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I saved $250 by making my own DIY contrast filter holder for the Omega B66 enlarger

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Have you ever had a repeated inconvenience that finally makes you say to yourself “okay, I’m done with this garbage”? Well, that’s the exact feeling I had with using contrast filters on my enlarger. Anytime I wanted to use a contrast filter, I needed to use tape to hold it in place while I was printing.

The design of some Omega enlargers requires a removable “cradle” that holds the filters underneath the lens. After a bit of searching online, I found that B&H Photo sells a replacement filter holder for B series enlargers for the low low price of $269. Even used, these things are expensive. eBay had a few listed that were selling for about $79. Unwilling to part with my hard-earned cash for such a frivolous purchase I was left with the only other option- to build one myself.

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Nisi unveils the cutest filter system for the Fuji X100 system

Chinese filter manufacturer Nisi just unveiled a UV-filter and filter system for the Fuji X100V. The filter system is compatible with Fuji X100V/X100F/X100T/X100S/X100.

The UV filter protects against ultraviolet light, and it is a screw-on system produced in silver or black connecting with the camera’s color theme.

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Are graduated neutral-density filters really useful?

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For a few years now I have been using various different filters. I mostly use them to reduce the overall light coming into the camera or to help control reflections. It seems though I always overlooked one type of filter: the graduated neutral-density filters (ND Grad for short)

I honestly thought that graduated neutral-density filters wouldn’t work very well in the real world. While they offer a reduction of light on selective parts of your image, they do so in horizontal lines. Sure, I can use this to cut the light out in the sky, but what about buildings, trees or other landscape elements that go “across the line” like the tree in the image above?

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PolarPro targets landscape photographers and filmmakers with new Summit and BaseCamp filter systems

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Having established themselves as a leader in producing filters for drones, PolarPro started turning their attention towards photographers and filmmakers a couple of years ago. Their round QuartzLine series of screw-on filters have proven to be very popular, as have their Peter McKinnon Edition Variable ND filters.

Now, PolarPro is stepping things up a notch with a whole new filter system designed for landscape photographers and higher-end cinema shooters with their new Summit filter system and Basecamp matte box system.

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NiSi Switch lets you hold two filters at once and rotate them independently

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Filter system manufacturer NiSi has just introduced Switch, a new filter holder that lets you hold two filters at once and rotate them independently from each other. It’s made for situations when you need graduated ND filters at different angles, so you can achieve optimal results in-camera.

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A first look at the new 15 stop Irix Edge ND32000 filter and square filter holder

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Since the initial announcement of Irix’s new Edge filter series at PPE last year, the range has grown slowly but steadily. A new 15 stop neutral density filter, the Irix Edge ND32000 was announced just a couple of weeks ago, and today we got to see it in person during The Photography Show in Birmingham, England. We also got the chance to check out their new square filter holder,  too.

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Irix expands its product range with a new 100mm filter holder for wide angle lenses

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Irix, the Swiss lens manufacturers are branching out into new products besides lenses. The natural extension to lenses is filters. While Irix lenses do come with rear filter holders, you often need them on the front. Things like polarisers and graduated NDs are impossible to work with when sandwiched between the lens and body. So, to tackle this issue, Irix have today announced a new 100mm filter holder system.

The Irix IFH-100 is a dedicated adapter designed to hold 100mm wide filters. The filter is made of aluminium alloy, allowing for a compact size with a lot of strength. The front side of the filter is also lined with light absorbing fabric to prevent internal reflections. Irix have also announced a range of 100mm filters to go along with the new holder.

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How to make your own DIY filter holders for wide angle lenses

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Ultra wide angle lenses are great, and if you’re a landscape shooter then you probably own at least one or two of them, but many have a bit of a problem in the form of built in lens hoods that prevent you from attaching filters.

While you may not want to use a polarising filter on a lens with a field of view so wide it can almost see behind itself, ND filters are often desired to produce long exposures giving landscapes a softer and more ethereal quality, or perhaps you simply want to slow down the shutter for video.

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