines are still maintained separately.
Not all Hoya filters are made equal. Not all Hoya filters are priced equal. Not all Kenko filters are made equal. Not all Kenko filters are priced equal.
Also note that Tokina filters are on the lower end and they do not offer any of the higher performing filters.
Also note that Tokina manufactures all of their own, Hoya's and Kenko's filters using Hoya's glass
Know what you are buying.
Current models...
Hoya (from cheap to expensive):
Hoya both sides coated (single coating on each side)
Hoya HMC (Hoya Multicoated - basic multicoating)
Hoya SMC (discontinued?, good multicoated)
Hoya Ultra (discontinued?, thin ring, good multicoated)
Hoya Pro1D (advanced multicoating matt thin ring with knurling edge, optimized for digital)
Hoya HD (multicoated and hardened, scratch and oil resistant. around price levels of B+W MRC)
Kenko (from cheap to expensive):
Kenko standard filters (no coating),
Kenko MC (Basic Multicoated),
Kenko Pro1D (equivalent to Hoya Pro1D)
Kenko Zeta (equivalent to Hoya HD)
Kenko Zeta EX (extra thin/slim CPL filters)
Form factor of Filters - Shapes
Filters come in several shapes and how you use them varies. I will cover the two more popular types here.
Round screw-on filters:
This is the most common type of filters. They are round in shape and You screw them on to the front of your lens. They look like THIS
Advantages of round filters:
-Generally smaller and more compact.
-Usually cheaper.
-Easy to store.
-Convenient to leave them on the camera if needed. No need to remove when storing the lens (or camera) with the filter on.
Slot-in filters:
These are rectangular (or square) filters. You usually need an adapter ring screwed on to your lens, and a filter holder will be attached to the adapter ring. On this holder, you will be able to slot the rectangular (or square) filters in or out. They sort of look like THIS.
Advantages of square filters:
-One filter can cover multiple filter thread sizes over multiple lenses.
-Very fast to slot in and out after filter holder is set up.
-ability to move the filters within the holder to get desired effect (especially useful for GND filters - will cover later)
-May save more money in the long run if shared for multiple lenses.
Size of filters
Round screw-on filters
Round filters come in different diameters (called thread sizes). You need to look at your lens to see the thread size for your lens. This is denoted by a special symbol that looks like a small circle with a line slashing through it vertically (symbol Ø). So if you see "Ø58mm" or "Ø58", it means the thread size for your lens is 58mm.
Slot-in filters
Rectangular filters are measured by the width of the shortest side of the filter. They generally come in a few fixed sizes. You will also need a Filter holder with slots the same size as your filters, and you will need an adapter ring that works with the filter holder and have thread size similar to your lens' thread size.
Here are the filter sizes (width of the rectangular filters) more common in photography:
67mm (Called A series by Cokin) - Good for small cameras, rangefinders
75mm (Called RF75 by Lee Filters) - Made for small cameras and rangefinders.
85mm (Called P series by Cokin) - Good for APS-C lenses >18mm, 4/3 cameras, NEX, m4/3. (With P series wide angle holder by Cokin - APS-C lenses >13mm, FF lenses >28mm)
100mm (Called Z-pro series by Cokin, 4-inch or 4" filters by Hitech or Lee)- Good for FF wide lenses, APS-C, UWA lenses, Medium Format
130mm (Called X-pro series by Cokin) - Good for FF super UWA lenses, Large Format, Professional video cameras
150mm (only available from LEE, called SW150) - made for 14-24/2.8 UWA lens for Nikon FX use.
*sizes in BOLD-RED denotes the most popular sizes
Multicoated or Non-Coated?
Many have been asking on the forum if it is wise to buy a cheap un-coated filter or pay more to get a multicoated filter? Some very cheap brands also claim to be multicoated, but in fact, are only coated once, or not coated at all. Please read the link below to understand how multicoating works and why it is important. And from the article, you will realize that coating on the inside of the filter (the side facing the lens elements) is actually very important as well. It will be best to have no filter on your lens, but if you really want a filter over your lens, do get at least a multicoated one from a reputable brand.
Please read
Why are MultiCoated Camera Filters worth the Money?
Last edited: