Hey gang-
First post! Wohoo! Haha. Anyway, I found this site through camcorderinfo.com...cool site. I had a question: I just purchased my first 3CCD Camera (Canon GL2 of course!). Haha, anyway, I got a "General Brand" UV filter for it from B&H. Now when I receive this camera, I'm going to immediatly put this filter on to protect the lens. My question is this: When I want to put a wide angle lens on it (the Canon wide angle lens), am I going to have to take the UV filter off? Or will the wide angle just go right over top of it? Please help a noobie out! Haha.
Thanks!
-Brett

I use a HOYA 58mm filter, this has threads on each side. My Canon W58H sits on top of that. No problem. - G

make sure that the lens cap fits on over the uv filter - i bought a £11 one from jessops and it worked fine until i put the lens cap on - crunch. the filter was really badly scratched, and unusable

So how am I supposed to pick one out? What should I look for? Will a 58mm lens not be good enough? Can anyone help me?
-Brett

p.s. here is the one I bought....will it be ok?
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=cart&A=details&Q=&sku=110171&is=REG&addedTroughValue=255811_REG&addedTroughType=accessory

Putting a wide angle adapter on a filter may not be optimal. The adapter was probably designd to sit on the naked lens. If the wide angle adapter is on the lens, it is providing protection. The filter is better on the WA adapter.

A couple other considerations: keep in mind that filters provide an additional surface for dust that will be more apparent in the image than the same dust on the naked lens (because it is further from the center of the lens (a "benefit" of the depth of field). Also a filter provides two additional glass-air surfaces to produce stray reflections (especially cheap filters).

Best approach is to use a filter only when you need one to modify the light or protect the lens.

Thanks for the advice Don. I've heard people say leave the filter on at all times to protect the lens. That's why I was asking. So what I'm gathering is this: only use the filter if I'm outside and conditions aren't all that great (i.e. a dry dusty day). Is this a correct assumption? Any more advice?
Thanks!
-Brett

I keep my Tiffen UV (lens protector) filter on all the time. I have rarely had trouble with additional reflections.

And if you are surgically clean when you put it on the first time, no dust will be captured between the filter and lense, and then you never need take it off again, so the additional dust problem is solved.

I keep it on because I want to touch the actual lense as little as possible. Fingerprints to dust particles.

Also, recently I have stacked several filters with minimal vignetting (sp?) I had the UV, then ND n.9, then a polarizer, then the wd-58 wide angle. That was quite a stack. It was a bright day, and with a little zoom-through, it got passed the interference at the edges, and the image looks crisp, clear, and properly exposed. Of course, these are all Tiffen filters, which are a far cry from the cheaply made generics.

DJ

Steve,

The advice to put the wide angle directly is correct. for every filter you add the focal length of the wide angle is changed. As one person said, use of the zoom rectified the problem. If you want it as wide angle as possible filters should go on the colse up lens.
I shoot primarily wildlife. It is bright here most of the the time. I use a Uv over the lens all the time and I also use the polarizing lens on that. these two with the neutral density in the camera covers about 80 oercent of my shooting. A second neutral densityfilter will cover the remaining 20 %.

dale guthormsen

The issue with dust is that the depth of field is very great with the GL1/2. With the lens at a small aperture dust become visible in the image. The same dust on a filter is much more visible under the same conditions because it is further from the lens focal center. Especially if ther is side lighting fon the camera location. Most apparent in bright outdoor situations. However, if this is not a problem then not to worry.

By the way, the front element of the lens is not a light focusing element, it is a piece of flat optical glass placed there to protect the variable angel prism

What are some other "essential" filters one should have? A circular polarizing, an ND filter, others?
Thanks for all the replies.

Not to hijack or complicate this thread, but, I also will be filming a lot from a boat in Alaska the next couple of weeks. I've done so before without a polarizer and did get water glare. I just ordered a linear polarizer from B&H (tiffen), because the web site said that was recommended for video cameras, or shooting auto focus. They also said circular polarizers are mostly for manual focus or slr cameras. So did I make a mistake getting a linear filter for my gl2? I plan on putting it over my U.V. filter and then my wd58.