[Dutchie]

Which filter would I need for the nikon d80 18-70mm lens? I had a look at Jessops which gives me the best deal. But there are so many to choose from. I thought I need this one: Jessops UV Filter 67mm
Could anyone check if that would be right one. Or do I need another filter.

Oh yeh and I'm thinking of the package which includes the Tamron 70-300mm F/4-5.6 LD Macro (Nikon AF)
Reason I want this lens for is because I like the macro photography. I still need to have a look if the lens is any good. But tamron and sigma are both good as far as I've read about it. And the lens comes with it only for £100 extra.

[stepheno]

There are a number of questions here, methinks. I'm assuming that you haven't yet bought the camera and lens. The Tamron package is probably good value and Tamron make good lenses but you are only saving about £20. This lens is not the best of their bunch. It's fastest speed is f4 and I'm thinking you will need good light to get the best of it. At 300mm you will get lens shake and may not be able to achieve a fast enough shutter speed to counteract it. Although this lens is called macro, don't be fooled. It is not a true 1:1 macro lens and it's shortest focusing distance is about 37 inches.

If you are looking for a good walkabout lens that will cover a decent range I would suggest the Tamron or Sigma 18-200 - I have the Tamron and can certainly recommend it. Yes it's more money but you could ask Jessops if they will do a deal.

The 18-70 will also be a good lens to start with. Gives you good wide angle. The filter size for this lens is 67mm and a UV will be OK. Please bear in mind I don't use Nikon cameras or lenses so take what I say guardedly.....best wait for a NIkon user to drop in. HTH.

[Dutchie]

The tamron is an extra lens, and i've seen that it is not much of a deal. So I leave that out. I am going for the 18-70mm lens. The camera and the lens only for now. The rest will follow I imagine I am still thinking of the 18-200 lens.

Then the question about the filter still stands.

[Dabhand16]

Foolproof way of getting the correct size is to get the filter at the same time as the lens, and put it on at purchase.

Most folk use a UV or Skylight filter as a lens protector, and leave them on permanently, unless you are going to use an altenative for a specific shot. i.e, a Polariser or ND.

Filters, like lenses, come in various qualities. You can get resin or glass. You can get filter systems, like Cokin, where square or round filters will slot into a carrier that is usually permanently fitted on the lens, and tend to be cheaper, or the circular screw-in type. Coated on one or both sides (to reduce flare) or uncoated. Prices for a 67mm round screw-in for the 18-70 will vary from around £15 to £75, and to a certain extent, you get what you pay for. There was a debate on here earlier in the year about using a 'lens protecting filter' or not, and there was a split in opinion.

I suspect the most popular filters are UV/Skylight, Neutral density 2x and 4x (to allow wider apatures/slower shutter speeds in bright conditions, graduated grey and Polarising. For an AF camera you should use a circular polariser. A lot of the effect of some of these and other filters can be applied in the edit.

[Dutchie]

Ohhhh boy, you've dazzled me now Graham So the filter is not only to protect your lens?

And now we are speaking about those filters. I've seen those red filters and our photographer used them for our wedding photo's. Does a filter like that give the picture a soft glow?

Anyway I was looking at a uv filter from jessops. And that one is £21. I haven't seen more expensive filters then that. And it said on the website that that would fit on the 18-70mm. Just wanted to double check if that was ok, since I am a starter and don't know much as yet. I'm gonna do it over the internet when I order the dslr. Cheaper and free delivery.

[P-E]

Dutchie have you looked online at Warehouseexpress under the filter section?

[Dabhand16]

Right. First, you can check the filter size usually by checking the spec of the lens. Most manufacturers and retailers will include this information in their ads or on their web sites. It will also be marked on the lens somewhere. The Nikon 18-70 is 67mm and it is marked on the bottom of the lens. The 18-200 will more likely be around 62mm. This is a common size, but it is important to check. Fast lenses will have bigger filters because the lenses are bigger to allow more light in. Check out the lenses you see on the pro sports photographers cameras to see what I mean.

To see a good range of filters check out this place. They are very helpful, and if you ring them they will give you good advice.

I would not use a colour correction filter with colour photography. You can do any corrections in the edit, where there will be more control, and you are better off working with an image shot as the camera saw it, rather than trying to sort out an image that has been tinted in the camera. The red filter used at your wedding was most likely being used to take mono photos on film. Coloured filters when used with mono film act very differently to how you would expect. Yellow and red would darken a blue sky, for instance.

I used to use filters with a clear oval centre section and either grey or white fog effect around the edges. This would give a feathered or foggy effect, but is now much better done in the edit.

Until you get more used to the camera and editing, I suggest you stick with a UV or skykight for lens protection initally, then perhaps get a CIRCULAR polarising filter that you can use to reduce reflections or saurate skies more. As you use the camera and editing software more, you will know when and if you'll need any others.

I did not mention in my other post that the resin filters are probably less scratch resistant than glass ones. Also, although there is no reason why you can't 'stack' filters on top of each other the lens, you can suffer vignetting (where you get a rounding off of the corners of the frame on wide angles) if the filters have screw fitting. This does not happen so much with the flat 'Cokin' types. Also, the more 'layers' the light has to pass through will increase the chances of flare, even with coated filters. If you were going to use a polariser, I'd remove the UV/skylight.

Hope this helps. I've tried not to get too technical, but if I've not made it clear, please ask again.

[Dutchie]

Very usefull that warehouseexpress Thanks P E

Graham thanks for your explanation. I understand now how they make the different photo's with different filters. And the photo made with the red filter is hanging in my living room. You learn something new everyday

I'm gonna have a proper look of which filter to buy. But skylight or uv as Graham said is fine for now.

[P-E]

As Graham says if you just want to protect the front of your lens then a UV will be just fine.

I am not sure what the Jessops one's are like.......I either use B+W or Hoya multi coated UV filters.