# What brand of ND filters do you have?



## al-toidz photography (Jan 11, 2013)

I own several ND and graduated filters from Hoya and B&W varying from 3-10 stops including the B&W 10 stop ND filter.

My question is, if I am to upgrade from screw-on filter to a one size filter such as the LEE Big Stopper and other brands, which one is better if not best and why? Im planning to use it on portrait and landscape.

Feedbacks and comments are very much appreciated. Thank you.


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## neuroanatomist (Jan 11, 2013)

Lee is quite good, Schneider Optics (B+W's parent company) makes excellent glass 4x6" filters (almost all others are resin). HiTech has a good reputation for a budget option, Cokin does not.


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## al-toidz photography (Jan 11, 2013)

Why do you say Cokin does not? Any particular reason. Is having resin instead of glass a bad thing?


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## neuroanatomist (Jan 11, 2013)

al-toidz photography said:


> Why do you say Cokin does not? Any particular reason. Is having resin instead of glass a bad thing?



No, resin isn't a bad thing. They're lighter and less likely to break, but more likely to get scratched. 

Cokin filters are known for their color cast issues.


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## Eli (Jan 11, 2013)

Don't get Cokin unless you like purple photos 
Get LEE filters if you can, they're great quality.


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## al-toidz photography (Jan 11, 2013)

@Neuroanatomist

Thanks for clearing it up.

@Eli

thanks, but Big LEE stopper is nearly impossible to find. I tried ebay and has been checking it everyday and nothing comes up. LOL, what do you expect, duh? Do you know any store/website or any other possible way to get a hand of LEE stopper?


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## Simba (Jan 11, 2013)

This seller shipped the filter the same day I ordered. Great service.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lee-Big-Stopper-4-x4-10-Stop-Neutral-Density-ND-Glass-Filter-Brand-New-/150933777979?pt=Camera_Filters&hash=item23245aae3b

I also ordered the Lee Foundation Kit from this good seller.

http://www.ebay.com/sch/minmin415/m.html?item=110964503697&pt=Camera_Filters&hash=item19d5fff491&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562


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## tphillips63 (Jan 11, 2013)

I just researched this quite a bit and decided on the following because I can use them with all my lens. I compared these to heliopan, B&W screw on in 82mm size with adapters and the price is similar and decided on the Lee system.
I ordered from 2filter and the price was better than the ebay from above for the Big Stopper, $168.58
Lee 4X6 Graduated Neutral Density 0.9 HE Filter
Lee 4X4 Neutral Density 0.9 Filter
Lee 4x4 Big Stopper 10 f/stop LEE Filters GLASS ND 3.0 Camera filter
LEE Filter Holder, model FK holds 3, 4x6 or 4x4 filters
Lee Wide Angle 82mm Adapter Ring
Lee 77mm Adapter Ring
Lee 72mm Adapter Ring
LEE 105MM CIRCULAR POLARIZER
Lee 105mm front mounting ring for FK holder
Lee 3 Pocket Filter Pouch


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## shutterwideshut (Jan 11, 2013)

Eli said:


> Don't get Cokin unless you like purple photos
> Get LEE filters if you can, they're great quality.



Lee filters, indeed, is the best option. 



al-toidz photography said:


> thanks, but Big LEE stopper is nearly impossible to find. I tried ebay and has been checking it everyday and nothing comes up. LOL, what do you expect, duh? Do you know any store/website or any other possible way to get a hand of LEE stopper?



The Lee Big Stopper is indeed very rare but I know one reputable store in Singapore which always have stocks of the Lee Big Stopper. I am not sure though whether they entertan orders outside Singapore but you may inquire on this link: http://www.tkfoto.com.sg/index.php?option=com_contact&view=contact&id=1&Itemid=102

The Lee Filter pricelist in Singapore Dollars can be seen on this link: http://www.tkfoto.com.sg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=178:lee-filter-pricelist&catid=115&Itemid=212


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## Cycleguy (Jan 11, 2013)

I have read the big stopper has a bit of a blue cast. Been thinking about giving singh-ray a try. http://www.singh-ray.com

They seem expensive but well regarded.


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## Simba (Jan 11, 2013)

I have a few LEE GND filters and Big Stopper, as well as the Singh-Ray reverse GND. I have stacked 3 together without seeing any color cast. I would say they are equally good. I have used HiTech before, but magenta became obvious if 2 of them were stacked.


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## Kernuak (Jan 11, 2013)

Cycleguy said:


> I have read the big stopper has a bit of a blue cast. Been thinking about giving singh-ray a try. http://www.singh-ray.com
> 
> They seem expensive but well regarded.


I think most, if not all of the really dark ND filters have a slight blue cast, but it does give a distinctive look that doesn't actually look unnatural. I still have my Singh-Ray reverse grad filter for the Cokin set and it is the one filter I miss the most since upgrading to Lee. I want to get the larger size to fit the Lee set eventually, but the exchange rate isn't good at the moment. While Hi-Tech are good for the price (and I still have those too), they aren't in the same league as Lee and Singh-Ray.


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## steliosk (Jan 11, 2013)

i'm having a B+W ND 3.0 1000 77mm with terrible magenta cast 
also some hoya cir polarizers (pro1, super, digital)
hoya pro1 uv and nd8
and a cheap circular grad with a bit of green/cyan cast.

i didn't expect the B+W to have that awefull magenta cast though. The hoya nd8 has no cast at all!


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## Canoner (Jan 12, 2013)

al-toidz photography said:


> @Neuroanatomist
> 
> Thanks for clearing it up.
> 
> ...



You probably won't get one even though you check the major retailers everyday for months :-\. I paid a little more and got one from the following ebayer in a couple of days. 8) The big stopper is a cool toy for landscape photographers. Get one and you won't regret.

http://myworld.ebay.com/minmin415/


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## christianronnel (Jan 12, 2013)

Kernuak said:


> Cycleguy said:
> 
> 
> > I have read the big stopper has a bit of a blue cast. Been thinking about giving singh-ray a try. http://www.singh-ray.com
> ...



You are correct about the blue cast of really dark ND filter. The good thing about the Lee, Big Stopper for instance, the color cast is even throughout the frame. I've had the singh-ray which had uneven color cast. 

I tried to save money when I got into photography and got a set of solid and a set of graduated Hitech filters. What a waste of money that was. Then someone recommended Singh-ray filters. Did my research this time but the actual product was very disappointing. Twice the price of the Hitech but the quality is similar. Then I finally purchased Lee filters from 2filter.com

From my experience, I would have saved money if I had purchased Lee in the first place. The US stocks are very good now and 2filter usually ships within 2 weeks. But if you're looking at budget filter, I would recommend HiTech and just accept the fact that you will have more work in post processing. I would also say that avoid Singh-ray if you can. They are just as bad as Cokin but with better marketing gimmick (i.e., branding with famous photographers' name).


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## wickidwombat (Jan 12, 2013)

neuroanatomist said:


> al-toidz photography said:
> 
> 
> > Why do you say Cokin does not? Any particular reason. Is having resin instead of glass a bad thing?
> ...



I think they also noticably soften the image too especially if you are using very good glass its easy to see the degredation in image quality even on the camera screen

rather than use graduated nd filtes i prefer the black card approach or rather i have a black lens cloth in my bag which i dangle over the top of the frame to reduce the sky exposure

I have the schnieder 82mm 10 stop that neuro recomends as well as a 52mm B+W 10 stop for use with my 20mm voigt and 40mm f2.8 in my light and compact kit


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## RobertG. (Jan 12, 2013)

I use the HiTech filters for a while now. They do the job but they are definitely not the best you can get. They are rather cheap and you can see why. I've got a full set of grad and reverse grad nd filters as well as the orignal and the new 3.0 ND filter. While the newer 3.0 ND filter is a significant improvement, the strong blue color cast is still bothering me a lot. 

If you are really serious into landscape photography, consider buying the Lee filters. The HiTech filters will help to save money but detoriate your image quality.


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