Protecting Your Lenses With UV Filters: We Review the Urth Plus+ to Settle the Argument
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Loading... - Clarissa Gataki
- 17 Mar 2023
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If one argument gets photographers riled, it’s whether one should protect the front element of a lens with a UV filter. Should we instead use a lens hood? Let’s settle the argument with this definitive answer by testing an Urth Plus+ pro filter.
Last week, I bought an Urth Plus+ UV filter. I use their ND filters and am impressed with their optical qualities. Historically, I had used their UV filters too. My reason for stopping was partly because a one-time camera company representative told me that the front elements of their lenses were much more robust and, consequently, had greater resistance to damage. However, I see OM Digital Systems – the camera brand I use – and Nikon, Canon, and Sony are all manufacturing their protective filters. If the lens manufacturers sell their own protectors, there must be a reason. Should I start protecting my lenses with filters again?
The History of the UV Filter
Back in the days when film cameras ruled, we used to fit skylight filters to our lenses. The filters had a very slight magenta hue and would counter the blue cast that would show up on film when shot in daylight. There were two common types: 1A and the slightly darker 1B filters. One would choose a stronger UV filter if shooting in conditions with intense UV light, such as at high altitudes.
These filters had a secondary function: they protected the lens’s front element from damage.
With the arrival of digital cameras, arguments started to break out. Firstly, digital sensors were not prone to the ghosting haze caused by UV light on film. Secondly, the auto white balance in cameras is outstanding, so the blue cast from the sunlight is automatically corrected. Then thirdly, and this is where the controversy stems from, it was argued that the increasingly improved resolution of both sensors and lenses meant that lower-quality glass placed in front of the lens would degrade the image quality. I wanted to prove or disprove this theory, so I put a UV filter to the test. Read More…
