ND filters.

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Mooshie1956
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ND filters.

Post by Mooshie1956 »

I've not used a ND filter in a long time, and I don't think I used it right anyway.
So I'm after a bit of advice about these filters, I noted that Hatstand said he used a 2 stop filter. As I also use a Panasonic G80 I'm thinking when the sun comes out to play that I should be thinking about using one as well. At Duxford last year I did notice some of my shots were reaching F22 and at OW last week end I think the highest F stop was 16. Am I right in thinking that a 2 stop ND filter will take the F16 down to F8.
thanks in advance for any input.
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Panny G80 12-60 Lens
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tankbuster
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Re: ND filters.

Post by tankbuster »

I've been out today shooting props with my HOYA PROND 8 on a G80 and 100-400. Perfect for sunny days, 3 stops. I was shooting on shutter priority between 1/80 and 1/250 and had just about every situation covered with my aperture staying comfortably in my comfort zone f6.3 to F11
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Pen Pusher
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Re: ND filters.

Post by Pen Pusher »

Go fully manual. Set your own shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Simples.

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tankbuster
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Re: ND filters.

Post by tankbuster »

Pen Pusher wrote:Go fully manual. Set your own shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Simples.

Brian


Help me out here Brian, suppose you decide F8 is your ideal aperture and 1/125th your preferred shutter speed and your ISO is set at your cameras base level. On a bright sunny day isn't it possible that your picture is overexposed and you have nowhere to go with your settings. You could close your aperture but it then it won't be where you have already decided you want it. On virtually all lenses closing will at some stage introduce some degradation. You can't change your shutter speed because that is what you have selected and your ISO cannot go any lower. That to me is where an ND filter becomes useful even if you are fully manual. What don't I understand.
Trevor C
recent and not so recent pictures here https://trevorc28a.wixsite.com/trevspics

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tankbuster
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Re: ND filters.

Post by tankbuster »

Pen Pusher wrote:Go fully manual. Set your own shutter speed, aperture and ISO. Simples.

Brian


Help me out here Brian, suppose you decide F8 is your ideal aperture and 1/125th your preferred shutter speed and your ISO is set at your cameras base level. On a bright sunny day isn't it possible that your picture is overexposed and you have nowhere to go with your settings. You could close your aperture but it then it won't be where you have already decided you want it. On virtually all lenses closing will at some stage introduce some degradation. You can't change your shutter speed because that is what you have selected and your ISO cannot go any lower. That to me is where an ND filter becomes useful even if you are fully manual. What don't I understand.
Trevor C
recent and not so recent pictures here https://trevorc28a.wixsite.com/trevspics

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Pen Pusher
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Re: ND filters.

Post by Pen Pusher »

If it is overexposed, having set my shutter speed/aperture/ISO, then I add exposure compensation but I prefer to expose to the right anyway. Fortunately using an electronic view finder I can see exactly what the settings give me and make adjustments on the fly as they say.

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trebleone
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Re: ND filters.

Post by trebleone »

Pen Pusher wrote:If it is overexposed, having set my shutter speed/aperture/ISO, then I add exposure compensation ...........


Exposure compensation is for overriding automatic exposure - when you vary the exposure compensation on most cameras in manual mode, the only thing that changes is the meter indication, i.e. it has no effect on the actual exposure.

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Wrexham Mackem
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Re: ND filters.

Post by Wrexham Mackem »

Mooshie1956 wrote:I've not used a ND filter in a long time, and I don't think I used it right anyway.
...Am I right in thinking that a 2 stop ND filter will take the F16 down to F8.


Yes, f8 is two stops less than f16.

Exposure mode has absolutely no bearing on whether ND filters are in use or not. They simply reduce the amount of light entering the lens in a neutral way.

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Re: ND filters.

Post by Hatstand »

tankbuster wrote:What don't I understand.

I believe your understanding is correct...

For props/rotors we choose specific shutter speeds.
That leaves ISO and Aperture as variables.
But on a bright day we will be at base ISO, and we can't go any lower.
So Aperture becomes our only variable for adjusting exposure.

Then if the light is still so strong that it forces very small apertures... where diffraction is going to soften our image... or we will be too far from the sweet spot of a given lens... then what other option is there, other than ND filter to reduce the amount of light, and allow us to open up the Aperture?!

I would have preferred 3-stop ND like yours at OW season premiere, but 2-stop was all I had on the day.

I still have a Hoya Pro ND variable filter somewhere. It didn't seem to play nice with the Pana-Leica 100-400, but maybe it would be OK on my 100-300? I'll have to dig it out for next time...
Goodbye 600D... Hello FZ150!

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Mooshie1956
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Re: ND filters.

Post by Mooshie1956 »

Thanks for the replies it looks like I'll pick up the ND 8 filter. I just need to decide which to get the NDPRO at £80 or the ND1 Pro filter at £44, both by Hoya.
My Flickr https://www.flickr.com/photos/mooshie1956/
Panny G80 12-60 Lens
Panny 100-400 Lens
Olympus 60 Macro Lens

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