Re: Use of UV filters


"Dave" <foo@xxxxxxx> wrote in message news:48c7a60a@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
mj wrote:
You pays your money and you takes your choices.

For better than 20 years I serviced both 35mm and most medium format
systems. I can say that in a small percentage of all the lenses I have
repaired (less then 20%) I have seen "protection" filters break into the
front element of the lens scratching it. Hoods generally offer better
impact protection. IMO


You need very careful to understand the implications of that statistic.

As a lens repair person you say you see 20% of lenses where the filter has
damaged the lens. I don't dispute that at all. But it does *not* mean that
20% of the lenses which have UV filters suffer such damage. Most people,
who damage their filters will do it in a far less catastropic manner. They
are likely to put a scratch on the filter, replace the filter and not send
the lens for repair.

Which is why I said less then 20% of the lenses I have *repaired*.

Also, whilst I accept filters can damage the lens if hit sufficiently
hard, one would have to question whether the lens would have been damaged
anyway without the filter. If a knock is sufficient to damage a filter and
smash it into a lens, it must have taken quite a knock - quite possibly
enough to have damaged the lens anyway.

The result of impact damage is a crap shoot at best. I have seen lenses that
fell a foot or two and were wiped out then there are the ones that drop
three feet and only bend the filter ring.
While most of my 35MM customers used "protective filters" not one of my MF
customers did and not all of my MF customers were "professionals".




.

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