Filter
Circular Polarizing
Filters
The
EF 24-105mm f/4.0L IS USM lens has a 77mm filter mount;
the EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II and
TS-E 24mm f/3.5L II have 82mm filter
mounts. If there is only one filter to have, it
must be the polarizing filter. In 77mm size, the circular polarizer
(required for this camera) is as expensive as some entry level digital
cameras... In 82mm, even more so. I was fortunate to have a 77mm polarizer in my collection
of gear so dodged this bullet for the first lens, but at least was able to
leverage one filter for two lenses with the 82mm. I also
purchased a 58mm filter because quite a number of my lenses use this size.
This leaves only the 49mm size and the seldom-used 67mm size. I think
an adapter ring may suffice.
Canon L lenses with the exception of the
TS-E series, are sealed against water and dust. For the full
protection a filter must be installed on the lens. As I do not use a
UV or Skylight filter, I have chosen the Polarizing filter as my solution.
11/18/2011 -
I picked up 49mm, 77mm, and 82mm circular
polarizers, all in slim mount, multi-coated format. This completes my
coverage for all my lenses. Well actually I don't have a 67mm...
The slim mount was required to avoid vignettes on the 16-35mm. I found
a brand that was coated, and much cheaper than the B&W slim mounts, with the
added feature of filter threads on them - allowing the continued use of my
current lens caps. Shooting directly into the sun, the filter does not
exhibit any flare:
Neutral Density Filters
For slowing down the shutter speed for
better background blur or for slow shutter speeds during the day, I
purchased Hoya HMC NDx8 Neutral Density filters.
I have also tried Marumi filters:
Marumi® brand. DHG Multi-coated Light Control
8 ND8 Neutral Density. Pro quality filter.
Made in
Japan. Ultra-low reflective coating minimizes reflection off internal CCD &
CMOS sensors. Multicoated (6 coatings) optical glass filter. Black rim: Edge
treated with black ink to eliminate relections. Low profile: Just 5mm high
(not inc rear threads). Great for Wide angle lenses, no vignetting.
Non-reflective metal frame eliminates reflections. Metal, double threaded
frame to allow addtional filters or hoods. 4 main uses: 1. Enables slower
shutter speeds to be used. To display movement instead of freezing motion.
Example, creative waterfall shots. 2. Decreases depth of field. Effecively
blurring the background. 3. Reduces the amount of light reaching the sensor,
but with no affect on color balance. Reduces light intensity, (sunshine,
snow etc). 4. Allow video cameras to operate in bright light. Brand new in
package.
I also picked up a ProMaster Variable Neutral Density
Filter for my 49mm lenses. This filter has a variable setting.
With the following features:
- To decrease depth of field by
allowing wider apertures to be used, which helps
separate subjects from their background.
- To enable slow shutter speeds
to be used, especially with fast films, to record
movement in subjects such as waterfalls, clouds, cars,
seas etc.
- To decrease the effective ISO
of high speed film (ie: above ISO400) and allow it to be
used outdoors in bright situations.
- To allow video cameras (which
have fixed shutter speeds) to film subjects such as
snow, sand or other bright scenes which would normally
cause over-exposure.
