[Leica] Will you put filter in front of your Noctilux

[mark at rabinergroup.com (Mark Rabiner)]

> Hi Sonny,
> 
> Following your logic, then old geezers like me, with Leica LTM and Leica-R
> lenses from the 50s and 60s, can use protective filters without ridicule?
> 
> Jim Nichols
> Tullahoma, TN USA


Leica coatings of that era were a league behind the others for some reason.
Bad luck. Patents'.
Photographers made an effort to not over clean their lenes those days.
If they did so they did it without the tail of their gritty flannel shirt.
A little dust is not going to do much. Blow it off.
Its my opinion that a UV filter on a rare expensive  sample of such a
delicate lens might be justified. Me I'd just be careful with the lens and
use a real nice hood.
Nothing protects a lens better than a lens hood.
And the lens hood especially on a normal or tell can really help the image.
A uv filter just puts the lens outer element at risk.

The last thing I like to see are people using a UV filter AND NO lenshood;
Thinking their multicoated whatever UV filter replaces the lens hood.
When I use any filter I make sure I for sure am using a lens hood.
I might not all the time otherwise. But with a filter yes for sure.
A big fat flat piece of glass in front of everything with no protection from
light hitting it from all directions.... Give me a lens hood.

The outer element of most lenses are far less "exposed".
Some, like in macro's especially are small and very well protected by the
design of the lens itself. Ruined by the use of a filter.

Concave outer elements I'm a tad less in  a hurry to put a filter on unless
there is some light that really very much needs filtering.
It seems to me you're just asking for funny reflections to be bouncing back
and forth like a Carnival fun house mirror. Between the filter and the
convex outer element.

[Rabs]
Mark William Rabiner