Oh yeah, I always change the filter, an AC PF 46 that replaces the factory PF 44 in this case. Agree with your doubts about some mechanics, I've had those ever since some bonehead stripped out an oil drain plug on my car by installing it with a pneumatic wrench.
By the way, a tip for those of us without a lot of experience in changing your own oil, it's been mentioned here before that you should fill the new filter with oil before installing to ensure immediate oil pressure on restart. I've found that the filter element absorbs a good bit of oil, so I fill it, let it sit a bit, then keep adding oil until the element is saturated and the filter is full. Only takes a minute or two. The filter will eventually take a little less than half a quart. Might sound anal to some, but I baby my cars and by taking this small precaution I know I have instant oil pressure when I restart the engine.
As far as the warranty goes, agree with that too - I keep my oil/filter receipts, and the receipt for lift time at the auto hobby shop that I use. For those who are interested, here's the info on the "special drain procedure" that I found at a Corvette site. Realize we don't have the butterfly pan, but it's probably still good practice to drain it when the car's level:
SERVICE INFORMATION
LS1 OIL CHANGE
Vehicle must be level. (VERY IMPORTANT.) The butterfly oil pan must be level for all the oil to drain.
Allow a MINIMUM OF 7 MINUTES for the oil to drain fully after the oil filter and oil drain plug have been removed. There are oil galleries in the LS1 that need time to drain fully.
Allow a MINIMUM OF 3 MINUTES for the new oil to fully fill the engine oil pan before starting the engine.
Still reading full on the dipstick today after six quarts, I'm guess I'm going to leave it that way, since I don't want to overfill. Will keep an eye on it, though.