Posts Tagged ‘Filters’

While neutral density filters can help you capture photos or video that wouldn't otherwise be possible, they do bring with them their own set of issues you need to watch out for. This is particularly true for the stronger neutral density filters.

In this article we'll go through a variety of issues you should look out for when using your ND filter, and when deciding what ND filter to purchase. We'll also look at how to best prevent or at least minimize any problems using an ND filter can give.

Neutral density filters are available in a range of different strengths, types, and mounts. Different manufacturers may rate their ND filters in different ways, which can make make it quite confusing when you're looking for a specific strength filter. In this article we'll look at what the different ratings actually mean, and types and mounts available, so you can make a more informed choice when deciding what ND filter to purchase.

Continuing on from the previous article 10 non-essential but useful accessories for your camera bag, here's another ten items that aren't essential, but can be very useful to have in your bag, depending on what you're shooting.

If you have an interchangeable lens camera and you're interested in capturing photos that are more than simple snapshots, then there will likely come a time when you want to purchase a new lens for your camera. Although some photographers seem to always be obsessed with the latest and greatest camera bodies, in most cases a new lens will do much more for your photography than a camera body will.

The problem can come in choosing a lens - there are so many different lenses to choose from. Different focal lengths, zooms, and fixed focal length lenses, with and without image stabilization, and at many different price points. In this article I'll look at the different features you should consider when looking at a lens, and how to decide which lens is best for you.

Applying digital filters to photos, particularly photos taken using a phone, is extremely popular. You can achieve many effects in modern software that previously required photographers to use a physical filter in front of the camera's lens.

However, this doesn't mean you should dismiss the use of physical filters. Some effects can't be replicated in software. And even if the effect can be duplicated, it still won't give quite the same result. In this article we'll look at some creative reasons why you should give physical filters a try.

Many cameras allow you to screw a filter onto the end of the lens to achieve a certain effect. For example, one of the most popular filters is the polarizing filter, used to reduce reflections and glare, and to enhance colors and contrast in landscape photography.

When you purchase a filter, you need to make sure that it comes with the correct size threads to screw onto your camera's lens. Different cameras and lenses have different filter thread sizes, and filters are also available in a wide range of different sizes.

The problem comes when you have a filter in one size, but your lens has a filter thread of a different size. This can easily happen when you upgrade from one camera to another, or if you buy more than one lens. To solve this, you can use stepping rings.

Pile of step up and step down rings

Particularly for landscape photography, you can often come across a scene where the range of light is too great for your camera to capture. You end up having to choose between a properly exposed landscape and a blown-out white sky, or a properly exposed sky with a black silhouette of a landscape.

Photo with no filter - the landscape is exposed correctly, but the sky is too bright

One solution to this problem is graduated neutral density filters.

Photo taken with a graduated neutral density filter to darken the sky

These filters can be attached to the end of your camera's lens, with one half fully transparent, while the other half is darker. You position the filter so the darker half is over the area of the photo you want to reduce the exposure of (e.g. the sky).