What filters will work with an ultra wide angle lens (for landscape)?

I just got a Nikon 10-24mm lens that I'll be using on my D90 (DX) lens. I expect to be using it a lot outdoors for landscape shots.

In general, I know what kinds of filters would help landscape photography:

• UV/Clear, for general protection


• Polarizer, for cutting reflections / enhancing the sky


• Graduated Neutral-Density, for controlling sky brightness / enhancing the ground

But I'm also aware that vignetting is a problem with filters on wide-angle lenses like this one. I've read some posts that go as far as to claim that it's "not compatible with filters."

What filters are worthwhile on this lens (especially for landscape photography)? What properties are more important as the focal length decreases?

Answer

There are a couple posts here already on what filters are available and why you would use them, having been around the block a couple times on filters used for outdoor photography I'll try for an answer from a different angle: what I actually wind up using.

Polarizing filters: Loved them at first, never use them now because they give an unnatural look to wide angle photographs that include skys (giant dark blue gradient in skys) and cause problems w/stitched photographs. Still nice for tighter focal lengths or shots w/out sky, especially of foliage but overall I just never carry one.

Split ND filters: Great idea in theory, kind of a pita to use in practice, especially if your exposure differential isn't a straight line (flat horizon). I'm sure these were more useful back w/film where you had to get it in one shot, but now I'd rather take 2-3 shoots and create the gradient in post, not necessarily HDR but thats an option too. Plus cheap split ND filters are resin or plastic (who wants plastic in front of a $1000 lens?) and just one SND filter doesn't cut it, you usually need 2 or 3, so to get 2 or 3 nice glass ones plus a holder... $$$.

UV/Clear filters: never use these anymore because they're so prone to flare. The only time I take one is if I'm shooting near something that might spray the lens (ocean).

ND Filter: This is the only filter I actually carry anymore because if you're already at ISO100 and stopped down to f16 or f22 and you still can't get a long enough exposure, this is the only way to do it. Or if you want to shoot at a wide aperture in bright daylight this is the only way to reduce the amount of light. I picked up a 10-stop ND filter and its awesome. Another option is to get a Polarizing filter and just turn it till its polarization is 'off' and this'll give you 1.5-2 stops of ND.

My two cents.