UV filter for EF 50mm f/1.8 II?

[salil_s]

I know that many users here at photo.net consider the 50mm f/1.8 to

be an almost disposable lens because of its low price, about 65$ at

bhphotovideo if I'm correct. However I live in India and here it

retails for about 100$, which is not exactly bargain price for me. So

I need a UV filter for the lens. Since I'm a beginner to SLRs I dont

know much about filters and how much they affect the sharpness/image

quality of a lens. Any good UV filter recommendations for this 50mm?

Any other advice will also be appreciated. Thank you in advance for

your help.

[straightarm]

Hoya HMC skylight filters on all my lenses. A good compromise between cost and quality.

 

Simon

 

In black and white, everyone's a hero!

[steve_dunn2]

<p>If you put a filter on this lens, make sure you also have the lens hood. Without a filter, the deeply recessed front of the barrel acts as a lens hood (though not as deep a hood as the real hood); with a filter, you lose that advantage.</p>

[Ken Katz]

Because the front element is deeply recessed, IMHO, a protective filter is not necessary. A cheap lenshood may be all you will need.

[dong_wah_chin]

Get a Hoya HMC. The dedicated lenshood for the 50mm is not cheap (you need an adaptor to attach the hood) and IMHO not necesssary. Just get a filter to protect the front element.

[yakim_peled1]

I had it for 12 years. Somewhere along the line I bought a UV filter for it but I quickly found that it degrades my pictures. So it happily lives at home :-) As I consider the lens a super sharp one (wide open, more than the 17-35/2.8 USM L and the 70-200/4 USM L), I'd recommend to get the best filter for it.

 

A cheaper option is, of course, not to put any filter at all. I found that I have no problems living without any "protective" filters on my lenses.

[eddie g.]

My Hoya HMC Pro (their top of the line) is not nearly as good as my Rodenstock, B+W and Heliopan filters. I highly recommend the german filters in place of Hoya or Tiffen, and being 52mm in diameter, they are not too expensive.

[bruce johnson]

The front element is nicely recessed. This affords you quite alot of protection. Also it acts like a built in lens hood. Adding a filter negates these benefits and you'll suffer from flare, etc, not to mention the general degradation you suffer from filters. Any filter good enough to be placed on this lens without degrading its optics costs about as much as the lens itself and will be fully exposed to the elements rather than recessed. Trust me, I've battered my 50/1.8 about more than you could possibly imagine - it's even rolled hundreds of feet down a scree slide without the lens cap (along with my trusty EOS 650) and other than superficial scratches to the casing its none the worse for the wear. Just use it!!!

[salil_s]

Thanks a million to you all.

Bruce, do you use the 50/1.8 Mark I or the Mark II? Cause the Mark II doesnt look that well built. The Mark I on the other hand was supposed to be a beauty (although I have never used one.)