Which Graduated Neutral Density Filter

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

I'm finally going to take the plunge and buy one of these. I'm tired of my sunset photos or some of the landscapes I take during the winter evenings now showing much or little ground.

Only thing is .. from my reading they mention that the 2 f-stop is the way to go because you can edit to the 1 or 3 stop look. Does anyone have any idea if that's the best way to go?

Also I'm thinking of the soft step instead of the hard only because I think it would be easier for me to handle. Pros and Cons on this?

As for a holder .. not looking at getting one. Only because I want something quick. Sometimes when standing out in weather that's way below zero it's not fun to have to adjust much. Another concern I have is even using this filter in subzero temps.

How steady does one need to hold this filter or how will wind effect it?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Edit ... Or do I want this -- http://www.singh-ray.com/reversegrads.html

ian408 · July 31, 2011

You'll find the Lee Filter holder works quite well (the Lee is what I have). I also have a 2 stop soft edge filter. I figure it's much easier than the hard edge. That Reverse looks pretty cool as well--I wouldn't pick one or the other but probably both.

I'd consider the holder only because it lets you make multiple exposures in the same config. But that's just me.

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

ian408 wrote: »

You'll find the Lee Filter holder works quite well (the Lee is what I have). I also have a 2 stop soft edge filter. I figure it's much easier than the hard edge. That Reverse looks pretty cool as well--I wouldn't pick one or the other but probably both.

I'd consider the holder only because it lets you make multiple exposures in the same config. But that's just me.

Just looked up Lee filters after you mentioned them. Wow .. there's a slug to chose from. Confusing too.

What's the difference from a Resin or Polyester one?

ian408 · July 31, 2011

Dogdots wrote: »

What's the difference from a Resin or Polyester one?

Resin filters are usually cast individually whereas the poly is a sheet of material from which individual filters are made.

Another advantage a filter holder gives you is the ability to stack filters. Not always necessary but it's nice to have that ability.

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

ian408 wrote: »

Resin filters are usually cast individually whereas the poly is a sheet of material from which individual filters are made.

Another advantage a filter holder gives you is the ability to stack filters. Not always necessary but it's nice to have that ability.

Been really looking over the Lee site. I see where stacking really opens the door to many other possibilities. Saw a set that would really help me out come winter time.

Thank you for explaining the difference for me

ian408 · July 31, 2011

Lee has a really great site. Lots of info. Explanations of their different packages and so forth.

I do like that reverse gradient from S-R though

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

ian408 wrote: »

Lee has a really great site. Lots of info. Explanations of their different packages and so forth.

I do like that reverse gradient from S-R though

Yeah I like the reverse one too .. really tho .. what is the difference? Been trying to figure that one out.

ian408 · July 31, 2011

If you look closely, the darkest part of the gradient is at the center and the lightest is at the top. A normal filter is darkest at the top and gets lighter toward the bottom.

What that allows you to do for a sunset/rise shot is keep the detail in the foreground and in the sky.

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

ian408 wrote: »

If you look closely, the darkest part of the gradient is at the center and the lightest is at the top. A normal filter is darkest at the top and gets lighter toward the bottom.

What that allows you to do for a sunset/rise shot is keep the detail in the foreground and in the sky.

So the reverse filter at Singh-Ray is really just for a bright horizon. If I were to use that for anything other then that there would be a noticeable darkness at the horizon if the sun wasn't there.

With a normal filter I could just drop it down some couldn't I?

ian408 · July 31, 2011

Yes. The reverse only deals with the bright horizon. With the normal filter, dropping it down would likely cover the foreground and give you a sharp line across the top. Unless you want the sharp line, probably best to use the reverse filter.

Dogdots · July 31, 2011

ian408 wrote: »

Yes. The reverse only deals with the bright horizon. With the normal filter, dropping it down would likely cover the foreground and give you a sharp line across the top. Unless you want the sharp line, probably best to use the reverse filter.

.. there's a filter for everything.

One more question ... which filter brand works the best, lasts the longest, made better, etc? I know you said you use Lee, but have you tried the other or know others that have and decided against it or like them. While I think they may be mostly the same thing and work the same way ... there has to be some difference other then brand name.

Oh ... weather conditions .. will it hold up well in sub-zero temps or do you see a problem with cracking from the cold?

Dogdots · September 1, 2011

Well I'll be darn .. I procrastinated and didn't order a Lee filter after posting this thread. Life got away with me. Went to purchase them today and both BH and Adorama are out of stock. Called BH and was told they may not have any for months or years. Years????? Advised me to purchase another brand.

Does anyone know why this is? Is Lee not making them anymore?

denisegoldberg · September 1, 2011

Dogdots wrote: »

...Went to purchase them today and both BH and Adorama are out of stock. Called BH and was told they may not have any for months or years. Years????? Advised me to purchase another brand.

I can't answer your Lee filter question but I wanted to let you know I've been using the Singh-Ray filters for quite a while now, both the Galen Rowell Graduated ND filters and the Daryl Benson Reverse ND grads - and I'm quite happy with them. I purchased the first 2 from B&H but have since been purchasing directly from Singh-Ray since they are often not in stock at B&H.

--- Denise

Dogdots · September 1, 2011

denisegoldberg wrote: »

I can't answer your Lee filter question but I wanted to let you know I've been using the Singh-Ray filters for quite a while now, both the Galen Rowell Graduated ND filters and the Daryl Benson Reverse ND grads - and I'm quite happy with them. I purchased the first 2 from B&H but have since been purchasing directly from Singh-Ray since they are often not in stock at B&H.

--- Denise

Talked with a person at Calumetphoto and it seems Lee Filters are really slow coming from England. They've been waiting months for them. So I checked out the Singh-Rays on BH .. they have them. I didn't know about ordering them right from Singh-Ray .. nice to know of someone who has and had no issues

Thanks Denise

JimKarczewski · September 1, 2011

I bought the 3 pack from Cokin with the holder + case for cheap from B&H, included a 1, 2 and 3 stop GND (.3, .6, .9) I use them all the time, usually a lot of times stacked since depending on brightness a .9 won't cut it by itself.

That said, I also use the Lee Polyester (almost like gel material in a frame), if Joey L uses them for his work making $$$$$$$$ on commercial work, I think I can look past the $70 price for them.. lol. THose are straight ND though, not GND.

Last, I'd recommend ANYONE looking to go big... 4x6 is what I use and I'll never go back to on-lens filters for CP, GND or ND.. Too much of a waste of $$$$$

Dogdots · September 1, 2011

JimKarczewski wrote: »

I bought the 3 pack from Cokin with the holder + case for cheap from B&H, included a 1, 2 and 3 stop GND (.3, .6, .9) I use them all the time, usually a lot of times stacked since depending on brightness a .9 won't cut it by itself.

That said, I also use the Lee Polyester (almost like gel material in a frame), if Joey L uses them for his work making $$$$$$$$ on commercial work, I think I can look past the $70 price for them.. lol. THose are straight ND though, not GND.

Last, I'd recommend ANYONE looking to go big... 4x6 is what I use and I'll never go back to on-lens filters for CP, GND or ND.. Too much of a waste of $$$$$

I was looking for a 3 pack, but couldn't find one. So I ordered a Singh-Ray from BH. Can't understand why they aren't in stock. Don't know if they can't get the materials or are just slow in production. One guy told me I can put my name on a list, but the list is long.

JimKarczewski · September 1, 2011

Yeah, it's frustrating. Lee's Big Stopper has been on Backorder for over 6 months now. Other ones are just as bad.. which I'm clueless about.

Dogdots · September 1, 2011

JimKarczewski wrote: »

Yeah, it's frustrating. Lee's Big Stopper has been on Backorder for over 6 months now. Other ones are just as bad.. which I'm clueless about.

6 months .. that's crazy time to have to wait for a simple thing like a filter.

Dan7312 · September 2, 2011

http://www.2filter.com isa good source for filters. Filters are about the only thing that they do.

Dogdots wrote: »

6 months .. that's crazy time to have to wait for a simple thing like a filter.

Dogdots · September 2, 2011

Dan7312 wrote: »

http://www.2filter.com isa good source for filters. Filters are about the only thing that they do.

Thank you for the info

JimKarczewski · September 3, 2011

Dogdots wrote: »

6 months .. that's crazy time to have to wait for a simple thing like a filter.

Yup. It's a 10 stop filter, but still... It's been OOS forever.... I'm almost tempted to buy the new 9 stop... I forgot who came out with it, but... yeah... it's a long a$$ wait

Dan7312 · September 3, 2011

There is an interesting video on youtube on the process Lee uses to make filters.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMu_m203YaY Easy to see why they seem to be perpetually OOS.

JimKarczewski wrote: »

Yup. It's a 10 stop filter, but still... It's been OOS forever.... I'm almost tempted to buy the new 9 stop... I forgot who came out with it, but... yeah... it's a long a$$ wait

Dogdots · September 3, 2011

Very interesting to see how Lee filters are made. Now I see why it takes so long. Was very surprised to see its all 'hands on' vs machine production.

ziggy53 · September 3, 2011

Dan7312 wrote: »

There is an interesting video on youtube on the process Lee uses to make filters. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMu_m203YaY Easy to see why they seem to be perpetually OOS.

Dogdots wrote: »

Very interesting to see how Lee filters are made. Now I see why it takes so long. Was very surprised to see its all 'hands on' vs machine production.

I am impressed with the amount of quality control in the Lee filter production process. I doubt if other resin filter manufacturers have as much QC.

Zanotti · September 3, 2011

http://www.linkdelight.com/camera-filters-accessories.html

Much cheaper. If you are just a hobbiest, probably just fine.

JimKarczewski · September 4, 2011

Uh.. NO CHINESE FILTERS EVER, EVER, EVER AGAIN.

The reason ND and GND's cost so much is they are, NEUTRAL. My first ever attempt was a 10 pack of a variety of Chinese filters for $20.. and it was useless. My images either came out looking like they had a coffee filter (dark, dark brown) or other wonderful color casts. From that point on they went in the trash to be replaced by decent, reputable filters.

Cokin 4x6 aren't that expensive.. and worth it vs the China imports..

Zanotti · September 4, 2011

JimKarczewski wrote: »

Uh.. NO CHINESE FILTERS EVER, EVER, EVER AGAIN.

The reason ND and GND's cost so much is they are, NEUTRAL. My first ever attempt was a 10 pack of a variety of Chinese filters for $20.. and it was useless. My images either came out looking like they had a coffee filter (dark, dark brown) or other wonderful color casts. From that point on they went in the trash to be replaced by decent, reputable filters.

Cokin 4x6 aren't that expensive.. and worth it vs the China imports..

Perhaps Jim, you are much more of an expert than I am - or perhaps you are seriously advantaged in seeing color.

Never the less, I have the link delight graduated filters and find them to be pretty good - esp for $6 delivered.

Mine work well, the holder is the same, and they don't assign a color cast with the graduated filters at all.

I am not a professional landscape photog - I just take the occaisional shot and needed something to balance the sky w/o resorting to HDR.

Mine work ok, sorry yours didn't.

ian408 · September 4, 2011

Zanotti, both your and Jim's comments point out the biggest risk in buying inexpensive products. Consistency. We've seen that in some of the knock-off flash units too. Many work brilliantly while others either don't or succumb to infant mortality issues.

In this case, I'm not sure he's any more "expert" except to know the filters he received don't work.

JimKarczewski · September 5, 2011

For $6, I'll play. I have to order a new Remote Trigger for my camera, I like the newer version from Aputure that takes AAA instead of those expensive little watch batteries.

When they come in I'll do a direct comparison and post the results here...

I will have to use it on my 50mm, there is no way that a P size will work on my 16-35... which sucks. I'm going to get a GND as those are the ones I have the most experience with...

ian408 · September 5, 2011

JimKarczewski wrote: »

For $6, I'll play. I have to order a new Remote Trigger for my camera, I like the newer version from Aputure that takes AAA instead of those expensive little watch batteries.

Very true. Looking forward to your review.

And cost is something else that's hard to ignore. Especially given at some point, they'll start getting it right and products that fail will be the exception rather than the rule.

Which Graduated Neutral Density Filter

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