Step-up ring good idea? Vignetting?

I have a two-part question:

1) Ken Rockwell suggests buying step-up rings to 77mm and then buying all your filters at 77mm, so that you only have to have one set of filters. Do you think this is a good idea?

2) I am going to buy a Tamron 17-50 f2.8 lens with a filter thread of 67mm. If I put a step-up ring, will this have any effect on vignetting? Of course the glass of the filter will be bigger, so that won't be a problem. But the extra length of the step-up?

I am a bit new to all this and don't want to waste my precious budget by making a mistake!

roelof

I know it might be a stupid question, but I really need some advice. I can't find any good photography shops around here, the one I went to made me feel like a criminal just for asking something small!

Hey there,

For filters my 2 cents.

I get UV filters sized for the same size as the lens. I then purchase a 77mm step up for each size (in this case 67 -> 77 for my kit lens, 55 -> 77mm for my tamrom macro).

The pro nikon lens max up at a 77mm filter size, so I bought a 77 mm polarizer to use with my 12-24, and 70-200 in addition to the other lenses listed above with step up rings.

In regards to vignetting with the step up ring on your 17-50 Tamron, I'd suggest you'd be okay with a step up ring and a polarizer.

R

Forgive me for stepping in on your thread, I was going to start a new one but yours was at the top of the page and my question is similar in nature.

I recently bought a 67mm CP filter to fit my kit lens. The only two other lenses I have is a 35/2 and an old 70-300. Is it worthwhile buying a 52-62 & a 62-67 step up ring, or should I just get a 52-67 ring and forget about putting the polarizer on the 70-300?
Again, my apologies for intruding on the OP's thread.
--
Jim R.
Dinna Touch!



http://www.dinnatouch.net

A step-up ring is about 8 bucks. Get one for each of your lenses so you can use the CPL. You're more likely to want it on your telephoto lens outdoors, anyway.
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_graceful/

Actually what you should do is get a 52-67 step-up ring for the 35mm f/2 and a 62-67 step-up ring for the 70-200. Again, they're only about 8 bucks, and that way you will not have to deal with the hassel of putting a step-up ring on a step-up ring.
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http://www.flickr.com/photos/mr_graceful/

Thanks n/t
--
Jim R.
Dinna Touch!



http://www.dinnatouch.net

First of all the step up rings should not cause you any vignetting problems.
Step rings are cheap so there's not much to consider really. Just buy them.

I have a bunch of them for my various lenses. But honsetly they are hardly ever used. I find it too much of a hassle dealing with the rings, and more important they prevent me from using hoods. So I ended up buying filters in the sizes I need.

--
TrondN 'The Frozen Viking'
Equipment list in profile.
http://www.home.no/trond-nordland



Comments, criticism and suggestions always appreciated.

I try to buy lenses with the same filter thread (77mm) so that my expensive filters fit them all. I do have exceptions, such as the 105VR, so I do use step rings, but I don't like them. They stop me from using the lens hood.

My travel lens kit has 67mm filters. I ruled out some Sigma lenses with 72mm filters for that reason. There are enough good alternatives out there that it is not a problem.
I do not like step-up rings.

I also don't like the idea of the step-up ring much.

But here is the lenses that is on my wishlist:

• Tamron 17-50 67mm
• Nikon 85 1.8 62mm
• Sigma 150 macro 72mm
• Tokina 12-24 77mm

That amounts to a bit of a problem! I will for sure buy a uv filter for each, but a good polarizer?! and other nice filters?

Thanks for your input.

I hear you! But.. In a post farther down the thread I list 4 lenses I would like to get, each with a different thread!

I definately can't afford to get 4 good polarizers, and then 4 ND filters, etc..

Maybe I should change my lens choice.

Well the problem is budget.

Most lenses that fit 77mm seem to me to be the pro nikon lenses. I can't afford those! On my post further down the thread i list the 4 lenses i am interested in, each with a different thread.

Getting their equivalents in Nikon lenses would cost thousands of euros.

So i guess filter size is a problem you get for buying third party lenses!

Comes down to cost really.

Step-up rings are a cost effective solution. Buy what you need in the largest size, and you won't have to worry about spending multiple amounts on the one filter.

Though as mentioned, they can be an annoyance too. However, this is just something that needs to be considered when looking at it. Do you plan on using filters often? How much are you willing to invest into a single filter, let alone a number of them?

I'm heading down the 77mm filter w/stepup path due to the financial viability of it. Considering I barely use filters as it is (I've gone off buying UV filters to "protect" my glass, as I barely go into the environments which propose a risk to the front element), a single size is ideal. A few extra moments of fiddling with stepup rings every now and again is more worthwhile to me than buying the same filter for all different sizes.

Also, getting the largest size means you can stack filters such as the ND and polarising types without encountering vignetting as early as you might otherwise. On my 18-55 kit lense, I noticed vignetting when I had both my ND and my polarising filter on at the same time. Same story on my 18-200 when I was too lazy to remove my UV filter to put my polariser on.

Another point to consider, as I had a bad experience with my CP filter on my 18-200. A stepup ring is a lot less of a loss if a dodgy filter gets stuck in it, as opposed to the risk of damaging the thread of the lense itself. My CP filter (Admittedly, it was a cheapie off eBay, but I'm not really swimming in money ) managed to crossthread itself into my lense, and become impossible to remove. I ended up removing the polarising glass, and buckling the frame of the filter out. Thankfully, no damage was done to the lense thread.

To sum up my personal advice:

If the filter is going to be on the lense/s a lot, try and buy them in the lense's size.
If the filter is only going to get occasional use, take the stepup path.
If money is not an issue, buy a filter for each individual lense's size.
If money is an issue, start off with the stepup.

Thanks for the advice

I think maybe I will buy UV filters in the right sizes for my lenses and buy a step-up for a filter such as a polarizer and ND which I will only use on occasion.
roelof