Advice sought for a trip to Oz

Especially from our Australian friends or any member who has been to Australia.

In 4 weeks time my good lady and I are going "down under" on a "trip of a lifetime", visiting our son in Northern NSW (near Lismore), before going to Sydney and then to a cousin's in Melbourne. I am taking a K3 with my 55-300 and 16-45. We will also be stopping in Singapore with our nephew out wards and homewards.

My question is - Should I put a UV or skylight filter on? (I know the accepted wisdom is not to use filters with DSLRs, however....).

Any other suggestions or advice would be gratefully received.

Thanks from a very occasional poster.

Howard

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Cymru Am Byth

Dear Howard,

Who has told you not to use a filter with A DSLR?

The most sensible thing is to always have a filter on your lens, I use Hoya HMC UV filters on all my lenses.

Remember it's easy and cheap to replace a filter, but it's very expensive if you scratch a lens.

Never use filters. Why spend £100s on a lens to stick a £20 pice of glass in front of it. Ive never broken a front element of a lens either but I always use lens hoods...

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PPG Wedding photography Flickr
Concert photography

Currently on a Pentax hiatus until an FF Pentax is released

Not even polarizing to reduce unwanted reflections?
Not even ND to allow a longer exposure?
Not even a yellow filter with panchromatic film to enhance the sky?
Filters can have their uses.
Some Pentax lenses actually have filters built into them, you can't not use them with those! That includes a Pentax lens first released within the last seven years (DA 25mm f/4)

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John K

Very old topic that few agree on.

Personally I find a lens hoods help keep out flare, offer knock protection and often improve contrast. Lens caps offer the best protection when lens not in use. A good camera bag is excellent protection too. Rocket blower before severe dust cleaning good too.

Personally I've found flat UV filters on the front attract reflections, reduce efficiency of auto-focus at times and I understand the camera filters UV anyway. My experience is you don't need one.

I carry a polariser and a square hard graduated filter for awkward lighting but find I rarely use them.

The latest Pentax lenses HD coating seems to be tougher than the old SMC coating too.

Generally, filters are not needed with DSLRs and can detract from the image quality.

The exception is where any filtration has to be in front of the lens, such as polarisers (when needed, not all the time as I see some photographers using them) or maybe ND. Most other filter effects can be done in Photoshop.

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Best regards, John

All my lenses have filters, skylight or similar. I'd rather clean any gunge from a filter than the front element of a lens.
David

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PPG: http://www.pentaxphotogallery.com/artists/davidtrout

Don't use a filter with the 55-300, this particular lens hates filters and it will ruin the IQ.

If you plan on using a filter with the 16-45, it has to be a polariser, especially somewhere like Australia where the light is bright. Colours and skies will ping with the good polariser, my recommendation would be a Hoya Pro1, they are excellent.

Regards
David

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Flickr

Nicola's Apartments, Kassiopi, Corfu

Some cameras, some lenses, some bits 'n' bobs

Using filters or not depends entirely on who you ask. My advice is to ask yourself what you'd like to do.
In any case using filters or not has nothing to do with Australia, the Australian sun happens to be the same sun that shines over the UK.
If you're heading to the coast a skylight filter might be useful to stop sea spray getting on your lens front element.
For what it's worth, I live in a tropical region of Australia, I don't use filters.

It may be the same sun Steve, but I think you have the advantage on us in hogging its use!

You're right about sea-spray, that's a good use for a filter.

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Best regards, John

Don't worry John, we only use it while you're sleeping at night

There is that thing with older film age linear polarizer filters, which don't work with DSLR Autofocus systems from memory.

You need Circular polarisers for Digital Cameras.

Filterwise I'd pack just the standard circular polariser and ND filters personally, and go and enjoy Australia 🇦🇺

Are you certain that applies to all Digital Cameras? I've read elsewhere otherwise with regard to Pentax, indeed I do sometimes use a linear one (as I've had it donkeys years) in preference to wasting money on an unnecessary new one.
All I can say is if you're buying new get a circular as it will generally be more compatible for use with other brands, but if you've inherited a linear don't dismiss trying it before binning it unnecessarily.
All I can say is I've not experienced any issues with the old linears myself. Have you Richard experienced an issue first hand or are you repeating something read off A N other brand web site?
I wonder if this isn't just a myth by manufacturers to sell more filters!

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John K

It's in the Pentax instructions. I would believe Pentax, even if much of the time we might "get away with it" the information will be accurate. Pentax don't sell any filters, so nothing to make money out of by saying it.

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Best regards, John

I bought a load of old Cokin filters from Rockys. The linear polariser in holder only partly worked as you rotated it. A screw on new one for the 18 -135mm (now sold) worked fine. Great for clouds, loss of light though of course. Never had great luck with water.