b+w 486 filters?

Avotius

Avotius

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Now that I am a M8 owner I am looking for filters. I need 43 and 46mm filters for my Zeiss lenses. The Leica filters seem over priced so I am looking at the b+w.

I see a bunch of different types however, what is the right one I should be getting? I see 486, 489, and so on.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/154495-REG/B_W_65014686_46mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html is this what I should be looking for?

Is there any cheaper options? I am broke now so saving money is a plus.
 
I'd go with Leica ones, the 486's are stronger and the firmware in the M8 is optimized for the Leica curves.

That said, I have a bunch of both types, I think I have an ad now for filters, Leica mint E46 black in box for $70 in the US.

Will have to check on 486 sizes tomorrow.
 
ampguy said:
I'd go with Leica ones, the 486's are stronger and the firmware in the M8 is optimized for the Leica curves.

That said, I have a bunch of both types, I think I have an ad now for filters, Leica mint E46 black in box for $70 in the US.

Will have to check on 486 sizes tomorrow.
Click to expand...


I tried to send you a PM but your box is full.
 
you can check out Heliopan as well. dont have them myself (got second hand Leica filters, one by one) but read good about them here.
 
I started out with a mixture of Leica and B+W filters, but after buying one of the Heliopan's I was quickly won over and now use them on all but two of my lenses (will explain later). The minute difference there might be in "tuning" to the M8's sensor (frankly, I think it's more of a marketing ploy for Leica to sell their branded filters, which are made by an unnamed Japanese supplier) is outweighed by how much better the Heliopan's are coated against reflections on both sides. The Heliopan coating is also a little bit more durable.

The 2 exceptions I mentioned earlier, are the 12mm and 15mm Voitlanders. I find that the in-camera firmware does not completely eradicate the cyan corner drift from the 15mm with a Heliopan filter, no matter how I code the lens (I've tried several different), so I keep a Leica filter on it. On the 12mm, there is no code that will eradicate the cyan corner drift with any brand of IR-cut filter, and I hate having to sort through hundreds of images to pick out those made with the 12 and batch them through Cornerfix. So I use a B+W 489 which is a different technology and does not produce the cyan corner drift. The disadvantage of the 489 is a very slight green cast (not always visible but easily corrected in Photoshop vs Cornerfix which is a standalone) and a very minor filter factor (accounted for by the TTL meter).

Lately I've seen and read good things about the Marumi filters sold on eBay, which are the least costly of all. Some believe they are in fact Leica's "secret" supplier.
 
I have searched for the Marumi filters too, but they seem to only be in bigger sizes. I did not see any 40 something sizes on ebay unless I am using the wrong search terms.

As it stands though I am leaning more towards the b+w ones because I need to take money and have had good luck with b+w before although these IR filters dont seem to have coatings.
 
For all practical purposes, the B+W 486 filters work fine. You can get coated and uncoated versions (uncoated are cheaper). If feasible, I would suggest paying extra for the coated versions because internal reflections from the filters can be a big problem.

Just watch the classifieds - used filters appear relatively frequently as people dump their M8s for the M9.
 
Nearly all of the B+W filters are coated. As mentioned above the Heliopans are dynamite (more coating on the rear side of the filter).

I've used the 486 with no issues on some 50's. Do remember that if you're planning on shooting explicitly for B&W you don't need to use a filter 🙂

Enjoy your new camera! I look forward to seeing some of your shots once you get a chance to play with it.

Kent
 
I can see the differences. On LUF there is a BW rep explaining the differences and acknowledging the 486 filters are not the same as the Leica's. You may want to check that thread out ...
 
Leica IR/CUT filters made by Marumi Japan.

Avotius said:
Now that I am a M8 owner I am looking for filters. I need 43 and 46mm filters for my Zeiss lenses. The Leica filters seem over priced so I am looking at the b+w.

I see a bunch of different types however, what is the right one I should be getting? I see 486, 489, and so on.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/154495-REG/B_W_65014686_46mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html is this what I should be looking for?

Is there any cheaper options? I am broke now so saving money is a plus.
Click to expand...
 
Interesting. I wonder how much of a difference it really is. I looked on flickr and saw a lot of really nice photos taken with the M8 and 468 filters. I searched the googly and didnt find anything, if someone has it somewhere I would love to see it before spending money.
 
From what I recall, from both in use and reading there was a slight differences. How much depended on what was being phjotographed...in other words how much IR light was being reflected from subject/scene. In some cases (although not all) differences wouldn't be noticed unless side by side identical images were taken with each filter. Whether there was a preference for one or the other, could really only be seen when making such a comparison of images taken as descibed.

Dave (D&A)
 
I have searched around a lot and still cannot find anything that says solidly that the b+w filters are multi coated.

I have my eye on these:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/475092-REG/B_W_65_014685_43mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/154495-REG/B_W_65014686_46mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html

Neither of them mention anything about coatings, and when looks at other photos of the filters themselves on popflash or the sort there is nothing on the filter rings that indicate multi coating. I also cant find Heliopan IR cut filters. Also I cant find the comparison. Darn.

This page had some interesting info though about coatings.
 
Last edited:
In addition to scene dependent, it's also lens dependent. I normally don't use these filters but was asked to shoot an event where I thought there might be synthetic blacks. I used a BW 486 on my 75/1.4, and ended up getting some slight color casts, easily fixed though.

After that, I immediately went out and got a Leica E60 UV/IR filter. No more issues. Have a BW E60 486 filter for sale, btw 😉
 
Avotius said:
I have searched around a lot and still cannot find anything that says solidly that the b+w filters are multi coated.

I have my eye on these:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/475092-REG/B_W_65_014685_43mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/154495-REG/B_W_65014686_46mm_486_Digital_UV_IR.html

Neither of them mention anything about coatings, and when looks at other photos of the filters themselves on popflash or the sort there is nothing on the filter rings that indicate multi coating. I also cant find Heliopan IR cut filters. Also I cant find the comparison. Darn.

This page had some interesting info though about coatings.
Click to expand...
The multicoated filters will either be marked "mrc" or "F-PRO"

For the comparison, just google the websites of the manufacturers.
 
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