View Full Version : Filters for beginners
What is the recommended filters a beginner should have ?
What for?
Sunny days ... maybe a CPL
Harsh sky ... ND grads
Sunsets ... reverse ND grad
Reduce light (and shutter speed for water etc.) ... ND
The do you get a system (Lee or Cokin etc) or screw ons?
We need to know why you need them!
ricktas
17-09-2010, 9:26pm
Agree with Kym we need to know what you want your filters to do, what genre you shoot etc before we can give good advice here.
I was just looking at filters and was wondering what ones I should have in my kit.
The only one I have so far is a CPL. So I suppose the question should be, what should I have?
Errr... no... What is the subject i.e. what are you shooting?
Filters are expensive and have specific purposes, so just having filters is a bit pointless unless you know why you should be using one or more
Dan Gamble
17-09-2010, 9:48pm
I posed a question regarding polarising filters in THIS THREAD HERE (http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?t=66864) and have received some very useful answers which might also help you out regarding those.
Polarising filters appear to be the most recommended as a basic requirement for bright daytime shooting (you'd likely not need to use them indoors I believe) as well as general lens protection, based on what i've read here and in the responses to the thread. But there seems to be quite a range polarising filters out there let alone other filter types.
Hope it helps in your understanding of what you might need for what type of shooting you want to do at least. :)
I know what you are saying But I'm not looking for a filter for one sort of shot,
I would like to know what a beginner would most likely to use the most or what you think we should have for sunnydays, ect, ect and so on, like the list Kym posted up.
Dan Gamble
17-09-2010, 10:39pm
I know what you are saying But I'm not looking for a filter for one sort of shot,
I would like to know what a beginner would most likely to use the most or what you think we should have for sunnydays, ect, ect and so on, like the list Kym posted up.
The thread that I linked to does in-fact talk a little about that and when I first kicked off with photography a month ago I simply cam here to AP and used the brilliant built-in search feature (look up and to the right on any AP page) which brought up a myriad of information specifically talking about what you are wanting to know.
I also had the same questions not so long ago as well so the best help I can give you here is to show you how to help yourself I guess.
Good luck. :)
Xenedis
17-09-2010, 11:00pm
I was just looking at filters and was wondering what ones I should have in my kit.
The only one I have so far is a CPL. So I suppose the question should be, what should I have?
The question is a bit too open-ended.
It's like going into a hardware store and asking the sales staff what you should have in your toolbox. It depends on what you need to fix or build.
Similarly, the type of photographic filter to use depends on what you're shooting, as well as the conditions.
Personally, my belief is that the only filters a person needs are:
circular polariser;
neutral-density; and
graduated neutral-density.
These tend to be used heavily by landscape photographers, so if you're a portrait photographer, these will largely be useless for that application.
Don't bother with UV filters; they're completely unnecessary.
I'd also advise you to give gimmicky filters (like starburst filters) a miss.
Lastly, in the digital age, warming and cooling filters are no longer necessary.
ThanX Xenedis
you just saved me a few bucks because I was going to buy a UV filter next. :)
Xenedis
17-09-2010, 11:33pm
ThanX Xenedis
you just saved me a few bucks because I was going to buy a UV filter next. :)
I'll PM you my bank account details. ;-)
On the issue of UV filters, you might like to read my article on UV filters (http://www.ausphotography.net.au/forum/showthread.php?t=63081).
The use of those filters is an ever-raging debate. I've gone into a fair bit of detail in that article, so it might help you.
I'll PM you my bank account details. ;-)
Is Paypal ok :pirtongue:
I had a read though your thread and it makes sense.
Now to do some research on ND Filters
Xenedis
18-09-2010, 12:18pm
Now to do some research on ND Filters
There's not much to these.
They simply reduce the amount of light entering the lens by a given number of stops.
They are most commonly used to blur motion (especially in water) when the light is too bright to achieve a sufficiently slow shutter speed to induce blur.
A classic example is waterfalls during daylight.
I was looking at a few of your blur motion shots I'd love to have a go at that. some of your shots look like fog between the rocks unreal photos
Xenedis
18-09-2010, 12:30pm
I was looking at a few of your blur motion shots I'd love to have a go at that. some of your shots look like fog between the rocks unreal photos
Most were taken in sufficiently low light such that an ND filter was not required.
ND filters are most useful during broad daylight, or otherwise any time after sunrise and before sunset.
Here's an example of an image for which I did use an ND filter (I might have had both of my three-stop filters stacked) because the ambient light was too bright:
Bare Tranquility
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2744/4378453190_5fd1462286_z.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/xenedis/4378453190/)
Photographed at 6:32am on 21/02/2010 with a Canon EOS 5D at 16mm for 30 sec at f/8 and ISO 100.
Note the exposure settings. 30 seconds is more than enough to blur water, but in that sort of light I'd have grossly over-exposed the scene without the use of ND filters.
I noticed that there is a few of them ND2, ND4, ND6, ND8 and ND400 is this different shades?
Do you recommend an ND8 first ? (I'm only getting one at a time)
I found this on the net and I thought someone else might find it handy to know
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ND-2 reduces amount of light to 50%, ND-4 to 25%, and ND-8 to 12.5%
or in other words
ND-2 absorbs 1 f-stop of light, ND-4 absorbs 2 f-stops, and ND-8 absorbs 3 f-stops
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
dose that sound right?
Xenedis
18-09-2010, 1:18pm
I noticed that there is a few of them ND2, ND4, ND6, ND8 and ND400 is this different shades?
Yep.
ND2 = one stop.
ND4 = two stops.
ND8 = three stops.
ND400 = approx eight and 1/3 stops.
Do you recommend an ND8 first ? (I'm only getting one at a time)
I have only three-stop filters. I want a ten-stop filter, but they're not as easy to obtain.
I want a ten-stop filter, but they're not as easy to obtain.
It took my local camera store 3 to 4 months to order in my B+W110 10-stopper. Had to back-order it from Germany.
Booming worldwide demand for something that was previously the domain of highly specialised photography of high-temperature industrial processes (ie furnaces, welding, etc).
Xenedis
18-09-2010, 3:14pm
It took my local camera store 3 to 4 months to order in my B+W110 10-stopper. Had to back-order it from Germany.
That's a royal PITA.
In my case, a ten-stop filter is something I want, not something I need. I can stack two three-stop filters to kill six stops of light, which for the most part should cover me.
Check out the vari-ND from Singh-Ray
Xenedis
18-09-2010, 7:08pm
Check out the vari-ND from Singh-Ray
I'm aware of that one, but unfortunately for me, it only comes in the 77mm size.
My lens has an 82mm filter thread diameter.
Besides which, I prefer creative filter systems over screw-in types. More flexibility, and they can be used with other lenses when paired with a suitable inexpensive adapter ring.
Besides which, I prefer creative filter systems over screw-in types. More flexibility, and they can be used with other lenses when paired with a suitable inexpensive adapter ring.
Amen to that. I like my B+W110, but I always screw it in, then realise I need to compose the shot and focus first... and THEN screw in the filter :pirrolleyes:
But it's a PITA notwithstanding my absentmindedness - every time I want to try a different shot, framing, composition etc, I need to screw it off, recompose, then screw it in again.
It'd be really nice to have a Lee Big Stopper and just slip it in/slip it out whenever I felt like it. I might sell the screw in one once I get around to getting myself some GNDs...
Chinook
20-09-2010, 9:52am
Xenedis, Thank you very much for putting that all together. It is all beginning to make sense. :-)
i highly recommend a yellow, green, and a red filter for black and white, but if you're a beginner, just forget about the filters for a while.
Xenedis
20-09-2010, 9:35pm
i highly recommend a yellow, green, and a red filter for black and white, but if you're a beginner, just forget about the filters for a while.
Not necessary if you're doing digital capture; those filters can be easily applied in post-processing.
whats that sort of set up worth Xenedis ?
Xenedis
20-09-2010, 10:29pm
whats that sort of set up worth Xenedis ?
Which setup?
Xenedis
20-09-2010, 10:48pm
creative filter systems
I have the Lee filter system, which is quite pricey.
My initial purchase consisted of the filter holder, an ultra-wide adapter (to fit my UWA lens), a three-stop grad and a two-stop grad. I paid around $AUD 380 at the time.
I later purchased two three-stop ND filters, and those came to around $280.
Very expensive plastic!
A much more affordable alternative is the Cokin creative filter system. There are claims of magenta colour casts, and I've seen the results, but I've also experienced magenta casts with a combination of my Lee filters stacked.
I'm not really sure what causes this, but what I can say is that it doesn't happen consistently. I shot with three filters stacked the other night and didn't have issues with colour casts. Perhaps the colour of the light has a lot to do with it. I really don't know.
I was on the Cokin site today looking at the A series
But by the look of that I'll just stick with the old screw-in ones till I know what I'm doing :)
I had a quick look at the vari-ND filter that looks like a good Idea
Xenedis
20-09-2010, 11:04pm
I had a quick look at the vari-ND filter that looks like a good Idea
It certainly has the great advantage of having many stops of light reduction in a single filter, but the disadvantages are not insignificant to me:
it's not available in 82mm size;
you may need to remove the filter to focus and then re-attach it (annoying); and
it cannot realistically be stacked with other filters such as grads or polarisers.
You can screw a creative filter system's adapter ring into the front of the Vari-ND's thread, but with a wide lens you'll experience vignetting. I've stacked my Lee system on top of my 82mm screw-mount ND8 and it vigniettes noticeably even when stopped down to f/8 or f/11.
Mircula
21-09-2010, 8:39am
Great thread. Thank you for all the information!
I am going to travel soon and planning on doing some landscape shots and waterfalls etc...especially in new zealand.
Have to think about what the most useful filters to take are....
I guess i will take a cpl and a 3 stop nd. That should be ok to start of with.
Ciao,
Mirc
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