What is everyone's experiences on graduated ND filters?

[neurorx]

I am looking into purchasing some graduated ND filters and it seems like there is quite a variety out there with significant cost differences. I've read about the color changes etc. I wanted to see if there was anyone actually using the various filters that may give their experience. I would be most commonly using them for sunrise/sets or water scenes. I suspect most commonly on my Canon 16-35mm F2.8L II or 24-70mm F2.8L II.

These both have 82 mm filter sizes, so do you need another bracket to go to 77mm?
What filter stop difference is most commonly used 3? 6? 10?
Any other words of wisdom?

Thank you!

 

[wtlloyd]

Lee filter system. You'll buy the 82mm adapter ring (get the wide angle, yes it costs more). You'll need a holder kit. Go to the Lee website, there is a ton of information there both in videos and documents you can download. You want the 100mm system.
You can buy the soft and hard grads in sets of 3. The 6 and 10 stop filters are solid, and 100mm square instead of 4x6.
Have fun! And expect to spend a bout USD $1000 to get fully kitted out!

 

[retroreflection]

If you want grad nd filters, then you either accept the location of the transition set by the manufacturer (standard screw mount filters), or go with a rectangular filter holder so you can position the transition wherever the composition demands it. That's why wtlloyd is basically correct. I wouldn't presume to dictate a brand, as I have been happy with Cokin holders. I have a mix of filter brands in the actual rectangular bits.

For sunrise & sunset use, consider reverse grads. These filters have a zone of no attenuation, a sharp transition to the highest level, and then a soft transition to the other edge. This let's you maximize the effect at the sun and horizon. Not so many cheap options for this type, but what can you do?

 

[GuyF]

Lee filters are very good but are also very expensive. Their website shows plenty of examples to help guide your choice. http://www.leefilters.com/

If you can't afford Lee, there are plenty of other manufacturers to choose from. Some filters have a colourcast but that can be remedied in Photoshop by adjusting the colour temperature of the scene.

I used Cokin filters for years which are pretty cheap and good value but decided to go for improved quality with Lee.

 

[GMCPhotographics]

I am looking into purchasing some graduated ND filters and it seems like there is quite a variety out there with significant cost differences. I've read about the color changes etc. I wanted to see if there was anyone actually using the various filters that may give their experience. I would be most commonly using them for sunrise/sets or water scenes. I suspect most commonly on my Canon 16-35mm F2.8L II or 24-70mm F2.8L II.

These both have 82 mm filter sizes, so do you need another bracket to go to 77mm?
What filter stop difference is most commonly used 3? 6? 10?
Any other words of wisdom?

Thank you!

In my opinion, I would get a set of solid ND filters , 3/6/9 stop 82mm threads. Then shoot using a tripod and use the heavier filter for the sky and a lite filter for the foreground and then blend the two in photoshop using a big soft brush. naturally, your metering will dictate your filter choices.
The problems with ND grads is the transition line is often unhelpful, the thickness of the transition line is also not quite what you want. I find that regardless of the quality of the filter, there is always a colour cast. So choose one that's nice and leaves a nice rendering. These filters should be called Neutral (yeah right!) density filters. The higher the density, the higher the colour cast.

This image taken in 2008 used a 9 stop Hoya filter which has a noticeable colour cast...which during a sunrise produces some really nice colours:

 

[Neil1000]

hello,

soft and hard edge Lee 1.2 and 0.9 grads might be the most useful, Add 0.6 soft and hard grads later. 0.3 can be handled in photoshop even by lowly DR Canon cameras. In fact with a great set of Lee filters and the great canon autobracket options I am puzzled why DR has even been an issue for canon cameras

 

[Click]

This image taken in 2008 used a 9 stop Hoya filter which has a noticeable colour cast...which during a sunrise produces some really nice colours:

Lovely. Beautiful colours. 8)

 

[YellowJersey]

Graduated ND filters were the best thing I ever bought after I discovered UWA on full frame.

I use the Lee system and have the .3, .6, and .9 filters in soft and hard grad. It's a fair bit of coin to get all of them, but I find the .9 soft grad is by far my most used. Truth be told, I find I don't use the .3 that much, I really only use it if the .9 isn't enough and I need to double up but the .6 would be too much.

Just a word of warning: do not stack filters one on top of another. Give each a little sleeve of its own. (I made this mistake once when I had to clear out of a location in a big hurry, find my .9 soft and hard grad filters pretty scraped and scuffed).

 

[slclick]

I use a cheap 3rd party holder and premium 100x 100 or 100 x 150 filters such as Formatt. This is based on the Cokin P series. Great for lenses up to an 82mm filter size. My favorite is an 8 stop as I find 10 a bit much to work with except in the most ideal situations and 3 stop. I can combine them (because the glass is so awesome- as opposed to resin) and get a whopping 11. The frames don't mean a thing, spend your money on the filters, they tend to be like tripods, we usually all start out with cheap and then buy more and more expensive models and ask ourselves why we didn't buy the good one in the first place.

 

[neurorx]

Thank you All for the recommendations and advice on use. For the Lee filters if one wants to have 82 mm and 77 mm capability, does one need to get two mounting brackets or is there an insert for the 82 mm?

Is it customary to get both soft and hard ND filters? What about non-graduated, solid ND filters?

 

[J.R.]

Thank you All for the recommendations and advice on use. For the Lee filters if one wants to have 82 mm and 77 mm capability, does one need to get two mounting brackets or is there an insert for the 82 mm?

Is it customary to get both soft and hard ND filters? What about non-graduated, solid ND filters?

The Lee Filter assembly fits onto the adapter ring. I have both the 77mm as well as the 82mm adapter rings and have never tried using the larger adapter ring on a smaller threaded lens, but it could be done I guess.

The grads, you'll need the hard graduated filters only when shooting with a straight horizon, for everything else, go for the soft grad.

I find myself using the grad filters less and less given that using grad filters in lightroom is much quicker and easier. That being said, the grad filters have their place in some circumstances.

For solid NDs there is a whole lot of choice there. Personally, I have the Big Stopper which I use a good deal, as well as the 3/6/9 cheap film pack from Lee which are used only rarely.

 

[ERHP]

I've been using the Lee .6 and .9 Hard graduated filters for shots of the beach and waves crashing into the cliffs using mainly the 24-70. If you have the double holder(or even triple) you can stack the filters, plus you have the options for using the Lee Big/Little Stoppers, polarizers, etc. You can swap the adapter ring from 82-77-etc or buy multiple foundation kits. LeeFilters.com has some videos showcasing the use of most of the filters which may be helpful.

This was with a .6 Hard on a 24-70 II/5DSR.

1/13 : f/10 : ISO 160 @24mm

 

[neurorx]

These are incredible photo's! Thank you!

 

[jprusa]

I use Singh-Ray Reverse Graduated Neutral Density Filter , I like those better than the lee filters. You can get the holder and the adaptor rings for a lot less from the filter dude on eBay. I find that I use a 4 stop filter most of the time.

 

[Aglet]

I love ND grads... IN SOFTWARE.

NDGs were great in film days, and I was considering getting a set as they are still useful for digital when you have the time to set them up.

But I like to shoot my landscapes faster... So I picked cameras that could give me maximum useful dynamic range, expose so the highlites aren't clipped. or clipped where I want them to be, then in post I can apply any kind of NDG filter I can imagine. FAR more versatile, MUCH more control.
I don't know why anyone would want to bother with using physical filters any more, other than an interesting challenge or hobby. Or perhaps you're using a more limited useful dynamic range camera, like, uhm... Canon.

 

[J.R.]

I love ND grads... IN SOFTWARE.

NDGs were great in film days, and I was considering getting a set as they are still useful for digital when you have the time to set them up.

But I like to shoot my landscapes faster... So I picked cameras that could give me maximum useful dynamic range, expose so the highlites aren't clipped. or clipped where I want them to be, then in post I can apply any kind of NDG filter I can imagine. FAR more versatile, MUCH more control.
I don't know why anyone would want to bother with using physical filters any more, other than an interesting challenge or hobby. Or perhaps you're using a more limited useful dynamic range camera, like, uhm... Canon.

Most landscapes require more DR than any Sony / Nikon / Canon sensor can handle. In such a scenario, the best you can do is either blend exposures as GMC suggested above or use grads. Those additional 2 stops of an exmor sensor isn't the be all and end all.

To say graduated filters don't have their place in photography because you can lift shadows in post is simply absurd.

 

[GMCPhotographics]

This image taken in 2008 used a 9 stop Hoya filter which has a noticeable colour cast...which during a sunrise produces some really nice colours:

Lovely. Beautiful colours. 8)

Thank you!
If you are going to have to live with a could caste...then make it one that's attractive

 

[GMCPhotographics]

I love ND grads... IN SOFTWARE.

NDGs were great in film days, and I was considering getting a set as they are still useful for digital when you have the time to set them up.

But I like to shoot my landscapes faster... So I picked cameras that could give me maximum useful dynamic range, expose so the highlites aren't clipped. or clipped where I want them to be, then in post I can apply any kind of NDG filter I can imagine. FAR more versatile, MUCH more control.
I don't know why anyone would want to bother with using physical filters any more, other than an interesting challenge or hobby. Or perhaps you're using a more limited useful dynamic range camera, like, uhm... Canon.

Most landscapes require more DR than any Sony / Nikon / Canon sensor can handle. In such a scenario, the best you can do is either blend exposures as GMC suggested above or use grads. Those additional 2 stops of an exmor sensor isn't the be all and end all.

To say graduated filters don't have their place in photography because you can lift shadows in post is simply absurd.

I would agree with you JR. My earlier shot could have been taken with one shot and then pulled...but it would have been noisy. This particular shot was three exposures blended together which were all shot at 100 iso. This image was taken with a Canon 5Dmk1 and it is noise free and I have an A1+ of this on my wall. It scrutinizes up close, detailed everywhere...no noise while the colours are vivd and the contrast is heavy.
Every camera produces noise if pushed...I'd rather have my balanced image shot bright and at 100 iso. I can dial in moody darks later.
For weddings where I'm going to be around for the sun set, ND grads are nice for faster work. I can balance the light in one exposure but for my landscape work, I get far better results with the exposure blend technique. The only problem is where there's movement in the blend line.

 

[j-nord]

I love ND grads... IN SOFTWARE.

NDGs were great in film days, and I was considering getting a set as they are still useful for digital when you have the time to set them up.

But I like to shoot my landscapes faster... So I picked cameras that could give me maximum useful dynamic range, expose so the highlites aren't clipped. or clipped where I want them to be, then in post I can apply any kind of NDG filter I can imagine. FAR more versatile, MUCH more control.
I don't know why anyone would want to bother with using physical filters any more, other than an interesting challenge or hobby. Or perhaps you're using a more limited useful dynamic range camera, like, uhm... Canon.

In general yes but, what about water/cloud/people smoothing? It seems ND still has a place there.

 

[Aglet]

I love ND grads... IN SOFTWARE.

NDGs were great in film days, and I was considering getting a set as they are still useful for digital when you have the time to set them up.

But I like to shoot my landscapes faster... So I picked cameras that could give me maximum useful dynamic range, expose so the highlites aren't clipped. or clipped where I want them to be, then in post I can apply any kind of NDG filter I can imagine. FAR more versatile, MUCH more control.
I don't know why anyone would want to bother with using physical filters any more, other than an interesting challenge or hobby. Or perhaps you're using a more limited useful dynamic range camera, like, uhm... Canon.

In general yes but, what about water/cloud/people smoothing? It seems ND still has a place there.

They certainly do, and i still use them for such. But that's to increase exposure time, not to create a gradient exposure effect. I think you may have confused ND with ND-grad.