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The problem with variable NDs and why fixed NDs are still relevant

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Variable neutral density filters are quite a wonderful thing. In theory. They let you adjust your exposure outside of the camera’s own systems as the light on your scene changes. They’re quick and convenient, and expensive if you want a good one. But are they really all that good?

Lok Cheung used variable ND filters during his tenure at Digital Rev. He was typically the one manning the camera filming Kai. But since he’s gone solo, he’s noticed that they’re not really as practical as he’d like. Nor do they really offer the quality that one needs today. In this video, he explains why variable NDs just don’t hold up to the job, and why fixed NDs reign supreme.

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How to overpower the sun and balance with strobes using ND filters

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Trying to overpower the sun seems to have become a popular thing again lately. The go-to technique for these results is a fast shutter speed and high speed sync. But the limited power available in speedlights often falls a little short. Now, with more powerful HSS-capable strobes on the market, like the Godox AD360II and AD600BM, it’s become a more common look.

This look has been available for a long time, though, with the use of neutral density. These would allow you to shoot wide apertures in the daytime while keeping your shutter speed below the flash sync. In this video from photographer Levy Moroshan of sector5films we see how that technique works. Balancing the bright daylight with the flash, to make our subjects stand out with a shallow depth of field.

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How to get that cinematic look with an f/1.2 lens in bright sunlight

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Shooting stills in bright sunlight with fast glass with super wide apertures is fairly easy. You just knock down your ISO and speed up your shutter until you have your exposure under control. But when you’re shooting video, that’s not really an option if you want that cinematic look. Your shutter speed’s generally locked at 1/50th of a second for 24p video (1/100th for 50fps, 1/125th for 60fps, etc).

It’s a bit like working outdoors in bright conditions with flash that doesn’t support high speed sync. Once you hit that sync speed your shutter simply won’t go any faster. The go to option in both cases is neutral density. Filters that go over your lens to reduce the amount of light entering it and hitting your sensor. This video from weird lens guru, Mathieu Stern, shows a slightly different approach.

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How to use your exposure settings for creative effect

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Whether you’re shooting photography or video, film or digital, exposure generally boils down to three elements in your camera. ISO, aperture and shutter speed. All three of these things will affect your exposure, how bright the image is. But each will also change how the final image appears on the camera. Aperture changes your depth of field. Shutter speed changes motion blur. ISO determines the amount of noise you get.

There are differences in how you might approach certain problems when it comes to shooting video vs stills, though. We may be limited by technical issues, such as flash sync speed for photography. Or the 180° shutter rule for video. So, in this video, filmmaker Caleb Pike talks us through what each does, and how we can use them to our advantage to get the results we want.

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How to shoot long exposure timelapse with direct sunlight in the middle of the day

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Shooting long exposures on a bright day can be a hassle. Even with your aperture at f/16 and ISO as low as it’ll go, you’re lucky if you can get slow enough to blur motion. This is where super strung neutral density filters come in.

Jay P Morgan of The Slanted Lens takes us out on a visit to Santa Monica beach in this video. Using Syrp’s new Super Dark variable ND to cut 6-10 stops of light from his exposure, Jay is able to get those 2-4 second exposures you need for daylight timelapse.

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How to fix colour casts with neutral density long exposures

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Anybody who’s ever used strong neutral density filters knows about colour casts. Whether it’s the B+W 10 Stop or the Lee Big Stopper, they’re just inevitable. Each filter presents a different colour cast. The same filter can also offer a different colour cast on different camera bodies. The typical way to deal with it is to play around with your white balance to try and correct for it.

Without a good reference, though, shifting the white balance to fix it in post can be a bit of a crap shoot. This video from Mike Browne talks through the problem, and shows a couple of different ways to make adjustments to fix colour cast issues. One is by setting your white balance in the camera, the other is by shooting a neutral reference that will let you do it in post.

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Are filters even necessary for landscape photography anymore?

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This is a topic that seems to come up every few years. As sensors increase in dynamic range, ND grads sometimes aren’t so essential. Raw processing software becomes more capable with each new release. Even filters that cut through haze aren’t always needed. But what about things like circular polarisers and big ND filters for super long exposures?

In this video, landscape photographer Thomas Heaton offers his insight and thoughts on the question. When it comes to polarisers, Thomas is of the opinion that they absolutely are necessary. It’s an opinion I share. The function that they serve just cannot be reproduced in post. But what about the rest? Watch the video to find out.

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Overpowering the sun; Shooting outdoor flash portraits in harsh bright sunlight

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At some point or another, anybody who shoots portraits is going to need to shoot outdoors in bright sunlight. Even if you actively try to avoid it, it’s going to happen one day. It’s just inevitable. Maybe you’re not a portrait photographer, but you have a fancy camera and a flash. Friends or family may ask you to shoot their photo. Sunny days might be beautiful, but often not for portraits, unless you have a bit of flash to offer a helping hand.

In this video from AdoramaTV, Gavin Hoey walks us through overpowering the sun. We see flash units of various power from small speedlights to large battery operated strobes. Even just a speedlight in a small softbox makes a massive difference. Going over to a more powerful flash produces dramatically different results.

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5 Tips to get great light for outdoor portraits

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Shooting outside in bright sunlight scares many photographers. I always see people saying to not go out and shoot portraits when the sun’s high in the sky. To wait until golden hour and shoot in the sunset, or only go out on a cloudy day.

Well, I think that’s nonsense. There’s so much you can do with bright contrasty sunlight. In this video from Shutterbug Magazine, photographer James Patrick shows us five great tips for working with it.

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