I am planning on getting the 70-2OOmm zoom lens and the guy at the store highly recommended a filter only for protection. I have seen people strongly against them. And I've seen people strongly with getting them. I would like to know your side. I have had them and had no issues with them at all. But what concerns me is that not getting one is just going to get the front element dirty (finger prints, dust) and when I clean it, that's a possible scratch on the lens. I think I should get one, what harm am I doing if I get one? Thanks again for your time and replies.

cheap ones degrade image quality and are susceptible to flares.

I always have one on since sometimes in my backpack, the lens cap falls off or whatever. I have Hoya multicoated ones and although I don't see any noticeable loss in image quality, I do got flares when shooting at night or into direct light so Ill take the filter off when needed.

The people who argue against using filters say that because the expensive ones costs over ~100 dollars, they would rather not use one and if the front element gets damaged, they could have Canon replace it for the same amount a high end filter would cost

This post was edited by Land0n on Nov 23 2010 04:47pm

good ones dont degrade the iq(or maybe you could see like 0.01% difference in lab), also good ones arent prone to flaring either, but in extreme situation they might increase the flare really little. i suggest hoya hd filters for protection, they have strong/good coatings(with many filters the coating might go bad if you clean it too much or dont use appropriate cloths/chemicals for cleaning, but hoya hd filters coating doesent fade away even if you just wipe it with your sleeve), they can take about 4 times the hit that normal filters can because they are hardened. some people say that b&w filters are better, but they cost more, they dont have as strong coatings(if you scratch the coating, filter starts to flare easier and decrease iq) and hoya hd filters are already so good that you wont notice the difference with or without the filter.

since you shoot with digital, get protection filter instead of uv filter because digital sensor already has uv filter, uv vs non uv doesent make much of a difference, but filter with uv filtering cost slightly more and i wouldnt think its a good idea to filter anything that you dont need to filter(but in real life it most likely doesent make any difference if you use two uv filters or not)



good filters are cheaper than replacing the front element, much cheaper

This post was edited by Antichrist- on Nov 23 2010 04:59pm

Unless you're buying the big buck multi-coated filters such as B+W MRC UV filters.. don't get it. It degrades image quality

I personally don't use them (protector filters). I rather just be more careful when i clean/ use them in the field.

Thanks a lot for the info guys. Which particular filter would I get for this? Do I just find one that is called hoya hd? I will look online to see what's out there. Am I looking at over 100 dollars for one? Also, the one at the camera store I didn't recognize the brand, it was 60 bucks though...

the filter size depends on which 70-200 your getting. f/4 is 67mm and f/2.8 is 77mm i think

Ah. Then it would be hoya hd 67mm. I am getting the 4.0

67mm hoya hd protectors costs about 60€, so it should be about 60$ there, because our taxes are higher. i highly recommend those hoya hd filters, i have used only them for quite a time, i have also tested my 24-105mm with them and i didnt notice any difference even in 100% crops if the filter was on or not

This post was edited by Antichrist- on Nov 23 2010 05:46pm

Oh alright. Hmm... I can't seem to even find one here... I need to know the exact name so I know what the heck I am looking for.

I found this one: Hoya 67mm PRO 1 D UV Listed at 69.99 But I see it's a UV... not sure what the HD is. Seems only amazon.com has the right one, and I'd prefer to buy from a Canadian site.

http://www.amazon.com/Hoya-Hardened-8-layer-Multi-Coated-Digital/dp/B001G7PMMW

This one here, Can't seem to even purchase the HD one where I live.

Found this one: http://www.henrys.ca/2313-HOYA-67MM-S-HMC-UV-FILTER.aspx

This post was edited by Chantal7 on Nov 23 2010 08:59pm

I'm not sure if 2filters ship to canada but it might worth a call to find out.

I've spent $1k+ with them and everytime i buy from there, the experience was top notch. Highly knowledgeable about filters since thats all they sell, glad to answer any questions for you and best of all their prices are really compeitive. Unlike B&H, 2filters are actual authorized retailer for B+W filters too. Ask for Andrea if you call, she is uber helpful.

B+W F-Pro UV 010 MRC Multicoated Filters
http://www.2filter.com/prices/B+W%5Ffilters/B+WUVcamerafilters.html

Hoya HD digital UV
http://www.2filter.com/hoya/hoya%5Fhd%5Ffilters.html

Both recommended... while you're there, you may want to pick up a few CPL filters too.

This post was edited by Eek on Nov 23 2010 09:18pm