The advantages of shooting with filters!

Shooting with filters may not be something you immediately think of, but it gives a very nice effect!

No, no filters for the photos, as with Instagram, for example, but actual filters for your lens. There are different types, shapes and sizes and they all have matching quality.  An important rule for the purchase of filters: do not skimp on this. Cheaper filters are often not colorfast, you get strange colors in your photo that do not belong there. The quality is also significantly less, which means that they wear out or break faster. So, invest in the right equipment if you want to get started with filters. 

Moving on to filters, we now discuss the most commonly used filters. 

* UV filters

The UV filter is one of the most commonly used filters. It has a visible effect in conditions where a lot of UV light is present. This includes areas high above sea level. UV filters are now also used to protect the lens from scratches. 

* Protection filters

These are specially made to protect the front lens element. These are often slightly more expensive than a UV filter and are made of a clear and more color neutral type of glass. Do you need a UV or protection filter?  Not necessarily, but it's cheaper to replace a filter than a lens.

* Polarizing filters

A polarizing filter consists of two parts, by turning the front part of the filter you determine which light the filter lets through. It is possible to give a photo extra contrast or to reduce reflections. Well-known examples for the use of a polarizing filter are the removal of reflections in windows, water or other reflective subjects. But also making the sky bluer or the grass greener. 

The use of a polarizing filter can also have drawbacks. Because a polarizing filter only allows light in a specific direction, less light will come in overall. The amount of light that comes in can be 1 to 2 stops less with a polarizing filter!

* ND Gradient Filters

Gradient filters are widely used for landscape photography. Since you want to see enough detail in light and dark parts. Installing a gradient filter eliminates the need to compromise between chewed-out skies and deep black shadows.

* ND filters

ND stands for Natural Density, also often called Gray filter in Dutch. An ND filter is a dark piece of glass that blocks the incoming light. The filters are available in different strengths. There are filters that only block a fraction of the light, to filters that block up to 10 stops of light! This makes it possible to freeze water and create fairytale images with slow shutter speeds. It is also a godsend if you want to shoot with a large aperture when there is too much light. Then you make the environment darker with an ND filter.  

Filters sometimes also have drawbacks. In some cases you don't want to use of a UV or protection filter. When shooting against a light source, the filter may reflect light and show this in the photo as a lens flare. In this case, it is wise to temporarily remove the filter from the lens.

Do you want to know more about filters? Or how do you use filters?

Workshop photography with filters

We have several photography workshops, where you can ask anything and learn a lot. Feel free to take a look between the various workshops, ask your question or register directly for the workshop 'shooting with filters'. 

Till clicks!