What Does A Uv Filter Do

Have you lot always heard that a UV protection lens filter for your lens is like cheap lens insurance? You lot might be wondering how true this is. In this article, we'll accept a look at but that. We'll too take a expect at why the UV protection lens filter was invented in the starting time place and what its utility is in digital photography today. Past the cease of this read, yous'll have a meliorate agreement of the pros and cons of a UV protection lens filter and when to utilise one and when to not.

What is a UV protection lens filter?

UV protection lens filter definition

There are many dissimilar types of filters for photographic camera lenses. The UV filter ranks among the oldest ones. To differentiate it from other types of photography tools, let'southward have a look at the definition.

UV PROTECTION LENS FILTER DEFINITION

What is a UV lens filter?

A UV protection lens filter attaches to the forepart of a camera lens and reduces the corporeality of ultraviolet light that passes into a camera. This is especially important when shooting motion picture photography. Picture show stock is more than sensitive to UV light and tin can cause discoloration in photos.

Digital cameras, however, are not as sensitive to UV calorie-free. However, photographers who practise shoot digital still utilize UV filters to protect the frontal elements of their lens.

What does a UV protection lens filter do?

Reduce ultraviolet light
Protect lens from scratches
Protect lens from dust, liquids, and other hazards

UV filter camera lens modifier

Blocks UV Light

Before the days of digital photography at that place was only movie. Photographers noticed that some of their photos had some discoloration. The appearance of blueish hues bled in their photos. They shortly realized that the cause of this was ultraviolet light or UV lite.

Blue discoloration from UV protection lens filter

To set up this trouble, photographers invented the UV protection lens filter. This UV filter camera lens modifier minimizes the amount of ultraviolet low-cal let into the camera. With the advent of digital technology in DSLR cameras and mirrorless cameras, UV light became less of an effect. Digital cameras were not every bit sensitive to UV low-cal. Withal, digital photographers nevertheless found use for the filter as physical protection for the frontal elements of their lenses.

Other uses of a UV filter camera modifier

Protects the lens

Permit's analyze how much protection an ultraviolet lens filter actually gives you lot. The most directly means of damaging whatever type of camera lens is by dropping it. Unfortunately, UV filters often take much weaker glass than the elements in nearly types of camera lenses. This ways that they volition often suspension when your lens otherwise would non.

UV filters also exercise not protect your lens from internal damage. Within a lens, there are many more drinking glass elements than the frontal chemical element. Dropping your lens with 1 on volition pose just as much harm to internal damage equally without one. To check out a existent drop test, check out the video beneath.

UV filter camera modifier • Do You Need Them Or Not?

Even though lens filters are not effective at protecting your lens from drops, it can protect your lens from other hazards. They can protect your lens from scratches that can occur from small contact with rough surfaces.

They tin protect your lens from ecology hazards such as grit, dirt, snow, and even salt in the air when you are shooting past the sea.

What does a UV filter practise?

To epitomize, if you lot are a photographer or videographer with an expensive lens and you regularly shoot in environments that pose hazards, a UV filter for your lens is a good idea to accept handy. Of course, there are some downsides to introducing new elements to your lens.

Cons of UV protection lens filter

Slightly reduces image quality

When yous add an ultraviolet filter to your lens, it creates some other medium through which low-cal needs to travel though before creating an prototype. This ways that the quality of your image will exist slightly reduced.

UV filters tin can reduce the amount of low-cal let into a camera between 0.5% to 5%. This will inherently reduce the resolution of your image. The deviation, however, is very minimal. The reduction in quality tin can exist nigh unnoticeable or at least fixed in editing.

Before and After using a Camera UV protection filter

Before and After using a Photographic camera UV protection filter

The variation in paradigm quality depends on the quality of your ultraviolet filter. Remember, you get what y'all pay for. Investing just a lilliputian flake more coin into your filters will help you maintain paradigm quality while also protecting your lens. To understand the impact a cheap vs quality filter can have on your photo, check out the comparison video beneath.

$5 VS $100 UV filter camera lens modifier • DO Y'all Demand One AT ALL?

What you lot exercise need to be careful of is any light aberrations or unintentional lens flares. The extra glass element can cause unwanted flares when shooting directly at a low-cal source.

UV protection filter conclusion

Do you need a UV Lens Filter?

After all of this information yous may exist wondering "Practice I demand a UV filter on my lens?" The answer to that question is that it depends. What or where are you shooting?

If you are shooting an result around a lot of people or action, y'all may be more prone to accidents. Guests spill drinks, in that location may be confetti, there may exist dancing and someone may bump into your lens. Who knows.

Maybe you shoot action sports. Your shoots accept y'all to the desert, snowy mountains, or beaches. All of which are environments where dust, common salt, and water particles fill the air.

Dirty lenses are a nightmare — UV protection filters can help

Dirty lenses are a nightmare • UV protection filters can assistance

In situations like these, a filter would exist a proficient idea to at to the lowest degree provide protection for the frontal element of your lens. Sure, without a Ultraviolet filter you can just make clean off your lens. But even cleaning your lens with professional tools will cause an accumulation of micro scratches and damage your lens over time.

Keyword here...

When not to use a UV protection filter

If UV lens filters can protect your camera why non leave it on all the fourth dimension? Again, it will depend on what y'all are shooting. If y'all are shooting studio photos equally creative conceptual photography, epitome quality may be amid your higher priorities. Therefore, using photographic camera lens filters is not ideal equally it may slightly reduce your photos quality.

Typically, shoots similar these are in controlled settings anyway and exercise not require equally much protection from ecology hazards. Hither is a cracking video explaining the pros and cons of UV filters and how you tin decide for yourself if you need one for what you are shooting.

Photographic camera UV protection filter: Necessary or Nuisance?

Equally mentioned in the video, you lot'll want to avert using UV filters when shooting directly at light sources like sunsets. The extra glass element tin can cause the light to create unwanted flares or aberrations.

Having a photographic camera lens UV filter in your photographic camera purse is never a bad idea. Yet, information technology is unnecessary to exit i on your lens at all times. Based on all of the information in this article, information technology is ultimately up your judgement to determine when or when non to use one.

Up Adjacent

A Guide to Types of Photographic camera Lenses

Lens filters are important to taking great photos. What's even more important are the lenses themselves. Understanding unlike types of lenses will give y'all a better agreement which one will all-time tell the story of your photograph. Learn more nearly the various types of camera lenses in our next article.

Up Side by side: A Guide to Types of Camera Lenses →