OT: Duh, the filter on the camera makes a huge difference.

[Coronita]

Ok…I thought I’d take a break from posting about all this stuff going on the economy, because I just had an epiphany.

Awhile back ago, I wanted a fast lens that could shoot in low light for my digital rebel…

I bought this

because I read pretty good reviews about it, and considering I wasn’t a pro, I couldn’t justify buying this…

Anyway, I’ve been pretty disappointed with it for awhile, since the pictures didn’t really come out that much better than what a crap “kit” lens that came with the camera did. I was really disappointed and was about to ebay the damn thing…

Then I lent this to my friend, who took a few pictures which were considerably better than mine. He mentioned to me this thing I put on front of the lens:

was complete garbage, along with a tirade of comments about being a cheap ass asian that buys one thing because to expect better quality, then buys and complementary thing of complete garbage just to save a few bucks.

He ended up recommending this:

Well, apparently, it made a huge difference. The former was like a big glary window pane, the later was crystal clear….

So, moral of the story…If you’re gonna buy something that is already cost an arm, might as well get the complete deal, or don’t get it at all.

Anyway, back to the regular scheduled economic program….

[Coronita]

btw: if anyone wants the tiffen filter, send me a pm. It’s yours for free.

[Coronita]

btw: if anyone wants the tiffen filter, send me a pm. It’s yours for free.

[Coronita]

btw: if anyone wants the tiffen filter, send me a pm. It’s yours for free.

[Coronita]

btw: if anyone wants the tiffen filter, send me a pm. It’s yours for free.

[Coronita]

btw: if anyone wants the tiffen filter, send me a pm. It’s yours for free.

[ucodegen]

Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[ucodegen]

Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[ucodegen]

Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[ucodegen]

Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[ucodegen]

Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[Coronita]

[quote=ucodegen]Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[/quote]

Thanks for the info. I opted to get the B&W filter. i’ve been pretty happy with the pictures now. I didn’t think it would make such a big difference. In hindsight, the other gripe is that the tamron lense that I got won’t work on full frame cameras. But I doubt I’ll ever upgrade to a full frame….and i can’t justify buying an equivalent L series canon lense for now.

I did get a camera with the “kit” lense. Unfortunately, I did not know better at the time…Yet for awhile i was sort of disappointed that in make cases my tamron was shooting equally crappy.

[Coronita]

[quote=ucodegen]Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[/quote]

Thanks for the info. I opted to get the B&W filter. i’ve been pretty happy with the pictures now. I didn’t think it would make such a big difference. In hindsight, the other gripe is that the tamron lense that I got won’t work on full frame cameras. But I doubt I’ll ever upgrade to a full frame….and i can’t justify buying an equivalent L series canon lense for now.

I did get a camera with the “kit” lense. Unfortunately, I did not know better at the time…Yet for awhile i was sort of disappointed that in make cases my tamron was shooting equally crappy.

[Coronita]

[quote=ucodegen]Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[/quote]

Thanks for the info. I opted to get the B&W filter. i’ve been pretty happy with the pictures now. I didn’t think it would make such a big difference. In hindsight, the other gripe is that the tamron lense that I got won’t work on full frame cameras. But I doubt I’ll ever upgrade to a full frame….and i can’t justify buying an equivalent L series canon lense for now.

I did get a camera with the “kit” lense. Unfortunately, I did not know better at the time…Yet for awhile i was sort of disappointed that in make cases my tamron was shooting equally crappy.

[Coronita]

[quote=ucodegen]Tiffen makes good filters and bad filters. The good Tamron lens uses multicoated glass. Since you describe the filter as ‘glary’, I think the filter you originally had was not multicoated. With the newer cameras coming in above 5Mpixel, they are more sensitive the the quality of glass that you use. Non multicoated filters will have internal reflections between the glass-air boundaries on both sides of the glass. This will soften edges slightly, reduce the sharpness and reduce the contrast of the image.

From BHphotovideo:
The filter you had
The cheapest Tiffen coated, not much more than your price
Something more expensive

Going from the clear glass to single coat makes a huge difference. To some extent, filters are a bit of a racket. There is considerably more coated glass, more expensive glass shapes and types of glass in a lens than the equivalent dollar amount of coated glass filters. Tiffen is not the least expensive for equivalent type/quality of filter. Other filter manufacturers:

Sigma, Hoya, Heliopan, B&W.

Sigma filters are hard to find, not many places seem to carry them, though when I find them, they are very good quality for the price.

Other aftermarket lens manufacturers(In order of the quality I have discovered in using them):

Sigma, Tokina, Tamron

When picking up Sigma lenses, only use the EX style, and only US market – not gray market.

NOTE: The camera manufacturer lenses by Canon, Nikon and Sony seem to have fairly good quality but I have also noted problems with some of the Nikons. I have less experience with the Canon, though I have heard good things about their ‘white’ lenses (and seen). Be wary of the ‘kit’ lenses on D-SLR cameras. They are generally not worth the money. If you look at the mount on most of them, it is a plastic mount, not a metal. These lenses are cheaply made. Buy the body only and pick a quality lens from aftermarket or from the camera manufacturer. NOTE: I don’t have much experience with Olympus and Pentax lenses so I can’t comment on these, though Pentax does have a good reputation going way back to the 60s.

APO lenses are always better than non-APO (APO = apochromatic). I would recommend always using an APO when going above 8Mpixel with an APSC sensor or 16Mpixel on a full-frame sensor D-SLR.

Mail order retailers that I have found to be good:
BHphotovideo
Adorama

Note: Sigma also makes a decent digital camera using a completely different sensor design (Foveon).

I hope this has been informative…

[/quote]

Thanks for the info. I opted to get the B&W filter. i’ve been pretty happy with the pictures now. I didn’t think it would make such a big difference. In hindsight, the other gripe is that the tamron lense that I got won’t work on full frame cameras. But I doubt I’ll ever upgrade to a full frame….and i can’t justify buying an equivalent L series canon lense for now.

I did get a camera with the “kit” lense. Unfortunately, I did not know better at the time…Yet for awhile i was sort of disappointed that in make cases my tamron was shooting equally crappy.

[Author]

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