Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Have been on the lookout for an added ND filter. I'd prefer to get one of the fader ones, so that on a shoot, I'm not faffing around changing lens filters.

There are quite a few on sale on ebay (I live in the UK), and I wondered if anyone out there had bought one of these and if there were any differences in quality between them? What should I be expecting to pay for one of decent quality?

here's a link to one.

Fader ND Filter ( ND2 to ND400) 55mm Neutral Density - eBay (item 140410646817 end time Sep-21-10 08:41:40 PDT)

Thanks

I have the Singh ray and it works great. A couple of stepup rings make them fit all my lenses.
That eBay one looks interesting. Certainly better price than the $390 one I have!

$390!! yikes! - I wasn't expecting to pay anywhere near as much as that! I thought could pick one up easily for about £50 ($70/$80)

DIY with two linear polarizers. You can check out the Fader ND and Genus ND but you'd probably want to do a search for the limitations and image quality degradation of those filters before deciding if it is right for you.

I personally would just use straight ND filters... no sharpness loss and minimal colour casts. They are pricey though, especially the better ones.

as you say, there could be a loss in sharpness with the fader, although just noticed this filter - which is the only one I can see that guarantees it's for HD.

Fader ND Filter ( ND2 to ND400) 77mm Neutral Density on eBay (end time 17-Sep-10 15:41:07 BST)

Personally, I think that filter is a POS.

As many will tell you, the image quality with the Singh ray is awesome. Considering what you'd have to spend with individual nd filters and stacking, it really isn't that bad a price. plus the one I got is the thin one and it doesn't vignette nearly as bad as the thick one. And it's only on my Tokina 11-16 at 11mm that you see any at all.

That said, if the eBay ones work well and keep the image sharp, I'd probably pick up a different sized one so I wouldn't have to move the Singh ray around.

Who's going to pull the trigger and give us a report?

by POS - you mean possibility?

I bought mine on eBay for a little over a $100 and it works great.

Why? Did you buy one from that particular eBay seller & test it?

You should buy from the manufacturer Light Craft Workshop Light Craft Workshop FADER ND Filter mark II (MK2) 55mm - eBay (item 140433606432 end time Sep-27-10 11:35:36 PDT)

These variable ND filters are excellent quality & work well. Depending on filter size size they are priced around $75-$125 delivered.

the link above is also from LCW.. I have the original and Mark 2 versions, they both work well but give a very strong green/yellowish colour cast

I bought several of the original version direct from LCW & none of them have a green/yellowish colour cast or indeed any colour cast. When it is set at maximum there is a patchy dark blue/green cast but if you back off a little from maximum then it is fine.

The problem is definitely worse the more you turn the filter, mine is a definite green/yellow colour though.. do you manual white balance? im wondering if using the presets is a bad idea and doing a custom WB would solve the tint.. i will try it out

in any case heres some testing done regarding the colour tints on different ND filters..

ND filters | Blog: David Harry Stewart, Photographer/Director

I bought from eBay seller, lightcraftworkshop-official-store. The filter came in the brown box with the hologram, so I'm pretty sure it's legit. They mention "fakes" floating out there but I seriously think they are the ones who are the fakes. I was initially happy with using it, but then I didn't know any better.

After doing some tests with the Fader ND mk2, and several other ND filters, ranging in price from $12 to $125, the Fader ND was the only filter to 1) soften the image above 85mm 2) introduce a very strong greenish/yellow colour cast, 3) rendered bokeh in a very ugly way. All other straight NDs performed significantly better. I've concluded it is better to just use straight NDs because the drawbacks to the Fader ND were too much vs. the convenience of variable ND strengths.

I now only shoot with the Tiffen ND IRs in strengths of 0.9, 1.5 and 2.1. And I can be assured my images look their best. There is great comfort in that.

I have the Singh-Ray Vari ND, and I have a still shooter friend who had the LCW Fader ND Mark II, so I've had both in my hands at the same time. LCW Fader degraded the image to where I wouldn't use it (especially on the telephoto lengths). Vari ND has a slight softening effect. I would say it is negligible, and I use it on most exteriors.

Are you sure it was a Mark 2 and not the original? Apparently that was why the Mark 2 was introduced.

I bought the LCW Fader ND about nine months ago. I don't know which version it is.

If your shooting in bright sunlight obviously you need something to stop the lens down, and using the Variable ND filter has enabled me to get shots I might not have been able to get without it. But I have noticed that if I try to shoot wide open at f./2.8 using a stronger ND the image is a little soft. Often softer than I can use.

At first I thought it was me not paying enough attention to focus, but the more I used it the more I noticed the problem, the video looked like it was in focus but it wasn't as sharp as it should be. It seems if you stay away from the extremes, f./5.6-8, less ND it works better. As lame of an excuse this is, the variable ND's are so easy to use that I'll often set the f-stop and adjust the ND to get the right exposure, which often leads me to really dialing up the ND.

I'd hope the more expensive Sing-Ray would be better, but I have not used one.

Yes, it was because of the claims about the Mark II by LCW to that effect that my friend bought one. The LCW degradation was pronounced.

Ok.. so seems the Mark 2 didnt do much to solve it then.. Its a good reminder that often these things get tested and reviewed and hyped as working great and as good as the competition when theyre released and then 6 months or a year later the average Joe users start to notice, hang on a minute, my video looks awful when i use this thing!

Not to be overlooked that all of these are polarizing filters. When I was running some quick tests on the LCW Fader ND at first I thought it was doing something hideous until I realised it was doing what any polarizer would do. Keep in mind that rotating the front element has the same effect as rotating any polarizer.

It'll be fairly difficult for me to test the LCW on our 5D but I can try to do it on my EX1. The tricky part will be ensuring nothing in the test scene is polarized else that'll skew the results.

If it helps, I posted a mini-review of the Fader-ND from LCW (Review: Fader-ND from LightCraftWorkshop) exploring the colour issue. The shots I posted in the review clearly show a greenish tint.
I too noticed a softness in the shots, but I assumed it was because I was hand-holding the camera, and couldn't guarantee it was stable (on a tripod, mirror up, delayed shutter release).
If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll plant the camera and re-do the "test" to remove the wobbly hands factor.

In my experience, just putting either filter on the lens, even in the "minimum" position had the degrading effect. If my memory serves me, dialing up the density did not affect this. It would make sense if the glass used in the Singh-Ray is of better quality than that used in the LCW product.

Slightly to the side here, the Genus ND Fader housing looks identical to the LCW. Are they made at the same Chinese factory to the same spec?

I'll just chime in and say that I have had both the SIngh-Ray Vari and a genuine LCW Fader (mark II) and used them on my 5D Mark II.

Personally, I prefer the LCW to the SR and found the SR produces a very slight green colour cast. The LCW in my use of it doesn't appear to. However, if I dial in the density all the way up to max, I do get the cross pattern, but this is normal.

Personally, I'm happy with the LCW. There are fakes out there, so I would not buy from eBay. Go to their website, that provides a list of offcial distributors who stock it. Buy from them direct...

It's easy to reproduce the same packaging for the rip-off merchants.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

I am sorry to drag up an old thread, but I found the thread via search, and I can't believe no one pointed this out:

Based upon what you described, the softness you were experiencing at 2.8 was most likely due to the *lens*, not the filter. A lens that is at its widest setting often goes soft.

The easiest way to check for this is, of course, to use the same lens wide open in a lower light situation, where you don't need the ND filter to take down the light. If your images are still soft, please don't blame the ND.

Note that I don't work for anyone in this space; I just want to find good info about NDs, and in this case I think one was probably being unfairly maligned.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

You're are right Chris, though too much ND can cause softening due to infrared contamination - so Chuck might also be right.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

There seems to be another overlooked option for a Fader ND.

Schniederoptics (known for high quality) also dearer than the Singh-ray at $580.

https://www.schneideroptics.com/ecom...D=466&IID=8088

Myself, being a humble amateur use the Genus one - and I've been pretty happy with it.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

I got the Fader V2 recently and it looks ok with the limited use I've put it to - no colour casts and 'seems' sharp enough with shorter lenses.

However the test I've used with filters for the last 30 odd years is to hold at an acute angle and look through with the naked eye at a complex scene. A perfectly parallel filter with good glass will show virtually no distortion of the scene, nor will the scene appear to 'shift' due to optical problems.

Trying this with the Fader and the scene distorts noticeably and unevenly around the filter. I'd bet on it introducing significant distortion when using longer lenses, and possibly evident with shorter lenses too under rigorous pixel peeping.

FYI for stills shooting using the likes of Cokin resin filters is ok on short lenses say up to 85mm, but at 200mm the ones I've had degraded the image so much it was ridiculous. SinghRay resin ones - I bought a few - they were much much better than the Cokin, but at a price premium.

That said, the footage I've taken so far with the Fader looks nice enough, but its been mostly with a 24-70 on a 7D and not much with longer focal lengths. I will be very wary though.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

back to say - got the Tiffen ND fader filter, and it is fantastic - but, I've now realised that I cannot fit my lens hoods over it!

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Read through this:
The best Variable ND filter I have used? | Philip Bloom

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

he has not tried the Tiffen though!

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Tests using the LCW II have been clear - it still degrades the image seriously . This is not due to wide apertures but cheap filters - especially some of them are plastic filters - that's why they are cheap!
However you will only see this with telephoto lenses, because telephotos magnify the effect of imperfections in the filter.
I've tested a few at 200mm and using 2 decent quality glass polas was completely sharp at 200mm .
Trouble with using 2 glass filters is that they get quite thick and start to vignette on a wide zoom. Problem with Singh-Ray is 2 - 77mm filters can also start to vignette whereas some of the cheaper companies put an 82mm on top of a 77 which is a better idea. But their glass sucks.

i want one for my 18-200 nikon and it vignettes pretty fast. I can put a 4 1/2 round linear pola I have over a 77 or 82 circular and it works great , but its so damn big.

On top of it all its tough to get polas that don't have a color cast.

Its tough to get a break in this world.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Im in the market for a Fader/Vari-ND.

The more I read the more Im put off making a purchase and left frustratingly confused! Prices vary wildly and then people say that the ones I can afford are crap! I had considered the LCW II.

I suppose everything is relative but I can't seem to find any examples of the difference between good and bad video or even stills. I dont want to waste money on rubbish but equally Im not looking for near perfection which I guess only comes with stuff costing $600 upwards.

What do I do?

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Personally I have been happy with the LCW II but then I have nothing really to compare it to. To me it makes sense to use it as a jumping on point. It feels a solid product IMHO and any potential buyers need to do their homework and buy from someone reputable.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Polaroid who presumably know a thing or two about the technology now do a range of decent quality variable ND filters at less than half the price of a genuine LCW II. They can be purchased from Amazon.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Polaroid Polaroid Variable Range Fader Filter - Filters

Direct from Polaroid for $29.99, cheaper than Amazon (price is same for any size 37mm to 82mm, that is not the normal way to price). Can't recommend something in that price range, would be great if they work.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

Gosh that is cheap buying direct! In the brief testing I have done with an 82mm on my Canon 16-35mm F/2.8 it looked fine.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

After seriously considering a variable ND filter, I have decided to go with the Tiffen Water White ND set, fully realizing that there will be more hassle to switch them out. Read the blog post by Shane Hurlbut at Hurlbut Visuals. I am going with the 77 mm versions and will pick up some step-up rings.

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

I considered the Polariod one until I saw this

YouTube - ‪Review of Polaroid Variable range Neutral Density ND filter with Canon T2i 550D‬‏

Re: Fader ND filters - Any recommendations?
 

As stated above, I decided to go with a set of Tiffen water white ND filters, to avoid coloring issues. For my son, however, I just bought one of the Singh-Ray variable ND filters, for him to use with his T2i. In a recent post, Phillip Bloom said that the Heliopan varaible ND is even better than the Singh-Ray. I would have purchased the Heliopan but it is 6 to 10 weeks out (at B&H, and not available on Amazon).

Two suggestions:

Splurge on better quality step-up rings, to avoid stuck filters in the heat of battle. I went with Heliopan step-up rings (from B&H)

Carry a plastic filter wrench, in case of stuck filters.