06-19-2010, 10:04 PM
[quote name='Comte' date='19 June 2010 - 11:37 PM' timestamp='1276983449' post='618']
So you all use the Cokin system? I have thought about buying it too, but there are many bad opinions about the optical quality of the Cokin filters.
Can you confirm that? Do they really spoil resolution and scratch easily?
[/quote]
The Z-Pros certainly are good filters. I haven't noticed any colour changes etc., and I do know I see small colour differences well enough.
The question regarding resolution is whether you can actually take a decent picture under the circumstances you do need such a filter. I reckon you can't, so any loss of resolution is a moot point. Also, it is in the category of well less than 1 % anyway, so I don't think anybody will see the difference, while the effect it provides is markedly different.
Scratching is another moot point. First of all, these filters come in protective pockets, which do guard against scratches very well indeed. Secondly, a scratch, if you really had one, so close to the optics is not visible at all on the image. Furthermore, since the filter is made from polycarbonate or something similar, it doesn't break easily, which is a good thing (no need to have a special carry case, or to be afraid to drop it). I find I always treat my filters with respect, and in the four or so years I use them I have not seen a single scratch develop yet. And if it does, at least it is an affordable piece of equipment to replace.
Are there better filters out there? Probably yes. However, certainly where I live, other ones than Cokin are much harder to come by, and the other "plastic" brand is at least 50 % more expensive, and a supposedly really better one more than twice or even three times that price. And if you go glass, be prepared to pay as much for a single filter as for a complete good quality lens. IOW, it is more a budget and use thing than something about quality. Do you want to get out the last 0.1 %, go for glass filters, but be prepared to pay, especially for multi-coated ones, if you can find those. Will you see the difference? I doubt it very much. As I said, you will see the effect the filter causes, and that is what it was all about in the first place.
Kind regards, Wim
So you all use the Cokin system? I have thought about buying it too, but there are many bad opinions about the optical quality of the Cokin filters.
Can you confirm that? Do they really spoil resolution and scratch easily?
[/quote]
The Z-Pros certainly are good filters. I haven't noticed any colour changes etc., and I do know I see small colour differences well enough.
The question regarding resolution is whether you can actually take a decent picture under the circumstances you do need such a filter. I reckon you can't, so any loss of resolution is a moot point. Also, it is in the category of well less than 1 % anyway, so I don't think anybody will see the difference, while the effect it provides is markedly different.
Scratching is another moot point. First of all, these filters come in protective pockets, which do guard against scratches very well indeed. Secondly, a scratch, if you really had one, so close to the optics is not visible at all on the image. Furthermore, since the filter is made from polycarbonate or something similar, it doesn't break easily, which is a good thing (no need to have a special carry case, or to be afraid to drop it). I find I always treat my filters with respect, and in the four or so years I use them I have not seen a single scratch develop yet. And if it does, at least it is an affordable piece of equipment to replace.
Are there better filters out there? Probably yes. However, certainly where I live, other ones than Cokin are much harder to come by, and the other "plastic" brand is at least 50 % more expensive, and a supposedly really better one more than twice or even three times that price. And if you go glass, be prepared to pay as much for a single filter as for a complete good quality lens. IOW, it is more a budget and use thing than something about quality. Do you want to get out the last 0.1 %, go for glass filters, but be prepared to pay, especially for multi-coated ones, if you can find those. Will you see the difference? I doubt it very much. As I said, you will see the effect the filter causes, and that is what it was all about in the first place.
Kind regards, Wim
Gear: Canon EOS R with 3 primes and 2 zooms, 4 EF-R adapters, Canon EOS 5 (analog), 9 Canon EF primes, a lone Canon EF zoom, 2 extenders, 2 converters, tubes; Olympus OM-D 1 Mk II & Pen F with 12 primes, 6 zooms, and 3 Metabones EF-MFT adapters ....