Filters (Polarised and ND)

obrano

Hey everyone,

I wouldn't mind a bit of sound advice - preferably from those who have used the products. Even better if you have compared brands.

A few months back an eegit dropped my camera, lens down, and luckily only smashed my polarising filter. I am on the market for the following in 77mm thread:

1) A polarising filter. I don't want to spend mega, mega bucks. I think B & W price range is as high as I'd go (yep, that's still mega). Could anyone steer me towards a suitable brand. I'd love to know if a less expensive brand could do the business.

2) I love long exposure shots. My measly ND 0.6 will only get me a second or two at sunset with the aperture at F22. I know it's meant for shooting wide open in bright light but I'm working with what I have. I want a 6, 8 or preferably 10 stop ND filter. I know the difficulties that come with a 10 stop filter (colour cast [easily fixed], metering and all the manual tinkering etc) but can I ask those of you out there who do long exposures: what brand/filter, what is best (what stoppage), or a more subjective question - what stoppage do you prefer to use?

I'll clarify some more about my preferences. I really want to do long exposures during the day. I also love sunset photography. Landscape, seascapes, waterfalls, skies, cityscapes. I'm just wondering why someone would go for say, a 6 over and 8, or an 8 over and 10.

Thanks to everyone for reading, I love this forum and its users. You have really inspired me over the last year and a half since I have taken photography up as a hobby.

Regards,

Oisin

Paulw

If you want top of the line filters that won't leave a colour cast, then look at some Lee filters. But, they are damn expensive. - http://www.linhofstudio.com/products/Lee-100mm-Series-Filters-Neutral-Density-ND

Sometimes, it really is about quality.

Cokin also do some quality filters too. Go to a shop like John Gunn in Dublin, or after that to Conns Camera, and have a look at their range of filters, and prices. Then you can go online and shop around. You may or may not find cheaper.

adox

My humble opinion, get a 10 for daytime long exposures and a 6 for sunset ones. Also think further down the line about getting a hard grad as well for the daytime shots.

I use a Lee Big Stopper(10 stop) and Lee little Stopper(6 stop). You are looking at over €200 for both though.

Kenny Logins

Circular Polariser? Marumi are great quality and not too expensive (~£40 IIRC). Or for square filter system (85mm Cokin 'P'?), Kood brackets and adapter rings are very cheap, and Hi-tech filters are also great value for money, and don't give as much colour cast as Cokin.

D.S.

obrano - Your budget on lens filters should follow the budget you had on your glass. My advice here is not to put cheap glass on top of good glass if IQ is important to you.

Lees are among the best you can get but are v expensive. I am still yet to buy my own set of Lees. I have been using a variable ND combined with a NX 8 / 64. Seems to give me all the flexibility I need. i need to be careful with this set up as it can cause some strange colour casts if I don't line things up properly. The IQ on this set up does suffer a little bit when compared to shooting without filters so will be investing in Lee's later in year.

obrano

Thanks for all the replies everyone. What's people's experience with B&W for the 10 stop? I don't know why I have such a fixation on them... I should probably just shift my thoughts to Lee.

You are all right; image quality is paramount and I don't want my image quality to suffer from inferior glass at the front. Lee's filters do sound the business - I suppose I should take the hit now as opposed to re-investing further down the line.

From NDs back to Polarisers. I appreciate the recommendation of the Marumi filter. Is this a quality piece of glass? Would others agree? Any other recommendations are welcome and I will put in some more research online.

Again, thanks everyone.

jharr100

I found Kood filters fantastic. They are great value. And I got a tiffen 77mm polarizer from the USA for 40 bucks on eBay. Which I find great too.

peckerhead

jharr100 wrote: »

And I got a tiffen 77mm polarizer from the USA for 40 bucks on eBay.

If you want some quality glass without breaking the bank (and I agree about not putting cheap filters on a good lens), definitely look on eBay. These things are usually way cheaper in the US to begin with, and I often find that good quality 2nd-hand gear can be had in pristine condition, if you check out the seller's rating, the description and the pics. Folks with good cameras tend to look after them, and filters like these by their nature are not left in place on the lens, so are not likely to have been subjected to a lot of day-to-day use, with the resultant risk of scratching or other damage. I think I only paid about $30 (and maybe a tenner postage) a couple of years ago for a B&H ND10 and circular polariser bought as a pair from someone who had changed lens size and wanted rid.

Caveat emptor, of course — but there are bargains to be had!

obrano

Really sound advice. I've bought lenses from eBay before and for some reaso,n I have neglected to look there for filters. I really appreciate all the time and great advice.

adox

I had a B&W 10 stop before switching to Lee and didn't have any complaints about image quality. The main issue I had was it was a screw on filter, which it found a real pain to use.

I saw someone selling some Lee stuff on adverts, the foundation kit which is basically the filter holder, an adaptor ring, which screws onto your lens and can stay there and a .6 ND hard grad filter. Got them for a really good price and the first two are essential to the set up. I bought the Big and Little Stoppers in Dublin where they are as cheap, if not cheaper than online.

Conns do a lot of Lee stuff and although I find them expensive for a lot of stuff, they are amongst the cheapest in Dublin for Lee stuff. Also Berminghams are very reasonable too.

If you are going to do a lot of long exposure stuff they are a worthy investment IMO.

Anyway best of luck with it whatever you end up buying.

MarkN

I've a Lee 10 stop and the ring to fit my 77mm 17-40. You can get into different exposure times to suit f stops and everything you want or you just do what I do - experiment! F8 at 30 seconds in full daylight and see what it looks like. I actually need to use it more, I bought it in May from Birminghams at Photofest and I've had it on the camera 3 times. I think they're worth the money for the quality of everything from build quality to image.

pixbyjohn

Barkers in Cork do a good deal on Lee filters.
I bought the Lee 10 stopper and a set of ND Grad filters and holder kit from them and their service was excellent. I am not connected to Barkers by the way.
They deliver by courier too so you give them a ring for best prices rather than deal online with them.

obrano

Cheers everyone. I think I'll hold out for the Lee filters. They really sound like the way to go. I hadn't even considered them. I do love long exposure photography and I would hope to give them good usage. I do find screwing in filters a pain so having the holder set-up would be far more convenient.

One last question - When you are selecting a grad filter, what sort of stoppage would you go for? Or is there a limited selection? I can't imagine you need more than 2, possibly 4 stops (obviously depending on the scene).

Thanks again for your help.