Photography - week 5 - 12/03/2019

Tripods 

Used for:
Long Exposures and Night time
Timelapse
Slow Shutter
Panoramics
Video
Same framing between shots
Etc. etc.

Tripod heads

Video head

panoramic head

Pan Tilt Heads

Ball head

Filters

Polarisers

Neutral Density

Variable ND

Infrared

IRND

Colour Correction

Coloured

what do filters do?

Filters act for different reasons. They add different affect to the image, so you don't have to do them during the editing stage. Or for exposure purposes, having one part of the image more exposed than the other. Though I still find it quite hard to understand how to use the filters in context of photography I think that just comes with experimenting with them. I am interested into looking further into the Polariser and the Neutral Density to see how it will affect the photography that I want to experiment with. I want to see if It can give a clean crisp feel to the photo or an airy, creepy type of look. 

I found this website which helped me further to understand filters and the difference between them: https://www.adorama.com/alc/a-beginners-guide-to-camera-lens-filters

Polarisers

Glare on roads

Glare on water

Deepen blue in sky

Reduces exposure by 1 to 3 stops depending on polarisation

Makes LCD screens go black

Helpful link given by tutor: https://www.photographytalk.com/landscape-photography/7582-when-to-use-and-not-to-use-a-polarizer

Neutral Density 

 Ratings:

ND 2, 4, 8, 16, etc. (refers to fraction of light, i.e. ½, ¼, etc)

ND 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.2, etc. (refers to calculation for absorbance log(factor of light reduced, i.e. if 1/16th the light, log(16) = 1.2)

"Most suitable for:

Landscape photography

Flash photography

Street photography

Photographing moving bodies of water like rivers and falls" Adorama Learning Center. (2019). [online] Available at: https://www.adorama.com/alc/a-beginners-guide-to-camera-lens-filters [Accessed 17 Mar. 2019].

"As you can see above, the metadata on both exposures above is (almost) identical. The camera was set to automatic white balance for both exposures. The image on the right was shot with B+W Filters, while the image on the right was shot using the new Tiffen ND Filter.

The magenta color cast found in the image on the left is a frequent 'side-effect' of using strong ND filtration (we used 16 stops of ND filtration in both images above). If you're going to convert to black and white, then this color cast may not be a big deal. I have been dealing with it for years, and have accepted it as a common side-effect that is almost negligible once I am converting to black and white.

But what if you want to experiment shooting long exposures in color? Then, the Tiffen Filter may be a very convenient and valuable tool, saving you from attempting to color correct the magenta out of your RAW files.

The images above demonstrate that Tiffen has made a great product here. Only negative as far as I can tell is that this filter seems to be offered in only one strength: 7 stops of ND. So I combined it with a HOYA ND 400x, which is equivalent to roughly 9 stops. This combination gives a total of 16 stops, same as combining a 10 stop and 6 stop B+W filter(s)." Bulbexposures.com. (2019). ND Filter Color Cast: - Bulbexposures.com - Bulb Exposures - The Blog about Long Exposure Photography!. [online] Available at: http://bulbexposures.com/home/2011/10/11/nd-filter-color-cast.html [Accessed 17 Mar. 2019].

Variable ND

1 to 8.5 stops or more depending on the brand

Infrared

Used to filter visible wave length light

Can be used on film, some older digitals or modified digital cameras

Ilford SFX200 for B&W and Kodak IR Film

 "The I-Ray filter is designed to block visible light, and allows nearly 90% of light in the near infrared range to reach the camera sensor. The resulting image is surreal and beautiful, and the reason why infrared photography is very compelling. Foliage as seen in infrared has a luminescence that is magical, not something that can be equally reproduced with Photoshop filters and plug-ins.  " Sandidge, D. (2019). Infrared photography with the Singh-Ray I-Ray filter * Deborah Sandidge. [online] Debsandidge.com. Available at: https://www.debsandidge.com/2013/03/infrared-photography-with-the-singh-ray-i-ray-filter/ [Accessed 18 Mar. 2019].

"Using the I-Ray filter is fairly straightforward. If you’ve worked with 10 stop neutral density filters, you’ll feel right at home. Exposure time will be several minutes, you’ll need a tripod and cable/remote release. Use Manual mode, compose, focus, and determine aperture needed for the composition. Set the camera to Bulb Mode as the shutter speed will be several minutes. For this photo I used ISO 500, aperture was set at f/5.6 and the shutter speed was about a minute and 50 seconds, my best estimate of exposure time. Close the eyepiece shutter during exposure, just as if you would when creating long exposures using neutral density filters to prevent light leakage. I used the Nikon D4 and a 24mm lens which is a great lens for infrared photography with the I-Ray filter." Sandidge, D. (2019). Infrared photography with the Singh-Ray I-Ray filter * Deborah Sandidge. [online] Debsandidge.com. Available at: https://www.debsandidge.com/2013/03/infrared-photography-with-the-singh-ray-i-ray-filter/ [Accessed 18 Mar. 2019].

Colour Correction

Coloured

Used for black and white photography.

Matt Krumins Photography. (2019). Monochrome.. it's not that black and white | Matt Krumins Photography. [online] Available at: https://mattkruminsphotography.com.au/monochrome-its-not-just-black-and-white/ [Accessed 18 Mar. 2019].

"No matter what DSLR or mirrorless camera you are on these days you should have access to Picture Styles (vivid, landscape, portrait, standard, etc) including your black and white shooting mode called Monochrome. Below are some examples from Canon, Nikon and Olympus where you can add a Digital Colour filter to your monochrome, essentially mimicking putting an actual filter in front of the lens. Generally speaking when shooting landscapes and seascapes I like to use a red filter as this creates a more contrasty scene darkening the blues of the skies. Whilst these digital filters do not affect your RAW file (only your JPEG), being able to pre-visualise how you will end up editing your image in Lightroom can be really rewarding when out in the field shooting."  Matt Krumins Photography. (2019). Monochrome.. it's not that black and white | Matt Krumins Photography. [online] Available at: https://mattkruminsphotography.com.au/monochrome-its-not-just-black-and-white/ [Accessed 18 Mar. 2019].

"For those who are processing your images in Lightroom, these same digital filters are available in two different forms: presets, and manual configuration. Presets (see number 1 in the image below) allow you to choose very selective filters to brighten or darken sections of your black and white image (press V to convert to B&W in the first place). The panel in the editing window (see number 2 in the image below) allows you to very specifically configure your black and white filters giving you incredible control over the final look of your image. To push a particular colour towards black or white simply use the sliders, or alternatively the click the little dot in the top left corner (to the bottom right of my #2 marking, click on the part of the image you wish to darken or lighten and slide your mouse."  Matt Krumins Photography. (2019). Monochrome.. it's not that black and white | Matt Krumins Photography. [online] Available at: https://mattkruminsphotography.com.au/monochrome-its-not-just-black-and-white/ [Accessed 18 Mar. 2019].