Which Filters - Beginner

AndrewSt

AndrewSt

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Only recently bought a DSLR, Canon 70D and loving it. Finding I like to take mostly Landscapes so far, mainly early mornings and sunset, evening shots.

A bit of research has suggested some filters would make a big difference (ND filters?). Whole new area to research and literally hundreds of products. Any suggestions on some to start with. £50 max at the moment.
 
Hi Andrew

here's my take on filters in terms of quality and price

Lee filters best quality
Hi Tech good quality
Cokin good
Kood ok

Given your budget maybe if you placed a wanted ad you may get 0.3 0.6 0.9 Hitech used for that amount a £5 will get you a filter holder from Ebay I have used Cokin and Hi Tech and Hi Tech are more neutral than Cokin

A link to the set I use http://www.teamworkphoto.com/hitech-series-metal-modular-holder-neutral-density-p-18591.html

Others will be along for sure with further advice
 
For me a basic filter kit would consist of polarising filter, 2 and 3 stop ND Grads. 2 and 3 stop ND Filters (solid) and maybe a 10 stop ND if thats your thing. All the others can be replicated in PP. Terry has summed up the best ones pretty well. It is worth investing in a square system, that way all you need is a selction of adptor rings rather than numerous filters.
The uses are as follows:
Polarising filter-helps reduce reflections and enhances the colours.
ND Grad - Used to balance out the dynamic range between sky and landscape ie. dark foreground with bright sky will result in either a blown sky or loss of foreground contrast
ND (solid) - reduce the amount of light hitting the sensor so as to enable longer shutter speeds. To help produce thos smooth milky waters or capture cloud movement during the day.
This is only a summary of what they do, I'm sure others could jump in and add more.

I don't know what other kit you have, but a decent tripod is also a good investment for landscapes.

Enjoy
Chris
 
don't agree with the 10 stop filter, very expensive and you'd probably bin using it after you tried all the usual stuff with it. polariser definitely :thumbs: the rest could be added later try a system set cokin etc. then you just need an adapter for each new lens thread size 52/55/62/etc some of the adaptors fit more than one lens and only cost a couple of quid any way, hth mike.
 
Like I said the 10 stop is a maybe if that's your bag. Not an essential piece of kit. My first filter was the polariser and it's rarely off my lens when outdoors, worth noting that you'll lose about a stop and a bit of light with it fitted
 
ChrisHeathcote said:
Like I said the 10 stop is a maybe if that's your bag. Not an essential piece of kit. My first filter was the polariser and it's rarely off my lens when outdoors, worth noting that you'll lose about a stop and a bit of light with it fitted
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not having a go chris but the op said £50 to spend :thumbs:
 
Thanks. £50 for now but I can obviously collect things over the next few months. I think a polariser sounds like the first step followed by a 2 and 3 stop ND grads.
 
AndrewSt said:
Thanks. £50 for now but I can obviously collect things over the next few months. I think a polariser sounds like the first step followed by a 2 and 3 stop ND grads.
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just so you know a cokin circular polariser costs about £68 thats your budget blown and you hav'nt even got a holder and adapter yet.i,m not trying to knock you down just help search ebay or these forums for a cheaper option hth mike
 
Just to add, get the largest sized polariser you can afford (77 tends to be the largest size commonly used) and then buy step up rings. You don't want to buy more than one polariser like I did when I started off!
 
The Haida polariser is excellent, I use mine for all landscape shots, it works very well indeed.
 
0.6 hard and 0.9 soft ND grads are my most used, then sometimes I would use 10 stop, and I have 3 stop for seascapes just after sunset (when I want slightly blurry water at 2-3s). CPL gets the least use as we have too little sun and blue skies with light patchy clouds. CPL is almost useless at sunset
 
daugirdas said:
0.6 hard and 0.9 soft ND grads are my most used, then sometimes I would use 10 stop, and I have 3 stop for seascapes just after sunset (when I want slightly blurry water at 2-3s).
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+1. That set is of filters is exactly what I use too. I dont think I have ever used my 0.3 other than to extend the 0.9 to a 1.2 and that was a one off.
 
AndrewSt said:
Any thought on these kits to begin with? Do they fit a 18-135 STM canon lens?

http://www.wexphotographic.com/buy-cokin-h270a-full-nd-filter-kit/p1530422

http://www.wexphotographic.com/buy-cokin-h250a-nd-gradual-filter-kit/p1000795
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The second is the kit I started with. Which one depends on what you want to do. If you want to balance the sky with the land, then you want the grads, if your main goal is to get longer shutter speeds then you need the solids ND's. Both will be fine with that lens as the focal length is over 24mm (18 x 1.6)35mm equivalent. All you will need is the relevant adaptor ring
 
I bought a gradual filter kit not that long ago from Wex. The adaptors are usually £10 if you want the genuine Cokin ones and no adaptors are included in the kit for your lenses (something to bare in mind cost wise) They are only a couple of quid on eBay however I think.
It's an easy kit to use and offers good value IMO.

Also, I purchased a 52mm Circular Polariser recently from Amazon for £25. This was the Pro-1 version too which is usually a lot more. Worth looking at if you are thinking of a circular polariser.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hoya-Digita...=8-2&keywords=52mm+circular+polarising+filter
 
Would you keep the polariser attached all the time? Even when using the ND filters?
 
No reason why not, if you are looking at doing this I would get one to fit into the holder rather than one than screws onto the lens. Tbh, if you are looking at a square filter system, I would get a slot in one anyway.
 
There are two polarities of photographer - one is photo-centric and the other is equipment-centric (of course there are shades between). For now I'd keep your £50 in your pocket, or spend it on taking your children somewhere. If you don't have kids, the process of making them tends to be much more fun than buying filters. Take pictures, make pictures, review them and think what you might need - if anything! Don't go shopping because of what you hear or read.

I am the anti-consumerism advocate!
 
AndrewSt said:
Thanks. £50 for now but I can obviously collect things over the next few months. I think a polariser sounds like the first step followed by a 2 and 3 stop ND grads.
Click to expand...

That's about it. Start with a polariser; then add a 2 stop hard grad - the holder/adaptor is not essential, you can hold the grad agianst the rim of the lens . When you've had a little more experience (and saved a bit more) you can decide which way to go from there. Don't discount a 1 stop hard grad either, possibly instead of the 3 -stop. In conjunction with the polariser a 1 stop grad can help produce fabulous natural looking skies.
 
droj said:
There are two polarities of photographer - one is photo-centric and the other is equipment-centric (of course there are shades between). For now I'd keep your £50 in your pocket, or spend it on taking your children somewhere. If you don't have kids, the process of making them tends to be much more fun than buying filters. Take pictures, make pictures, review them and think what you might need - if anything! Don't go shopping because of what you hear or read.

I am the anti-consumerism advocate!
Click to expand...

Rog,

I largely agree with you, have you been reading the personal history on my website? I think we were also in agreement over low-flying jets as well........

However if a photographer wants to start doing landscapes, a polariser is essential, in my opinion.

Too many landscape photographers believe they also need a full range of ND grads and a 10-stop grad and all the other paraphernalia that the manufacturers will try and sell us, even if they get used once and then chucked in the back of a cupboard. I'm guilty of it myself.

Photography can be a very fulfilling and creative hobby/occupation but it can also involve the very worst kind of consumerism. Another thing that really bugs me - gets on high horse - is the big name professional who flies half way round the world to a honey pot location, and then does it again, and then again, and then adds a personal message to his images about how awful global warming is. Oh, and then gets picked up by the press for his heart-warming "conservation photography" agenda. It seems unfortunately to be landscape and nature photographers who are particularly prone to this kind of hypocrisy.

Rant over.

Apologies.
 
While I kind of agree with what you are saying, at the same time, some equipment is essential if you want to achieve a particular look. Without filters, how would you create smooth milky water or get long exposures in day light so as to blur clouds with using ND's, also how would you balance the foreground and sky without using grads.

After buying polarisers I bought a set of Cokin P hard grad's with a view to seeing what I used. Knowing what I know now, if I were to replace with a 100mm kit I would opt for 0.6 hard and 0.9 soft, as I find the line on the 3 stop hard a little harsh at times. Before anyone darts in with "take multiple shots and blend in PP", that wouldn't work for long exposures. Also I want to spend my time out with the camera not in a dark room at home in front of a PC. Surely its better to get it right "in camera" and not rely on PP.
 
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Yes, indeed, we are in agreement there. It is up to each of us to decide what we want to achieve and then try to get there with the minimum environmental impact possible . Photography is not really environmentally friendly in any sense but at least we do not need to go out and kit which we might never use, just because somebody else has got it.

That it is why it is a good idea to build up one's kit slowly and carefully according to one's needs, not according to the latest manufacturer press release. Buying filters one by one is a good example of this. (gets back on topic.......)
 
So, now we're back on thread, I too was thinking about graduated filters. I have looked at the Cokin set of 3 graduated filers (are they the same as the ones referred to above as 'soft'), as I quite often find my skies are overly light. I mainly do railway photography and shots of my daughter, but I also shoot occasional city shots when on holiday with a small bit of landscape. From this thread, it appears that just a 2-stop would be an adequate compromise, but some schools of thought seem to suggest hard ones are better, although I would have thought soft would be better for my needs.

As I've never used anything other than a CPL, my lack of knowledge and unwillingness to spend money has meant I have done nothing! With Christmas on the horizon, however, and with people asking me what I want, now may be a good time to take the plunge, but I don't want to waste anyone else's money any more than I want to waste my own.

Any thoughts please?
 
I'd suggest that if the intention is to buy just one filter to do things with, a 2- or 3-stop soft GND will cover more bases than anything else.

I make a lot of use of a 3-stop hard GND, but then I do photograph a lot of seascapes, where the very smooth horizona lend themselves to such things. Once you go inland, though, the hard tends to end up back in the bag.

A polariser is a great addition, and can transform water shots, as long as you remember to take it off (or be very careful) when photographing clear blue skies, as it is so easy to get uneven polarisation and it's (a) ugly and (b) nigh on impossible to remove, even if you've got ninja Photoshop skills.
 
Thanks for that. I may go that route and then get a filter holder and some stepping rings for other lenses I may use.
 
You could also look at Kood - a 2 or 3 stop nd grad hard or soft is around £10 and you can pick up a holder and adapter ring for around £5 for both, so £15 in all (try ebay or Crooked Imaging website). At least that way you have only spent a small amount if you don't end up using it. I doubt you will notice any difference between Kood and other budget filters like Cokin and Hitech for most use. http://www.seelifethroughthelens.com/blog/tag/kood-neutral-desnity-filters/ SRB Griturn are another budget range, although I have not used them so no idea what they are like: http://www.digitalcameraworld.com/2...s-for-landscape-photography-tested-and-rated/

Another option is a plug in like Enfuse which will combine two or more exposures and this works well as long as there is no subject or camera movement between shots (camera on a tripod and no people in the shots, trees moving in the wind etc).
 
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Another thing to bear in mind is that the sudden-ness of the transition between dark and unfiltered also varies with the focal length and aperture of the lens. It is a function of depth of field, so the shorter the focal length, and the smaller the aperture (eg f22), the harder the gradation. Uisng a soft grad with a telephoto at f5.6 you'll hardly notice the difference.

Another point to consider in relation to polarising filter is that it can also be used in other situations to remove reflections, as well as to intensify blue skies. For example to remove reflections off wet foliage in woodland or wet rocks in streams.

With reference to pwhysall's comment about uneven polarisation, with a wide-angle it can often be disguised behind broken cloud, and if you're using Lightroom you can now remove it quite easily. See this blog post -

http://wp.me/p2BFlt-9w
 
I sit on the non-CPL side of the fence for landscapes/seascapes - Maybe because I shoot wide at 17mm on FF & I hate that uneven sky the CPL gives sometimes....

I think you'd get more use from a NDGrad than a just a CPL.

You can go for the 85mm square system which is going to be £5 for the holder about £3 for the screw in adapter & £20 for a Hitech hard edge 2 stop grad. Hitech are good for colour cast IMO - I found Kood gave a magenta cast. You could probably stretch to a Haida 3 stop ND screw in too for a £50 budget & IMO that lot will be more useful to you.
 
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