Purchasing ND filter


unknowger

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Sep 11, 2010
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Hi.

I am in the midst of purchasing a ND filter for my canon EOS 7D.
Intends to use it for sunrise/sunset shoot & water shots. Just wonder which one to purchase to create those cloudy misty effect? Can anyone help?
 

search the forums will give you alot of info on ND, GND etc...

you have to see ur budget and what level of light stoppage you require..
 

Yeah! Read alot on ND and GND.
Apparently, i gt a ND4 filter, which i dun seem to see much difference when i shoot. So just wondering is something wrong?
And where could i purchase a GND? I went to alan photo and the sales rep. told me they dont sell.
 

Yeah! Read alot on ND and GND.
Apparently, i gt a ND4 filter, which i dun seem to see much difference when i shoot. So just wondering is something wrong?
And where could i purchase a GND? I went to alan photo and the sales rep. told me they dont sell.

did u just put on the filter and shoot as per normal and expect the filter perform magic?

to use ND filter, you had to know the formulae to use what shutter speed, aperture etc to use.

basically:

1. compose your photo first, do a meter test (see what shutter speed, aperture etc) without the filter
2. Now put on the nd filter and adjust the setting accordingly then shoot.

if u are using iphone, u can download this free app (LongTime) that helps u calculate
 

I guess thats the error.
Cause what i did was to place the ND filter. And i set it as aperture priority with wide angle to shoot.
 

I guess thats the error.
Cause what i did was to place the ND filter. And i set it as aperture priority with wide angle to shoot.

u may wish to give it a try first before buying a new filter.

basically when we shoot with ND filters, we will use manual or bulb mode... so that we can do long exposure.

focusing wise, will be manual as well. we dun really use auto focus.

78160d1208262258-any-tips-using-nd110-ndchart.jpg

refer to the 3rd row in your case.

yellow row means without the filter, take the readings then compensate accordingly to row 3 in manual mode or bulb mode. You can plus minus a bit to your own preference then.

if u dun want to memorise the above chart, u can try the iphone app i recommend earlier if you are using an iphone.

once you are more familiar and find that your filter (2 stop) is not powerful enough... you may consider getting the popular ND110 (10 stops).
 

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Thanks sinned79. This chart is useful. Now i know what to do.
Will try out with the current ND4 again... and see whether do i need to add an extra ND filter...=)

But just my curiosity, do u know roughly what is the ND filter used for most of the photos posted online with those blurry effects of the sea water?
 

Thanks sinned79. This chart is useful. Now i know what to do.
Will try out with the current ND4 again... and see whether do i need to add an extra ND filter...=)

But just my curiosity, do u know roughly what is the ND filter used for most of the photos posted online with those blurry effects of the sea water?

it depends... for soulfly, he uses ND110 as well as Hoya's 9 stop . soulfly is very experienced in this area. You can pm him if you need help.

personally, myself is using one ND110.

but you should practise with your existing filter first before getting extras. ;p
 

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definitely ... hopefully it works....
Thanks!!! =)
 

When you take a picture, make a note of what the shutter speed is with a particular setting. e.g. 1/20secs.

So your ND4 which is 2stop ND filter, will only allow you to expose 1/20 x 4 = 1/5secs with roughly the same amount of light going into your camera at the same settings.

Under the same circumstances, a 6 stop ND filter will allow me to take at 1/20 x 64 = 3.2secs

You probably need to experiment to find out how long you want to expose for; generally less than 3 secs you still can see quite distinct wave features. 30secs and above could be okay for you.

Don't use shutter speed or aperture priority mode; go full manual and set your f/stop and shutter speed (and ISO, if necessary).
 

Thanks Wildcat. Guess i need to experiment alot more on the shutter speed before i get to see the effect of the ND filter.... =)
 

Thanks Wildcat. Guess i need to experiment alot more on the shutter speed before i get to see the effect of the ND filter.... =)

Not only that. A 2 stop ND doesn't allow you much room to stop the amount light into your cam. A CPL in the right angle can already stop 1.5 stops of light.
 

Thanks Wildcat. Guess i need to experiment alot more on the shutter speed before i get to see the effect of the ND filter.... =)

Yes experiment.

Remember to calculate... The most important thing is to know 1) what shutter speed do you want to shoot? and 2) what shutter speed is metered without any filter. Then from the differences in shutter speed, you will know which ND filter you need. For some of us landscape shooters, we usually pack a 3-stop, 6-stop and 9/10 stop.

Also GND is not about slowing the shutter speed. It is used to balance out bright and dark areas of a scene. So don't buy it unless you know what you are doing.

PS. by the way, every 1-stop means you double the shutter speed. So your ND4 is a 2-stop, since it multiplies your shutter speed by 4.
 

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Wildcat: Talking abt CPL... i am kind of confused with it. Is there any difference with it from the ND filter?
Daredevil: After composition of the photo, could i say is the shutter speed determined by the ND filter? Or? Because i dont really get your explanation on the difference in shutter speed to determine which ND filter to use.

Any example that you could provide? =)
 

Wildcat: Talking abt CPL... i am kind of confused with it. Is there any difference with it from the ND filter?
Daredevil: After composition of the photo, could i say is the shutter speed determined by the ND filter? Or? Because i dont really get your explanation on the difference in shutter speed to determine which ND filter to use.

Any example that you could provide? =)

For example, if your current shutter speed is 2s without any filter... and you want to smooth the waves out.... so you want something like 15s. so 15/2 = 7.5, so you need at least a ND7.5. So you know can you use ND8 (3-stops) which will give you 2s x 8 = 16s.
 

Hi.

I am in the midst of purchasing a ND filter for my canon EOS 7D.
Intends to use it for sunrise/sunset shoot & water shots. Just wonder which one to purchase to create those cloudy misty effect? Can anyone help?

depends on light, depends on waves, depends on so many things.

if the water is still, you wait 8000 years also won't have cloudy misty effect, will only have reflections.

if the light is low, you only need nd4 or nd8.

if the light is not so low, you might use nd106 to extend for 6 stops only.

if light is bright, then you need nd110, and you probably need to stop down as well.

if waves vigorous, waves not so vigorous, minimum time needed will also be different. you might also want to factor in that longer timespan, will also increase risk of having things you don't want blur in the picture to blur (e.g. tree line)
 

Hi All
Would like to seek advises. Not sure if it is a silly question but am trying to look for a work around. I am inexperience in this area.

Condition: I am shooting 'moving' objects in open space.

Q1. Am I going to use GND (with stops) if the sky is much brighter than the objects?
Q2. Is it advisable to stack 2 ND4 (possible?) and not getting 1 ND110? I may not know the lighting condition then.

Thanks
 

Hi All
Would like to seek advises. Not sure if it is a silly question but am trying to look for a work around. I am inexperience in this area.

Condition: I am shooting 'moving' objects in open space.

Q1. Am I going to use GND (with stops) if the sky is much brighter than the objects?
Q2. Is it advisable to stack 2 ND4 (possible?) and not getting 1 ND110? I may not know the lighting condition then.

Thanks

wat moving object u shooting?