Does the colour of the coating determine how potentially good the optics can be?

[Diablo]

Does the reflection of the coating determine the nature of the lens?

Eg, if it reflects red, meaning its a 'cool' lens and if it reflects 'green', its a warm lens?

 

[theITguy]

You are talking about the nature of the optics or quality of the optics? Anyway, it does not really matter coz the most important is the man behind it.

 

[Ian]

Does the reflection of the coating determine the nature of the lens?

Eg, if it reflects red, meaning its a 'cool' lens and if it reflects 'green', its a warm lens?

The colour of the coatings has nothing to do with the nature of a lens nor it's performance, colour temperature neutrality etc. It merely reflects the physical composition of the compounds used to make the coatings.

 

[Diablo]

The colour of the coatings has nothing to do with the nature of a lens nor it's performance, colour temperature neutrality etc. It merely reflects the physical composition of the compounds used to make the coatings.

thanks. din know abt this :d

but if a Lens A is 'darker' than Lens B when seen from the front(given both are in the same lighting conditions), does it mean Lens A is a better lens?

 

[PLRBEAR]

Is it true that the more purple in the coating, the more contrast one can expect?

 

[Ian]

thanks. din know abt this :d

but if a Lens A is 'darker' than Lens B when seen from the front(given both are in the same lighting conditions), does it mean Lens A is a better lens?

No it doesn't have any bearing on the optical performance of a lens.

Is it true that the more purple in the coating, the more contrast one can expect?

It has no bearing on the matter as the colour of the coating is determined by it's composition, not by it's effeciency.

Noobies READ this please.

The colour or darkness of a lenses multicoating has no relevance to it's effeciency, contrast enhancing effects etc.

The coatings colour is merely the result of the chemical compounds that are applied to the lens elements during production. Some typical lens coating colours are Green, Purple, Brown, Blue-Green and Red-brown.

Ian

 

[mervlam]

sorry... but want to ask this...

does the colour of the coating determines the performance of the coating itself?

 

[Ian]

sorry... but want to ask this...

does the colour of the coating determines the performance of the coating itself?

Geezus !@#!@$% can't you read merv?

Guess you can't! The colour has NO and I repeat NO bearing on the performance of the coating.

 

[mervlam]

Geezus !@#!@$% can't you read merv?

Guess you can't! The colour has NO and I repeat NO bearing on the performance of the coating.

"It has no bearing on the matter as the colour of the coating is determined by it's composition, not by it's effeciency."
"The colour or darkness of a lenses multicoating has no relevance to it's effeciency, contrast enhancing effects etc. "

sorry lah... i quote you above. i misinterpreted "it's" as the lens... sorry for my poor english, ok?? i know you can be very passionate about stuff like this, but no need to be rude... :embrass: cool down, ok?? i'm in the wrong.

 

[zod]

i believe this qn, u haven ans
will the colour of the coating tint the photo?
like say of the coating is purple, take a shot of white paper, can see slightly purplish

 

[Ah Pao]

Well, I believe the coating is reduce flaring and ghosting to a certain extent. If you look carefully at your spectacles (for glass wearers), it's likely to be "multi-coated" and will reflect approximately the same colours (blue-green) as a lens.

And you don't see a colour tint over your vision when you wear it, right? :bsmilie:

And yes, the same principle applies to a camera lens.

 

[Ian]

i believe this qn, u haven ans
will the colour of the coating tint the photo?
like say of the coating is purple, take a shot of white paper, can see slightly purplish

Read carefully my first post .. just so you get the message loud and clear here is the relevant bit again "The colour of the coatings has nothing to do with the nature of a lens nor it's performance, colour temperature neutrality etc."

The keywords for your question are "colour temperature neutrality" in other words the colour of the coatings will not by itself produce a shift in the recorded colours from the originals.

 

[Ian]

Well, I believe the coating is reduce flaring and ghosting to a certain extent. If you look carefully at your spectacles (for glass wearers), it's likely to be "multi-coated" and will reflect approximately the same colours (blue-green) as a lens.

And you don't see a colour tint over your vision when you wear it, right? :bsmilie:

And yes, the same principle applies to a camera lens.

Flare and ghost reduction are indeed a couple of the reasons why camera lenses are coated. However there are many other reasons including but not limted to: contrast control, fine tuning spectral response. As well there's colour temperature related issues, increasing light transmission effeciency, reducing internal reflections etc.

Most reading glasses use a simple MgF coating with some using an Silicon dioxide overcoat. These coatings are quite crude and are often applied after the lens is shaped at the optical dispensing outlet (shop). In most cases the application of such coatings is done by a timed dunking in a hot solution of the appropriate chemicals as franlky speaking glasses are quite low in the scheme of precision optical devices. Camera lenses are normally coated by vacuum deposit methods at high working temperatures.

 

[Ah Pao]

Flare and ghost reduction are indeed a couple of the reasons why camera lenses are coated...

Wonderful explaination...thanks! :thumbsup: Learnt something new again!

 

[Ian]

Wonderful explaination...thanks! :thumbsup: Learnt something new again!

Actually I made a factual error regarding reading glasses, I was thinking of tinting, not multicoating, few glasses lenses are multicoated.