I took some test shots today with a B+W 110 (3.0) NDx1000 77mm Neutral Density Filter. Here are some observations I have made about the filter.
If you want to do a 60 to 90 second exposure in broad daylight it's no problem at all. The problem is as follows..........when you look through the viewfinder........you literally cannot see a thing. It is dead black. Thus.....you cannot compose a photo with the filter on the camera. You must compose without the filter and then screw it back on. A HUGE pain in the neck handling an expensive filter like that for every shot.
The perfect situation would be to either get the insanely expensive Sighn-Ray vari-nd...............or............I am looking for a 10 stop ND that will fit in my Lee filter holder. That way I could just compose and then slide the filter down just like the GND's I use now.
That would be the best way to approach these ultra long exposures. If you don't mind unscrewing the filter all the time the B+W is superb. I find it to be a pain. This type of photography opens up an insane amount of possibilities though and I am hoping to find a 10-stop slide-in filter somewhere on the net. I don't want to stack three 3-stop filters because all those filters would be way too thick causing vignetting and just the thickness alone would degrade the image far too much.
If anyone knows of a 10 stop ND filter that works like a slide-in Lee or Cokin...please let me know.
In the meantime.....here are some test shots. Nothing artistic or well composed. Merely testing the filter.
The first photo is a 50 second exposure.
The second photo is a 60 second exposure.
The third photo is an 80 second exposure.
All taken between 3 and 4 pm.
I use a Hoya ND400, declared as 9 stop ND, but it performs as a 10 stop ND in my experience. It was a bit of a pain using it at first, but I got used to the process and I love the results
On the other hand, I am not sure how a strong ND slide-in filter would work - I have made 3 or 4 test shots with a Cokin IR filter and my Canon 20D. That called for exposures longer than 20 secs, so it can be compared to this, I guess. I had problems with light leeks. It was hard for me to block all of the openings in the cokin P filter holder system, and the shots were ruined. I was discouraged by those first attempts and never tried again - I returned to using screw-in filters for IR photography. Talking to some other photographers, it turns out they had similar experiences. But if you have a holder with a tighter fit, why not try?
Would a B+W 6-stop be a happy medium between practicality and results? I think you can still focus with a 6-stop in daylight, and the exposures will be long, although not 90 seconds of course.
I think its also cheaper but dont quote me on that.
I might be saying something stupid but ... the Vari ND works with two polarizers, and one "darkens" the whole thing by turning one of the polarizers, right?
Did you try with two stacked polarizers? I hear you about the vignetting and such, but the Vari ND must suffer from it too, no ?
I might be saying something stupid but ... the Vari ND works with two polarizers, and one "darkens" the whole thing by turning one of the polarizers, right?
Did you try with two stacked polarizers? I hear you about the vignetting and such, but the Vari ND must suffer from it too, no ?
vari nd is 2 polarizers and the outher most one is Reversed soit's "back" is screwed to the "front" of the other. they cost over 350bux too
