Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/04/03
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]With my gratitude to Mr. Puts for sharing his research on IR Cut filters and the M8 (Leica M8, Part 7), I must make known my experience because my results contradict his. My placing a B+W 486 filter on Leica lenses of different focal lengths under various light conditions and at various ISOs consistently produces images of more natural color, higher macro contrast and higher micro contrast with sharper detail than not using the filter. The sharper image is particularly clear in landscapes. The tendency to red skin tones is significantly reduced with the IR Cut filter. Puts' own portrait images (the blond woman) demonstrate this (correct his typo: below is with filter, above is without filter). Reflections from strong light sources are a potential problem but rarely occur in my experience. They are more likely to occur the greater the distance the filter is from the lens, i.e., drop-in-hood filters are more likely to cause the problem. The conclusion I've come to is to always keep a 486 type filter in place on the M8. (Puts does not indicate what type of cut filter he is using.) I'm not sure what has generated Puts' results. Literature from Schneider specifies that 486 type filters should in fact improve color and contrast. My results are consistent with Schneider's research. What has been your experience on this issue? Tom P. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Bored stiff? Loosen up... Download and play hundreds of games for free on Yahoo! Games. http://games.yahoo.com/games/front