Filter Review
I’ve been a long time Singh-Ray Filter user. I have eight of them in my bag. There are several reasons, but quality is the one that really matters to me. My theory has always been that I pay top dollar for the best lenses that were designed and tested without filters in front of them. I think I should use them this way. Therefore, I need the best quality filter and a good reason if I am going to violate this theory. Over the years I have only one non Singh-Ray filter in my kit!
Naturally, I’m interested anytime the company comes up with a new product. They have some of the best of today’s photographers suggesting, designing and testing new ideas and products. I believe that filters like the Galen Rowell split ND series helped my landscape photography as much as his. Like Rowell, I came to realize that I could make images that were not possible without it on film. Some of their filters merely helped, but some MADE the shot!
Now that we have entered the digital photography age some things have changed and some stay the same. The quality issue is even more important now that resolution provides such literal interpretation. The histogram has provided us with the means to see what information is recorded and where. This has freed us to concentrate on the one thing that is essential in the field, COMPOSITION! The LCD has given us a quick look at framing and exposure as well. It also is a quick confirmation of capture. A new age indeed! New tools are being invented a great rate to take advantage of the fact that we now can do what was never possible before.
One of these new and exciting tools is the Vari-ND filter. Imagine being able to use most any combination of shutter and aperture in most any lighting situations! What if you could have a single filter that would allow you to use this idea within about 10 stops! You can because this one does! No more stacking filters or even worrying about degrading the image. Simply mount the filter, set your preferred shutter speed and aperture and shoot!
What do you do when you are just a little too late in the season and it’s high noon on a cloudless day? On our August workshop we were in just this situation. Famous and beautiful Waterwheel Falls was a couple of weeks past the stage where it flips backwards and gets its name. Here interest was gained with a full second exposure that also brought saturation to the foreground and gleefully darkened the shadow area. Here is what you actually can do, and do easily with this filter.
Very Long Exposures
Long exposures of one or more seconds are possible to blur anything that moves, falling water, passing clouds, flying birds or even people in motion. At noon on a clear day! Most anything within about 10 stops of light is possible!
Selective Focus
Separating your main subject from the background by reducing the depth of field often means that you must use your widest lens aperture. In bright daylight, however, this may require switching to a much slower film or a shutter speed beyond your camera's ability. Even with digital you only have the means to go to a faster ISO, not a slower one, that's when you reach for the Vari-ND to reduce the light to your needs.
Flash Control
The Vari-ND enables you to position speedlights closer to your macro subjects without overexposure problems
And ……………. It’s Easy To Use
Set at its minimum density, the Vari-ND has a 2.5 filtration factor (equivalent to 1 1/2 additional exposure stops). By rotating the Vari-ND control ring, you can gradually increase the density up to 8 exposure stops. This is really all you need to know. This filter functions exactly like a circular polarizer.
In the image to the left, the Var-ND Filter was used to create an archival look. Motion like this was seen a lot in Civil War photographs and become most attractive when translated to a modern seen.
How I Use Mine
I simply mount the filter on the lens when I see the need. I then turn the filter to allow all the light possible (it’s minimum) for the following reason. I focus either manually or with the AF and then turn the AF off. With a change of as much as 8 stops of light, the AF focus might well be fooled when I take a meter reading. I then take a meter reading at my selected shutter speed and aperture with the filter still at its minimum. I make a mental check of the exposure to see if it will fall in the 8 stop capability, remembering that like life itself, not all things are possible. I then start to rotate the filter until the exposure is on the meter or where I think I want it and then open the shutter. The beauty here is with digital capability you have all the benefits described above. I check the histogram, the LCD and then bracket if necessary.
I most always bracket. This is a very strong filter and can easily fool the meter, especially if light conditions are changing quickly. Bracketing is much different in this application, and really, much easier. How so? All that is needed at this point is to rotate the filter! Same shutter and aperture combo but you’ll be adding more, or diminishing light depending on need. Now I quickly change the combo and do it again, in seconds! Want to see a 5 second exposure in open daylight? Sure, why not!
Conclusion
Get on the waitlist and buy this filter! As in all the best of photography, this tool is easy to use, its results are stunning and unlike most anything you’ll likely to do without it. Like all good tools it presents possibilities that would be at best, difficult to achieve without or would require many tools to accomplish. And best of all, this tool is fun to use!
Most importantly is the promise I was made by Singh-Ray. That being that this filter will NOT degrade the image. I’ve used this filter on three of my workshops over the past 60 days. To this point, I find that statement 100% accurate. I’m now to the point that I’ve stopped looking for it. Need more information. There is much more on the Singh-Ray website.