Help Needed UV Filter for FZ20

[biglee]

I have recently purchased a FZ20 for a round the world trip after reading the reviews on this site. I am a complete beginner regarding photography and as such i require your expert help.

I have been told that to protect the lens i should use a UV filter and also that the FZ20 requires an 52mm adapter for this - is this correct?

I have also been told by panasonic that they have a 6 week delay on orders of their adapter so i need another brand of adapter (Raynox also have delays).

Can someone recommend an adapter, and also where in the UK I can purchase it.

Thank you in advance.

[emalvick]

I strongly suggest looking through past threads. There is a lot of information about what adapters are out there and what sizes they come in. I don't remember all the links, but they are there. I actually have only had my camera for a couple of months and found things quite quickly through these forums.

Specifically, look at the thread, "Purchased a FZ10/20 ? this will help :)" towards the top. It goes into some details about adapters and other useful products for your camera.

As for the size of filter, etc... You only need to make sure that the size of the filters you buy match the size of the adapter you buy. I think all the adapters are capable so I don't advocate one or another. I purchased a Phayee adapter, but I think they all have their merits. I use it as an example because it gave me 62 mm diameter at its end. So, I have to buy 62 mm filters for it.

Anyway, enjoy your camera... I felt overwhelmed at first, but now I just love the camera and wonder how I ever lived with my old digital camera.

Erik

[biglee]

Erik,

Unfortunately in general I do not understand all of the camera jargon in the threads. All I need to know is what adaptor to buy that is perfect for general use, i have no idea on sizes etc?

Is this adaptor ok:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=30033&item=7512095089&rd=1

Thanks

[emalvick]

I'd say it is worth learning some of the jargon. You don't have to understand all of it. What it comes down to is that you need the adapter to place whatever addon lens or filter you attach to it to be as close to the camera lens as possible. The supplied adapter by Panasonic doesn't.

Attach the given adapter and turn the camera on. If you attached a filter to the given adapter you would have quite a distance between it and the lens. That leads to lens flare (glare from light bouncing off of the lens and filter), etc.

Unfortunately, I know nothing about the one in the link you showed. I think the most popular are Phayee, Pemaraal, and the Raynox. If you go towards the last pages of the "Adapters for the FZ20" thread there is a ring device by Nextphoto that will allow you to attach filters only.

I chose the Phayee myself because the seller had a good reputation (read through that thread) and it supposedly brought the filters closest to the lens. I chose it over the Nextphoto because the Phayee lets me add on a lens later down the road if I want to. The Nextphoto was basically the same price, but it doesn't give that option. I believe the Pemaraal and its seller basically has the same quality as the Phayee.

The size won't matter too much. The adapters are going to attach to the given threads on the camera and then give you some diameter on the open end that will vary. Once you choose the adapter, you will have to buy a UV filter that will fit those threads. For the Phayee it is 62 mm. For others it is different. Heck, you could use the supplied Panasonic adapter, but it would require a 72 mm filter.

I think the other filters are liked because they are metal too. They bring the filters closer to the lens and are a good solid metal. The Phayee adapter and the Pemaraal are made of aluminum. Both can be found on ebay. I think the links are on the first message of that adapter thread. I live in the states, but it only took a week for me to receive the Phayee adapter. It is anaodized and looks very good on the camera. It also allows me to use the supplied lens hood for shading the lens in bright sun.

One thing I think is good is to take a little time and learn about the camera and how different accessories will help it. Make the most of it.

Erik

[genece]

Now I know nothing of the link you posted but the picture looks just like the Panasonic adapter and therefore the description makes no sense.

This is an adapter that will work.. many of us use it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=43441&item=3865219929&rd=1&ssPageName=WD1V

If you Email the seller he will set you up with the adapter and a filter and a remote shutter realease if you wish.





Erik,

Unfortunately in general I do not understand all of the camera jargon in the threads. All I need to know is what adaptor to buy that is perfect for general use, i have no idea on sizes etc?

Is this adaptor ok:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=30033&item=7512095089&rd=1

Thanks

[Divine_Madcat]

I just the supplied FZ adaptor, and bought a 72mm UV filter.. works great for me (also got a matching lens cover)..

[JMK]

Ya; I bought the 72mm UV (multi coated) filter from Ritz Camera and a 72mm lens cap for my FZ-15 (same lens).
It fits prefectly on the Pansonic Lens Hood adapter along with the new lens cap, and if i lose the lens cap it's only 4 bucks or so verses what Panasonic would charge you for the Lumix one.
I think it was about 30-35 bucks for everything.

[genece]

If it works good for you thats very good.
But if you start noticing a lot of lens flair in outdoor shots it is most likely caused by the filter being too far from the lens. But if that does not happen you did good.


Ya; I bought the 72mm UV (multi coated) filter from Ritz Camera and a 72mm lens cap for my FZ-15 (same lens).
It fits prefectly on the Pansonic Lens Hood adapter along with the new lens cap, and if i lose the lens cap it's only 4 bucks or so verses what Panasonic would charge you for the Lumix one.
I think it was about 30-35 bucks for everything.

[Divine_Madcat]

Ya; I bought the 72mm UV (multi coated) filter from Ritz Camera and a 72mm lens cap for my FZ-15 (same lens).
It fits prefectly on the Pansonic Lens Hood adapter along with the new lens cap, and if i lose the lens cap it's only 4 bucks or so verses what Panasonic would charge you for the Lumix one.
I think it was about 30-35 bucks for everything.

Heh.. i got my filter and cap at the same place! :cool:

[Mulligatawney]

I went to Iceland whale watching(honest!)my FZ20 was getting covered in sea spray with no UV filter to protect it,(a 52mm is too small & 55mm too big) the FZ20 doesn't have a thread on the lens but it does have a lip.So,I made a push-on. As an experiment, I bought a 48mm Cassette player drive belt £1.48 from Maplins (probably available Radio Shack in the USA).With some fiddling,I fitted it onto the thread of an old 52mm filter-this took a while & was still too slack to fit in lens' lip,but then a happy accident happened. These belts are polypropelene & stretch -this is why your cassette deck starts running slowly(the drive belt hasn't the memory of a rubber band)with the fiddling,the belt stretched & became bigger and thus fitted snuggly into the lip of the lens.I tacked one small area of the belt onto the 52mm Filter thread's lip with superglue (use a toothpick & less than a pin heads' worth of glue)this helps the belt stay in place,try not to twist the belt too much.Make sure the glue is dry.Clean lens & filter.Ease one side of the filter/belt into the lens lip & whilst holding the lens barrel between finger & thumb,press filter into position.The drive belt sits in the lip of the lens & also acts as a cushion.The filter can be removed easily enough.A 52mm plain lens cap clears the barrel when lens is retracted.Now you can use a 52mm Polarizing filter etc..Which is probably the only filter you'll need with this great camera. Have since found out Soligor do an adapter tube for 24.90 Euro, but I'm quite happy with my cheapo version.

[grenadier]

biglee wrote:

Can someone recommend an adapter, and also where in the UK I can purchase it.

Thank you in advance.
***************************

Firstly, the Panasonic Lens Hood has to be used in order to mount the 72mm filters.
Unfortunately, the Panasonic lens hood is badly designed, not only does it position a filter too far away from the lens, with a potential to cause lens flare, the hood itself causes vignetting at some Zoom positions.

It is noted that any filter should be positioned as close to the lens glass as possible.
Further, I don't think that there is a UK distributor or supplier of adapters for the FZ20.

Filters to suit the Panasonic Lens hood are 72mm, and filters to suit this size are expensive. The smaller the filter, the cheaper it is.

I use a 58mm Pemaraal adapter that reduces the filter size and positions the filter at the correct distance from the lens. This adapter includes a lens hood, along with a tethered lens cap. This hooded Pemaraal adapter does not cause any vignetting problems.

Herewith a link to the Pemaraal website:
http://www.pemaraal.com/
Pemaraal are based in the USA, my order from Pemaraal arrived within 4 days of placing the order, courtesy of the US Postal Service. Payment was made via Paypal
The Pemaraal products are absolutely top quality and the service from the owner, Pete Liontas is second to none.
These Pemaraal adapters are available in plastic or aluminium, with and without lens hoods.
I understand that 52mm filters suit the FZ20 without problems.

grenadier

[eastcoastjoe]

Just try the NextPhoto adapter, www.nextphoto.net. They have a great little filter adapter for $25 U.S. Many Frank (FZ) owners here, who don't use converter lenses, mount filters of their favorite size on to it. I have one and works great. I use the 55mm size, mostly due to filter prices and it's what I used in the olden days, and use a UV or linear polorizer filter.

If I were to use a converter though, I would probably go with the Pemeraal in 55mm plastic; the Olympus TCON and WCON converters come in that size and are good converters for the price. I am a sucker for anodized aluminum but I fear it would be nicked or scatched; plactic tends to show wear a little less.

The "jargon" used on the board here isn't so bad; most of it is simply brand names, description and sizes. As one poster said, it's worth a little reading to get all of your questions answered. Good luck.