I use a UV filter on my lens to protect it because unlike others it has the least effect on the amount of light passing through it and does not affect color. I use it indoors and out with both black and white and color films. The only time it is off of my lense is when I want to affect color or contrast by using a special filter. It reduces haze to improve the clarity of outdoor pictures. Tiffen filters are well constructed. Tiffen 58mm UV Protection Filter
At a range between $7 and $10, this is one of the best values and investments out there. What is it actually used for? A UV filter has two primary purposes: to filter out unwanted ultra-violet light and to protect the lens. For most general photography applications, you will not notice the difference in UV light. Only when you have intense sunlight at a specific angle will you start to notice the UV light. It will not alter your photos and their lighting negatively, so you can pretty much leave this filter on all the time. This filter doesn't do that great of a job in actually filtering out harsh light at the ultra-violet spectrum, but if you're an amateur photographer, you won't need that function. If you do encounter a lot of harsh UV light (you live out in the desert or in Alaska), then you should consider a different filter. As an advanced but non-professional photographer who averages 500 photos indoors and outdoors per week, I have not yet encountered any harsh UV light that this filter cannot block.
I use this on my Canon 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 lens, and I pretty much never take it off. This filter will protect your lens from scratches to the glass. When you get smudges (which you will) on this filter, you just wipe the filter or remove it and clean it. It's much easier to clean this filter than the glass on the lens. But the most important part is that this filter serves as insurance for your lens. If something comes flying at your lens, you have a choice of replacing a $7 filter or a $150 lens. It's a no-brainer!
Now, this filter is useful for either the amateur photographer or the advanced photographer who has a relatively cheap lens (a $150 lens is considered CHEAP compared to $950 for the Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS). If you own a more expensive lens, you'd want to go with a better filter, such as one from Hoya or B+W. But if you own the Canon Canon 17-55mm f/2.8 IS or an L lens, you know that already.
All in all, I gave this filter 5 stars because of its great value. If it costs $20, I would have reduced it to 4 stars. Considering its use, you cannot beat this product.
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I purchased this filter for my 2006 Christmas vacation in Hawaii. I knew that I was going to take a lot of outdoor photographs and wanted to try using a UV filter to make them more crisp. I have a Canon S3 IS which is not a traditional SLR so in order to use this filter I purchased the Canon LAH-DC20 Lens Adapter and Hood Set. Not only is this a great filter for cutting out haze in my photos, it's an affordable protective layer between the built in lens and the real world. I have many cameras with sand and fingerprints all over the lenses. It's impossible to keep them clean. Anything that gets onto this filter cannot harm the built in lens and is easily cleaned by simply removing the filter and wiping with a lens cloth. I have noticed a great improvement in my outdoor photography in clarity.
One caveat:
I was fortunate enough to get some expert advice concerning how tight to screw on filters and lenses. JUST BARELY FINGER TIGHT! Those little buggers have a nasty tendency to go from "kind of loose" to "how do you get this d@mn thing off" very quickly!
The product felt strong, solid, and well put together. The glass was clear with no visible tint or imperfections. Although this and another filter (same type different size) both arrived with smudges on the glass. The smudges were fairly easy to wipe off, but I suspect the items are either not cleaned before packaging, or I received someone's returned item. However, I had to return this item since they DON'T contain any anti-glare/reflective coating on them. When shooting towards a light source (light bulb, tv, sun, etc) a green reflection of the light source would appear on the recorded image. The green reflected image was caused by a reflection bouncing off of my lens's green tinted anti-glare coating which was bounced right back into the camera by this filter. If your lens isn't coated in an anti-glare coating the result will be even worse.
Instead I picked up Quantaray filters from a local Wolf Camera that were coated with the anti-glare. They only cost a little more, and the green reflection is now gone. Make sure you look for a filter with the anti-glare
Camera: Canon 20d, Lenses tested: 18-55, 28-135, 70-300
This is a high end filter. Very well made. Glass with metal ring. Great for preventing damage to your expensive lenses and even filters out UV rays. Easy to clean as compared to cleaning finger prints off of a lens. I had dropped a lens and broke the filter, but the lens was unharmed thanks to the filter. Replacing the filter was far less expensive then replacing the lens. A great value for a high quality filter. No lens should be without one.'
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