ND8 Filter Trial
One of my Christmas gifts this year was a Neutral Density 8 (ND8) filter. Woo-Hoooo!
Full of excitement, I headed off to Speers Point on the beautiful Lake Macquarie, my mind full of images of silky smooth, misty water and long, wispy dreamlike clouds.
I was a little disappointed at first, because I was not able to get the long exposure settings that I wanted without blowing out the exposure entirely. It wasn't until the Sun started to go down and the light softened and faded that I was really able to achieve the water effect that I had anticipated. The longest exposure I was able to achieve was 20 seconds at f36. The rest were between 1-8 seconds. I was using a Canon EFS 18-55mm lens. I did notice that if I zoomed in to the 55mm that I was able to set a smaller aperture. Not sure why that is but I have obviously got a bit more homework to do!
I think another factor in not gaining that silky smooth look before dusk set in is because the water in the Lake wasn't 'running' very fast; it just ebbed and flowed from the occasional boat going past. I think that given the same time of day on some beach rocks, the motion would be more noticeable at a shorter exposure simply because of the speed of the water from the waves.
Another thing I did not expect was the lovely hues and colour of the sunset through the filter! Really beautiful golden hues and lovely deep blues.
One thing I did not try on this Safari was to stack the ND8 and my Circular Polariser. That may be interesting!
I intend to buy an even darker ND filter once I have mastered this one. I also need to master the Bulb setting on my 600D. Another Photo Safari on the horizon; empty streets!
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. Stay safe for the New Year!
regards to all
Jordy
"I did notice that if I zoomed in to the 55mm that I was able to set a smaller aperture. Not sure why that is but I have obviously got a bit more homework to do!"
ReplyDeleteThat is normal. As you increase the focal length, the aperture diameter, which remains the same size in mm, is a smaller fraction of the focal length hence the f/ratio is a larger number. What actually happens is the same light is coming in through the same size hole, but the longer focal length is spreading it out over the sensor more so it has the effect of less light.
JG aka Starling@cix
"I think another factor in not gaining that silky smooth look before dusk set in is because the water in the Lake wasn't 'running' very fast"
ReplyDeleteI think your right there, a day with a bit of wind would help.
"One thing I did not try on this Safari was to stack the ND8 and my Circular Polariser. That may be interesting!"
I think that should give you another stop. If you also shoot in RAW you can over expose by one more stop and recover the highlights in the RAW processor in Photoshop.
Thanks for your replies JG. I really appreciate the info! I have learned to shoot in RAW and do so all of the time now. Hope you will visit again! All the best for the New Year
Deleteregards
Jordy