Grad ND filters for landscapes

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johnny8977

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Paul
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Hi guys.

Just got a new wide angles lens and looking forward to trying out some landscapes - something I've never really done before with my DSLR.

Now, from looking at other photos and reading up, grad ND filters look like they'd be invaluable. But.....

I don;t really want to spend £50+ straight off. Is there anything that is a bit of a cheaper alternative to Cokin etc for a 77mm thread for starters.

Thanks.
 
Grad NDs arent 'invaluable' unless you want to avoid blending exposures in photoshop (a skill in itself)

When buying ND grads screw in filters are a waste of time because you can't move the graduation around, you can only rotate it, which greatly limits its use. Really I would describe Cokin as cheap. Good ND grads would be those from singh-ray or Lee and they are upwards of £60 each. You'd be looking at £300+ for a good setup.

I would recommend trying exposure blending first. In my opinion it is the best method if you can only choose one or the other. The ultimate would be to combine both to get the pros of both!

To exposure blend you first need 2 or more differently exposure images of the same scene (from a tripod). You can then place them on layers in photoshop and paint layer masks to blend them. There are tutorials on YouTube.

Don't confuse exposure blending and HDR. HDR is automated and usually produces unrealistic results. The manual process of exposure bledning can create extremely realistic results if desired.

All the shots on my site are exposure blended so hopefully you can see that ND grads are not required. Hope that helps!

Alex
 
well Cokin is at the lower end anyway...:shrug:

i suggest you search for

a 77mm adapter ring
the adapter ring does not HAVE to be Cokin but I found the eBay knockoff are slightly thicker - the holder will slide on but it can be a bit of a push
Cokin rings are about £9

a ''P'' series wide angle holder [only holds 1 filter] but doesn't vignette below about 18mm = about £10

a Hitech soft Grad ND filter from Bristol Cameras is about £13


total £32 +PP
 
I've just ordered a set of 100mm Hitechs from Bristol Cameras (well, a week ago anyway) and have had an email today saying that there are supply problems (blaming the and giving a delivery time of 2-3 weeks. Hitech's facebook page confirms this.
 
Thanks for the replies guys.

Alex, loving your website. Like you said, I'm gonna get some cheap filters but have a pay around with the exposure blending too. I actually quite like HDR stuff so it will be interesting to use it on something for a more realistic look.
 
If you want to play with ND filters as a little test. Find a pair of sunglasses that have flat lenses, the darker the better obviously. Put them infront of your lens and have a try. It's a little camera hack yeah, but it will give you an idea of the potential that ND's have :D
 
Islander said:
I've just ordered a set of 100mm Hitechs from Bristol Cameras (well, a week ago anyway) and have had an email today saying that there are supply problems (blaming the and giving a delivery time of 2-3 weeks. Hitech's facebook page confirms this.
Click to expand...

I've just received a set of three Hitech 100 hard grad NDs, filter holder and adapter ring from Teamwork. Dispatched day after order, arrived the next day.

I did see that Bristol Cameras were also listing them, but searching that retailer on this forum warned me off using them due to the supply problems you're now experiencing.
 
Teamwork quote stupid amounts of postage to my location otherwise they would have been my first choice of supplier. I was aware of the Bristol Cameras issue with delays in posting stuff but it's non-urgent, they charge sensible postage and they haven't debited my card. ;)
 
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