Difference between ND and UV Filter!

[Arsh]

Can you tell me the difference between the ND Filter, UV Filter and the Skylight Filter? All I know is that these are use to prevent the front element of the lens but what is the difference and which is better.

[Samuel Lo]

Can you tell me the difference between the ND Filter, UV Filter and the Skylight Filter? All I know is that these are use to prevent the front element of the lens but what is the difference and which is better.

UV and skylight filters cut off the Ultraviolet, while the ND filter cut off some of the light intensity. (ND have different number that have different amount of cutoff intensity)

[jamison55]

Can you tell me the difference between the ND Filter, UV Filter and the Skylight Filter? All I know is that these are use to prevent the front element of the lens but what is the difference and which is better.

Think of an ND filter as a set of sunglasses for your camera. They cut the light reaching the sensor so that you can use slower shutter speeds on a bright day. I use a graduated ND filter quite a bit for landscapes. The top half is darker than the bottom half, so that I don't get washed out skies.

UV filter cuts the amount of UV light, making hazy days seem much clearer. Speaking of clear, the filter is!

Skylight is just a clear piece of glass designed to protect your lens.

[palmbook]

Well, many people seem to be confused with UV and Skylight.

UV --> Cut off UV.
Skylight --> Cut off bluish cast!

The main purpose of Skylight is to remove blue cast in images taken at high altitude.

Hence, go for UV, unless you are climbing high.

P.S. There is lense-protecting-only filter too. I cannot remember the exact name and guess manufacturers title their own protective filters.

[dwig]

... re:skylight:

There are almost no skylight filters made anymore. While there are many filters sold with that name, most are virtually clear glass and have no photographic effect. A true skylight filter, like Nikon's old L1a, have a distinct pink-rosey hue. They tint the picture to remove excessive blue in pictures taken in bright shade (lit by the sky instead of the sun and hence the filter's name) and can also be effective _with film_ when photographing on overcast days. Such mild filters are quite pointless with digital cameras where that minor a color error is easily cured after the fact and the extra glass poses too much risk of quality loss (flare, sharpness, spurious internal reflections, ...).

[Arsh]

Thank you guys this is really very helpful. I will buy the UV filter for my lens.