Questions about filters

[Jehu]

I'm still somewhat new to LF so I need some advice on filters. I haven't used them so far. I've ordered a Lee system which will be here in about a week. I'm starting with a .6 ND grad.

What are your favorites? Why? Post examples please.

I was also wondering if the aperture affects grad filters. It seems like a smaller aperture would require a harder grad line on the filter. Is that the case? or am I just overthinking my brain power again?

[Stephen Lewis]

Generaly speaking, with graduated filters a smaller aperture and/or a longer focal length make the transition on the filter more apparent. Whether to use filters with a soft or a hard transition depends on these factors, but also takes into account the composition I have. HTH

steve
www.landscapesofwales.co.uk

[cjbroadbent]

... It seems like a smaller aperture would require a harder grad line on the filter. Is that the case? ...

With a smaller aperture, it's quite hard to place the transition because you cannot check it easily on the ground glass. A sharp transition tends to come into focus with wider lenses. So I prefer a gradual transition - in red, not ND, for black and white. I use the ND sideways in interiors to even-out the widow side of the room.

[Jehu]

I didn't know that red-grad filters existed. That sounds interesting. Do you have any examples of their use?

Thanks for the advice.

[Lachlan 717]

With the Lee and Cokin filter holders, you do get the option of which slot to place the filter (useful for multiple filters).

ALWAYS put the grad in the slot closest to the front element!

If you are using double Grads, always put the hardest and/or darkest filter closest to the front element.

Lachlan.

[cjbroadbent]

I didn't know that red-grad filters existed. That sounds interesting. Do you have any examples of their use?....

This is a fairly typical way of keeping the sky under control:
Lighting cameramen always had a case full with varying densities. Red was a favorite for sky. Harrison & Harrison in Hollywood would grow them on order, in a sort of fish tank. It took maybe a month to grow the crystals (by osmosis?) between the the two pieces of glass. Maybe someone else knows more about the process. When I visited in 1961, the front desk and the people looked like something out of a Norman Rockwell illustration.

[Ralph Barker]

In general, you might think of filters as giving you some control over the relative rendition of colors within the scene and their relative density on B&W film. ND grads control relative exposure (and thus, negative density) across the film without affecting the rendition of different colors. Colored filters (red, orange, yellow, green, etc.) affect the relative rendition of colors within the scene. How you use these filter traits is up to you.

To get a better understanding of what different filters actually do, you might want to get a book. Kodak publishes a helpful booklet on the subject, "Using Filters".