Sigma Sigma lens hoods vs generic ones and filter sizes

emmef2

Regular
Location
Italy
I am using the sigma lens hood on the DP2M and it seems very effective, now I am about to buy a ND filter set and I have the usual two options:

1) buy a filter in the 49mm size that fits the lens and use the sigma hood with it
2) buy the filter in the size that fits my largest lenses (58 and 62mm) and then adapt to the different lenses with step up rings shading it with a rubber hood

I would usually choose the second option but I fear that a generic lens hood would be far less effective than the sigma one that seems really well designed
Furthermore the 49mm thread is shared with the upcoming DP1M and the X100s I already have, while the larger size would be needed for my m4/3 zooms (52mm for the 14-45 52mm and 58mm for the 40-150)

Any thoughts or experiences to share about?

Also I might buy a DP3M that has a 52mm filter thread and I am wondering if someone has already tried using 49mm filters on it and if it works well without introducing vignetting

thanks
 
I have the three Merrills so it's a no-brainer for me to go for 52mm. I have the ND1000 and ND400 plus a polariser. This means I need a 49 to 52 step-up ring but there's quite a cost saving to only need the one set of filters.

I also carry a Cokin A filter holder with 52mm adapter and clip-on hood. This is for when I need my HiTec grads and of course I can sneak in 52mm filters between lens and Cokin if needed as well.

BTW - I'm not sure if you can fit the Sigma hood with a 49mm filter on the lens. I may be wrong, but even with a slimline one, there doesn't seem to be enough room.

Roy
 
The dp Merrill lens hoods are bayonet mount styles. I like them better then the generic ones. I have. B&w normal profile uv filter attached directly to the lens... If I remember correctly, there is a thread over at getdpi about foveon not playing well w/ grad nd and variable nd filters. Not sure if the same applies to polarizes though. I currently have not had opportunity to use a polarizer on my sigma cameras.

Gary
 
The dp Merrill lens hoods are bayonet mount styles. I like them better then the generic ones. I have. B&w normal profile uv filter attached directly to the lens... If I remember correctly, there is a thread over at getdpi about foveon not playing well w/ grad nd and variable nd filters. Not sure if the same applies to polarizes though. I currently have not had opportunity to use a polarizer on my sigma cameras.

Gary

Although I've not used them on the Merrills, I can well believe there may be problems with the double-polarising variable ND filters.

I do remember colour shifts when I used them on Nikon gear though.

I use my Merrills almost entirely for landscape work, for which my Marumi polarisers seem to work fine, and I've not experienced banding problems with grads either.

Maybe I'm just lucky or I've yet to encounter conditions where problems might arise.
 
Perhaps a slight tangent to the discussion here, then again some might be interested.

I use Cokin filters with my DP1M and DP2m and have modified the hoods in two respects. I found that the 72mm Cokin adapter is a very close fit over the outside of the Sigma hood and so have used a two part epoxy resin to permanently attach the adapter to each of my Sigma hoods.

Also I've modified a 46mm to 49mm step up ring by filing off the 46mm rear thread mount to create a flat surface on the rear of the ring which I've then epoxied to the front face of the Sigma hood which enables me to keep the Sigma hood permanently mounted on the camera and yet still be able to fit the lens cap when not using of the camera. With the DP1M the modified ring does slightly overlap the corners of the cut out in the Sigma hood but I've not noticed a vignetting issue and the ring could easily have some sections of it filed away where it does overlap should the user feel that's an issue.

These modifications only affect the lens hood and so little is lost if they go wrong or the user doesn't like them post modification.

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140402-1010539_DxO.jpg


On the subject of problems with ND filters on the Merrills I have noticed that some of the raw files in series, but not necessarily all, taken when using an ND grad Cokin filter have a strong red cast to them. It doesn't seem to be a White Balance issue and I'm struggling to correct it in post processing. Is that the manifestation of the problem being alluded to by some users?

Barrie
 
On the subject of problems with ND filters on the Merrills I have noticed that some of the raw files in series, but not necessarily all, taken when using an ND grad Cokin filter have a strong red cast to them. It doesn't seem to be a White Balance issue and I'm struggling to correct it in post processing. Is that the manifestation of the problem being alluded to by some users?

Hi Barrie

I had colour problems with Cokin grads so I changed to those from SRB in Luton. Their grads seem to be colour-neutral and are available in P size for the larger Cokin holder.

I use the A size Cokin on my Merrills and the grads from SRB are in fact the larger ones specially cut down to 100mm x 67mm to fit the smaller Cokin holder.

The P size grads I bought from them are labelled as being made by HiTech whereas my A size grads (which I bought later) are labelled as SRB. To my eye, they look identical and prices are very reasonable.

Camera Accessories, Filters & Tripods | SRB Photographic

Roy
 
Interesting info and ideas. I just bought my first DP2M and from what I´ve read, a UV filter is not included in front of the sensor as in Bayer sensors right? So I´ll need a UV filter when shooting in daylight?
 
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