Help with shopping for a set of ND filters

[MOmilkman]

I'm in the market for a set of graduated ND filters. (1stop,2stop,3stop)
Any one have any suggestions? Personal expierence that makes one brand better than the other?
I'm not going to be using these a lot but I do love a perfectly exposed sunrise/sunset. I just don't want to spend a ton.
Thanks

[Michael_2010]

I think Nicole the moderator and Navcom have a lot of experience with ND filters.

I have a set of Tiffen ND filters that I used for the first time this morning. They definitely allowed me to slow down the shutter. I think I lost a little clarity though. That could have definitely been me and not the filter.

The Cokin graduated ND filters are kind of fun to play around with. I have the P-Series holder, a few lens adapters and the 3 typical filters. A lot of technique involved with their use. Not all that great with my ultra-wide lens. I actually took a bunch of shots showing the interior of the holder while set at 10mm. lol

[Nicole]

Yep, I use ND filters. And I use Cokin ones. They're the most affordable. When shooting sunsets (I'm starting to get it figured out ), I tend to use at least 2 filters because of my environment. All things considered, a second grad filter would probably be useful rather than just putting a full ND filter half way in. My suggestion would be go with something cheap to start (it's what I did), and figure out (a) if they are for you, and (b) if you see the need for something more expensive or if what you have is fine.

So this one was just the one grad filter (Cokin 121M), but that also meant that I played around with exposing the foreground better in post.



Then this one was with 3 filters (I got some extra filters in a kit when I replaced my holder and all they had with the kit with filters and holders)... anyway, it had a GradND, a Sunset, and a Warming filter on it. The clouds weren't actually like this, but it's not an unusual look for clouds around here at sunset.



Then, just for kicks to show you what else you can do aside from sunsets, using one of the random "I probably won't use this often" filters, I used a Grad Blue and a Grad ND (So the blue was at the bottom where the water is, and the ND is at the top where the clouds were).



So I do like my filters and I haven't had tooooo many issues with the colour shift associated with them, but there are shots that are less than ideal from it, but I have figured out for the most part how to cope with that. Hope that helps a little.

Michael_2010, the wide angle holder works wonders if you're just using 1 filter. I used that heaps until the back plastic bent too much for it to stay on well. But yes, now I have to be careful with my wide angle with them.

[Michael_2010]

Those are very nice. I have not quiet got the hang of using the filters yet. Ya know, it is kind of hard to practice with sunrise/sunset shots. The peak time is so fleeting that it becomes difficult to do much experimentation with one camera body. Hmmmmmm........ might need to update my wish list. lol

[MOmilkman]

Very nice Nichole. I espically like the first one with that electric sky. i will have to look into the Cokin filters and see how much I am looking at price wise. But thanks for the advice and pics to help me along.

[Krusty79]

I don't know if you're still following this thread, but I wasn't sure which brand to buy either. When I look at the images of the guys on Flickr whose shots I admire the most, the majority of them seem to use Singh-Ray or Lee.

The pros here say you get what you pay for (surprise). I got a Lee .6 (2 stop) soft graduated one for $90 online a couple of months ago and it does take a while to get used to. I am holding it by hand, but since I will probably want to get additional filters in the future, I will have to get a filter holder eventually. The Cokins are the most affordable again, as the Lee holder is $75!

You'll have to get filters large enough so that the edges don't show on wide angle shots. Mine is 4x6 and I never see the edges of it using my 18-55 lens. It looks big enough to work if I ever get a 10-20 lens.

[OsmosisStudios]

I have 2: A 3-stop (ND 0.8) and a 10-stop (ND 3.0). The latter is a true set of giggles. The former is very useful, though I mainly use it on film.

[Krusty79]

This is from a post from hey joni:


Quote:
Originally Posted by Krusty79 View Post
Ah, that explains the long shutter speed then. I just got a Lee 2 stop soft graduated ND a couple of months ago and am trying to get used to using it. How do you like yours? If you had to do it over again, would you purchase the same ones?
I have various filters, the majority of which are by Lee.Quote

Lee:
I have 1,2,3 and 4 stop GND (hard)
3 stop GND (soft)
4 stop ND (resin)
10 stop ND (glass)

If I need 1,2 or 3 stop ND I use the top of a GND hard.

Hoya: R72 infra red, polariser

I love Lee filters, they're the best I've ever used and wouldn't chnage them for anything. The craftmanship is the main selling point for me, they're accurate and well made (by hand, i believe).

I wouldn't personally have bought a soft ND4 (2 stop) as it isn't really strong enough most of the time, but in low light it would come in handy.

The only filters I wouldn't buy again are the Lee infrared (unusable half the time due to reflection), I got the Hoya R72 instead (nice filter). Also the polariser is a waste of time unless you want to eliminate haze/reflection.

Here is the thread - Porth Nanven, Cornwall