B&W vs Leica UV. filters

[Marct40]

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Does anyone have any comparisons or thoughts between the two types, the cost of B&W filters are almost a third of the price of Leica

 

 

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[pfhrased]

Does anyone have any comparisons or thoughts between the two types, the cost of B&W filters are almost a third of the price of Leica

 

 

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I've had both - couldn't really tell the difference, other than the leica silver ones looked nicer on silver lenses.

[Ecar]

+1. Both are great quality. No noticeable difference.

[250swb]

Does anyone have any comparisons or thoughts between the two types, the cost of B&W filters are almost a third of the price of Leica

 

 

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Schnieder manufacture Leica's own brand filters, and which company do Schneider own to make filters for stills photography? Why B+W of course! So you are buying a B+W filter anyway, but as you say at a much higher cost. The ultimate are B+W MRC filters and they are expensive but noticeably nicer to clean if you tend to get water, dust, or fingerprints on them.

 

Steve

[wattsy]

I don't think Schneider are the main supplier of Leica branded filters. It is more likely to be Heliopan and it is well known that the UV/IR Leica filters are manufactured in Japan by Hoya. That said, B+W filters are every bit as good and I have a whole box full of them.

[xalo]

Same here, never noticed a difference in optical quality between Leica, B&W and Heliopan (multi-coated). Yes, some are looking nicer than others and certain Heliopan filters have a smooth rim that can be less easy to grip (a 55mm comes to my mind), although their brass thread rarely gets really stuck. Big difference between any filter and no filter though, when minimum flare/ghosting is required.

Alexander

[Bill W]

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All of mine are B+W. I had several Leica UV/IR when I had an M8 but I sold them when I went with the M9.

[jaapv]

Schnieder manufacture Leica's own brand filters, and which company do Schneider own to make filters for stills photography? Why B+W of course! So you are buying a B+W filter anyway, but as you say at a much higher cost. The ultimate are B+W MRC filters and they are expensive but noticeably nicer to clean if you tend to get water, dust, or fingerprints on them.

 

Steve

The Leica IR cut filters are manufactured by some Japanese company (Marumi?) and are in my experience inferior to the B&W 486 filters, as they are more prone to reflections and ghosting.

[jaapv]

I've had both - couldn't really tell the difference, other than the leica silver ones looked nicer on silver lenses.

 

But not all Leica silver filters have a blackened inside of the ring, which will lead to reflections and flare. Easy to remedy. B&W also sell silver filters.

[findranger]

Happy with B+W UV and ND filters.

 

Cheers!

[Guest borge]

The B+W MRC and XS-Pro (Nano MRC) filters has a better coating than any of the Leica filters has and thus less chance or reflections.

 

In any case I would always get a B+W MRC or XS-Pro filter in stead of a Leica branded filter.

[tobey bilek]

I bought a leica one in E60, no B+W available. If I tap on it, the filter itself os plastic of some sort.

 

All the rest of mine are B+W. I really can not see a difference if I hold the Leica in place of B+W.

 

Whether all Leica are plastic, I have no idea. Obviously they are more prone to damage, or maybe not. I use a cap over it religiously.

[jaapv]

I can assure you they are NOT plastic but planparallel optical glass.

[Cartaufalous]

I have B+W, Leitz, and Hoyo filters and all work well. The Hoyos might not be quite as well coated as the B+W and Leitz because they seem to have more flare in some situations. Since I bought all of these on eBay, the Leitzs were rather cheaper than the B+Ws, but offer almost identical performance. If you are buying new, Leitz is no longer available, and "Leica" filters (grrrrrrrrr, really?) cost even more than B+W.

[bs1946]

On 12/17/2013 at 7:03 AM, wattsy said:

I don't think Schneider are the main supplier of Leica branded filters. It is more likely to be Heliopan and it is well known that the UV/IR Leica filters are manufactured in Japan by Hoya. That said, B+W filters are every bit as good and I have a whole box full of them.

When Leica discovered that they needed to provide M8 owners with UV/IR cut filters because the internal filters were too thin, they initially provided B+W 486 UV/IR Cut filters until they had their own Leica branded UV/IR Cut filters. It has been acknowledged by Peter Karbe, one of Leica's chief lens designers, that Leica uses Schott glass for their lenses, just like B+W does in their filters. Plus all of the Leica branded and B+W filters use brass rings. Hoya makes their own glass and every Hoya filter I have seen has an aluminum ring, so it's not likely Leica would use Schott glass on their lenses, brass rings on their branded filters  and turn to a filter maker that doesn't use either, for their filters.

[Ivar B]

10 minutes ago, bs1946 said:

When Leica discovered that they needed to provide M8 owners with UV/IR cut filters because the internal filters were too thin, they initially provided B+W 486 UV/IR Cut filters until they had their own Leica branded UV/IR Cut filters. It has been acknowledged by Peter Karbe, one of Leica's chief lens designers, that Leica uses Schott glass for their lenses, just like B+W does in their filters. Plus all of the Leica branded and B+W filters use brass rings. Hoya makes their own glass and every Hoya filter I have seen has an aluminum ring, so it's not likely Leica would use Schott glass on their lenses, brass rings on their branded filters  and turn to a filter maker that doesn't use either, for their filters.

Leica filters are now sourced from Japan. I have never heard any confirmation regarding who produces the filters for Leica, but rumours say Marumi.

[jaapv]

28 minutes ago, bs1946 said:

When Leica discovered that they needed to provide M8 owners with UV/IR cut filters because the internal filters were too thin, they initially provided B+W 486 UV/IR Cut filters until they had their own Leica branded UV/IR Cut filters. It has been acknowledged by Peter Karbe, one of Leica's chief lens designers, that Leica uses Schott glass for their lenses, just like B+W does in their filters. Plus all of the Leica branded and B+W filters use brass rings. Hoya makes their own glass and every Hoya filter I have seen has an aluminum ring, so it's not likely Leica would use Schott glass on their lenses, brass rings on their branded filters  and turn to a filter maker that doesn't use either, for their filters.

The “Leica “ IR filters were not by B+W but by Marumi. It was extensively discussed on this forum in 2007

[jdlaing]

15 minutes ago, Ivar B said:

Leica filters are now sourced from Japan. I have never heard any confirmation regarding who produces the filters for Leica, but rumours say Marumi.

Can you show me one Leica filter, or box, that says Japan on it?

[Ivar B]

 

29 minutes ago, jdlaing said:

Can you show me one Leica filter, or box, that says Japan on it?

All of them do. I just googled a couple of boxes with 39mm and 55mm from the Internet, and it is no secret at all that the filters are made in Japan. It is printed on every box. No problems with that. Just like most of the Leica APS--C lenses in TL mount are also made in Japan. I prefer to buy Marumi filters direct. Top quality, and the moment Leica is printed on the box prices double at least.

 

 

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Edited September 3, 2020 by Ivar B

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Hallo,

Look here: Leica M

[pedaes]

1 hour ago, Ivar B said:

It is printed on every box

Agreed. Interestingly I have a 39mm UVa (not II) box that says 'Made in Germany', so the change may have happened when the upgraded to the 'II' designation (and possibly multi-coating)..