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jvanwees · Jul 24, 2012, 6:06 PM

Hi,
I have some questions about filters. I am going to Yellowstone National Park in Sept. & am wondering which would be the best & most useful filters to purchase for the trip. On a website about the trip it was suggested to have a polarizer, a neutral density & a gray/split neutral density. Someone else told me she has a variable neutral density filter that she recommends. I do not want to have to buy too many & have 2 lenses of different sizes so would need step up or down rings so I could use them on both. The owner of a local photography store said it would be easier to have a filter for each lens to avoid switching them back & forth with the rings but that will be a lot more costly. With the rings I can use a variety of filters on both lenses.
I received a polarizer filter for my birthday for my 58 mm lens so was going to buy a step down ring so I can use it on my 52 mm lens however am wondering if it is better to have the filter for the smaller lens & buy a step up ring to use it on the larger lens. A book I have on filters says that step up rings can cause vignetting but a site on the internet where I read about them says the opposite, that step down rings can cause vignetting. So I don't know which is the best wasy to go.
If I was only going to buy one other filter which would be the best & is it better to get it for my 58 mm lens which is 75-300 or my 52 mm lens which is 18-55.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Janice

TCav · Jul 24, 2012, 7:04 PM

A CPL will double as an ND filter. Get one for each lens and forget the other stuff.

VTphotog · Jul 24, 2012, 7:39 PM

A filter which is smaller than the lens diameter will almost certainly cause vignetting at the shorter focal lengths. Stepping up from a smaller lens to a larger filter is the better way to go, though some combinations may give you some vignetting at the shortest focal length of the lens.
A split, or graduated ND filter can be useful for landscapes, and polarizing filters are handy for a number of situations. For the trip you plan, that should do, unless you plan to spend a lot of time swapping filters.

brian

Jul 24, 2012, 6:06 PM	#1
jvanwees Member Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 68	Filters Hi, I have some questions about filters. I am going to Yellowstone National Park in Sept. & am wondering which would be the best & most useful filters to purchase for the trip. On a website about the trip it was suggested to have a polarizer, a neutral density & a gray/split neutral density. Someone else told me she has a variable neutral density filter that she recommends. I do not want to have to buy too many & have 2 lenses of different sizes so would need step up or down rings so I could use them on both. The owner of a local photography store said it would be easier to have a filter for each lens to avoid switching them back & forth with the rings but that will be a lot more costly. With the rings I can use a variety of filters on both lenses. I received a polarizer filter for my birthday for my 58 mm lens so was going to buy a step down ring so I can use it on my 52 mm lens however am wondering if it is better to have the filter for the smaller lens & buy a step up ring to use it on the larger lens. A book I have on filters says that step up rings can cause vignetting but a site on the internet where I read about them says the opposite, that step down rings can cause vignetting. So I don't know which is the best wasy to go. If I was only going to buy one other filter which would be the best & is it better to get it for my 58 mm lens which is 75-300 or my 52 mm lens which is 18-55. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Janice

Jul 24, 2012, 7:04 PM	#2
TCav Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Washington, DC, Metro Area, Maryland Posts: 12,264	A CPL will double as an ND filter. Get one for each lens and forget the other stuff. __________________ The lens is the thing. 'Full Frame' is the new 'Medium Format'. A good camera helps a good photographer; it doesn't make one. If you're going to use a filter, make it a good one.

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Jul 24, 2012, 7:39 PM	#3
VTphotog Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Extreme Northeastern Vermont, USA Posts: 3,535	A filter which is smaller than the lens diameter will almost certainly cause vignetting at the shorter focal lengths. Stepping up from a smaller lens to a larger filter is the better way to go, though some combinations may give you some vignetting at the shortest focal length of the lens. A split, or graduated ND filter can be useful for landscapes, and polarizing filters are handy for a number of situations. For the trip you plan, that should do, unless you plan to spend a lot of time swapping filters. brian