Beginner Filters

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snooks

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Gary
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Hi All
We have just booked a weeks holiday on the coast in Northumberland so will be having a go at some sunsets,seascapes and general landscape shots.At the moment I don't have any filter's but ant advice would be greatly appreciated..The lenses I have are at the moment are 17-55 kit lens,35 1.8 and 70-200 2.8. If funds allow I might get a 10-20 wide angle
 
First I'd get a polariser to reduce reflections and glare from the sea. Look into graduated neutral density filters to balance the exposure differences between the sky and the land and balance that against blending 2 or more exposures later in post production. Personally I'd use clear protective filters on all my lenses near the sea to protect from the sea air and any splashes, sand etc.
 
I would recommend not getting the 10-20mm wide angle yet. They are a hard lens to master composition on, and on your first trip out with a few new filters it is another level of frustration.

Filters wise, Adrian nails it. Get a circular polariser and then look at an NG graduated filter as part of a system. The Hitech filters are well regarded, you want a slot in holder not screw in for your graduated filters.
 
snooks said:
........ 17-55 kit lens,35 1.8 and 70-200 2.8.........
Click to expand...

the Hitech filters are expensive [for me anyway] so i bought Cokin - some say they can see a 'magenta cast' but I canna...:)
they come in 'A' and 'P' sizes

for the kit lens and the 35/1.8 lens i find the 67mm 'A' size works - are they 52mm filter size lenses..?
you will need a double-slotted 'A' Holder and a 52mm 'A' plate adapter
also there is a single-slot holder to use with WA lenses

if the 70-200 2.8 [wow] has an 'XYZ' filter size - you will also need a 'XYZ' plate adapter
if impossible cos the lens is too fat - you'll have to move up to the 100mm 'P' series for this lens

i bought
some ND - for that ubiquitous milky-waves effect
some soft grad NDs to bring down the bright sky
you can use hard grads if the horizon is a straight line like a seascape

i have Marumi DHG PL-C or Hoya Pro1-Digital PL-C in 52, 58, 67 and 72mm ....:(
usual noob mistake of buying mixed lenses
the Hoya is sometimes a bitch to remove all the cleaning fluid marks

No Doubt the Pros [rightfully ] will say the Cokin may/will degrade the lens - all a question of money innit
 
Hi Thanks for the replies.
I was wondering about protection from sea spray so I will get some clear protective filters or will a polariser kill two birds with one stone?
If I get 100mm square filters for the 70-200 will I be able to use them on the smaller diameter lenses.
 
snooks said:
I was wondering about protection from sea spray so I will get some clear protective filters or will a polariser kill two birds with one stone?
If I get 100mm square filters for the 70-200 will I be able to use them on the smaller diameter lenses.
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yes - but I'd take several bottles of optics cleaning fluid to wash off all the salt spray before wiping

yes but for the smaller lenses you'll need a 52mm [or.?] 'P' adapter

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-52mm-...617278?hash=item3a73e6ee3e:g:WrgAAOxyBjBTVySP
 
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snooks said:
......If I get 100mm square filters for the 70-200 will I be able to use them on the smaller diameter lenses.
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just noticed you say 100mm

have you decided on the Hitech cos the Cokin P are about 80mm so not a bulky system

what exactly are your lens filter sizes ..?
 
Not sure on the lens filter size will have too have a look
I was going to get 100mm filters because the video's I have watched on You Tube all are using 100mm filters.
Not sure which system to go with, had a look at Lee filters because these seem to be the filters of choice but they are certainly not cheap.
 
@snooks
here are the sizes i have


left - Cokin A holder - 52mm adapter plate - with 'A' grad - on a 52mm lens

centre - Cokin P holder 52mm adapter plate - Cokin 'P' 80 x 80mm filter - on a 52mm lens

right - Cokin P holder 72mm adapter plate - Cokin 'P' 80 x 100mm filter - on a 72mm lens [ --- prob the largest the P holder will go]

i think there is a larger size.?
 
Just had a look at my lenses and two are 52mm dia and the other is 77mm dia.
 
i bit of a mish-mash of sizes over the years from my film days - the 72mm..:)

if i was starting from zero...

Marumi DHG PL-C for each lens size
http://www.lenstip.com/115.4-article-Polarizing_filters_test_Results_and_summary.html
BTW ......PL-C effects cannot be added in PP - I'm told

I'd get 2 P series holders [1 double and 1 single W/A]
an adapter plate for each lens size
'P' ND 0.6
'P' ND soft grad 0.6
and build up from there

a 125 grad tobacco can 'add' to a dull sky.....:exit:
 
snooks said:
Just had a look at my lenses and two are 52mm dia and the other is 77mm dia.
Click to expand...

well IMO any 77mm system will look out of place on the 52mm lens

I'd consider a separate 52mm system

Marumi DHG PL-C

2 A series holders [1 double and 1 single W/A]
a 52mm adapter plate
'A' ND 0.6
'A' ND soft grad 0.6
and build up from there

the 77mm system - well I'd ask some of the Pros to comment

and you taking your 28-200 77mm lens on the beach.....:thinking:
 
Thanks for your time and advice John much appreciated.
I will have a look at the Cokin website
 
snooks said:
...I will have a look at the Cokin website
Click to expand...

If you decide on the 'A' series for the 52mm - let me know

i have an unused adapter plate/holder and some Cokin filters somewhere - i can put them into the Sales section if needed
 
I bought Cokins and they left a magenta cast as mentioned above. I sent them back and invested in Lee filters. I had the Sigma 10-20 mm and loved it. Used it extensively as it enabled big skies and foregrounds. I had to buy the Lee Z-Pro kit, the filters are 150mm. The larger filter holder that comes with the z-pro kit was ideal to minimize vignetting on the Sigma lens at 10mm. I only sold the lens after moving to FX, otherwise, it was the only lens I used for landscapes, seascapes, etc.
 
Moey said:
I bought Cokins and they left a magenta cast as mentioned above. I sent them back and invested in Lee filters. I had the Sigma 10-20 mm and loved it. Used it extensively as it enabled big skies and foregrounds. I had to buy the Lee Z-Pro kit, the filters are 150mm. The larger filter holder that comes with the z-pro kit was ideal to minimize vignetting on the Sigma lens at 10mm. I only sold the lens after moving to FX, otherwise, it was the only lens I used for landscapes, seascapes, etc.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking of going with the Lee filters for my FX setup. I was looking at a starter kit with 1 nd grad filter and 1 nd filter with a 77m adapter. The thing is they vary from soft, medium, hard and very hard and I want something that's versatile and not too dark.
 
For filters have a looks at this place - http://srb-photographic.co.uk/

I used their adaptor rings, holders and grads - reasonable prices and as far as I can see no problems.

Dave
 
jetpack said:
I'm thinking of going with the Lee filters for my FX setup. I was looking at a starter kit with 1 nd grad filter and 1 nd filter with a 77m adapter. The thing is they vary from soft, medium, hard and very hard and I want something that's versatile and not too dark.
Click to expand...


I have a set of three hard grads, one ND filter, one big stopper and a circular polariser, all of which are LEE filters. I loved big skies and so I wanted something to underexpose them against the foreground to keep the detail. I often find that I use two, maybe even three at once just to keep the detail without having to underexpose the foreground too much. Having said that, I've not used multiple filters on the FX system yet, but i'm thinking that vignetting will possibly occur on the 16-35mm lens, even with the wide angle adaptor attached?
 
Moey said:
I have a set of three hard grads, one ND filter, one big stopper and a circular polariser, all of which are LEE filters. I loved big skies and so I wanted something to underexpose them against the foreground to keep the detail. I often find that I use two, maybe even three at once just to keep the detail without having to underexpose the foreground too much. Having said that, I've not used multiple filters on the FX system yet, but i'm thinking that vignetting will possibly occur on the 16-35mm lens, even with the wide angle adaptor attached?
Click to expand...

I use a 16-35 on a Sony A7ii with the Lee wide angle adapter. No vignetting at 16mm (not sure about with the polariser fitted as well - might try this tomorrow).

To the op, have a look at the Hitech Firecrest filters as well. Just as expensive as the Lee sadly, but excellent. I use the Lee holder and Landscape polariser, with Hitech Firecrest ND filters, plus the normal Hitech resin filters for grads. I use a 0.6 soft edge, a 0.6 reverse grad (great for sunsets) and a 0.6 hard edge. ND wise I use a 7 stop, a 16 stop and will be buying a 4 stop.

Like already recommended, the SRB ones are great for the much lower price point.
 
As others have said, ultimately the slide in square filter systems are the most flexible. When you get used to them they're also very quick to set up and change, which is a bonus.

The downside is you have to buy the filter holder, the filters themselves and adaptors to fit the holders to your lenses. In some cases (Lee) the kit excluding the filters can quickly add up and if you're just looking at having a play, you can easily see yourself spending over £100 for a kit with a single filter, and £150 for a couple of filters.

The alternative - just to have a play - would be to buy a single circular screw-in filter for your largest lens and a step-up ring to fit that on your smaller lens. Unless your smaller diameter lens is a very wide angle, this should work ok without vignetting. Best of all, it's a cheap way to play with filters and determine whether you like using them and their effects. Once you've decided, you'll either end up (probably) wanting to bin the filter(s) - in which case you can sell them and not lose too much as your initial expenditure was low - or invest in a "proper" slide in system... again, selling your test-kit or perhaps keeping it as a lightweight travel option.

I have a Lee holder kit and some Kood 100mm filters of various sorts (all of which are excellent value BTW) plus a Big Stopper, so I guess I'm not preaching what I practice, however I did start off with a small screw-in CPL...
 
Thanks @pjm1 I've been using screw in filters for some time now. I like what I can achieve with them, particularly my ND8. I have Hoya UV and polarising filters which I'm pleased with. I'd really want a similar effect to that of my nd8 and with a few grad filters also.
 
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