Budget ND filters

[Eloise]

Okay, so I know the answer is "buy a Lee big stopper" or "get a Formatt-Hitech Firecrest" but has anyone tried any of the extreme budget ND1000 (10 stop) filters from eBay / Amazon?

Amazon are listing a CACAGOO or Andoer 82mm ND1000 filter for around £15 for either. I'll probably regret it and it's a waste but has anyone tried either? (82mm for my Tokina 11-20 and get an adaptor down to 67mm for the Nikon 18-105)

Just wanting to experiment initially see if long exposure work is something I want to pursue, but want reasonable results.

 

[snerkler]

I bought a set of 6 plus holder and adapter rings for about £25 on amazon and they're actually OK. They are prone to flare and do degrade IQ a teeny amount but colour cast is negligible.

I since upgraded to SRB and now hitech, but as a cheap set to learn with they were fine and it's not breaking the bank so you won't lose much when you inevitably upgrade. IMO the SRB weren't any better.

 

[Eloise]

Thanks

 

[Ruffmeister]

I bought a screw in XSOURCE one on eBay a while back and found it alright. Was under £10 and did me ok.

I now use Lee and yes, you are getting what you pay for in my opinion. The firecrest ones are even better but as you said you are wanting to try it to see if it's for you - then personally I would take the cheaper option for now. I didn't find I got much of a colour cast from the XSOURCE one and even if I did, it can be corrected in LR.

 

[Fuzzdog]

I have a cheapie 'Green' ND1000 for about £12 from Amazon which I bought to try the whole long exposure thing out - don't know if I got a good copy or not, but I did borrow a very expensive one from a friend and when looking back can't tell which shots I used which filter on!