Tiffen "Screw in" Graduated ND Filter

[EddyinGA]

Tiffen makes a screw in type Graduated ND filter.

Has anyone here used one of them and, if so, what was your experience?

TIA

Ed

[syoggy]

Ed,

I just picked one up from B&H and tried it out last weekend. I was a bit disappointed as I thought it would work a little better. I got the 0.6 Color Grad ND.

Here is a photo where it didn't seem to work so well...



And here is one where it seemed to help...



I could be using it all wrong and will try again this weekend.
steve

[EddyinGA]

Thanks Steve,



Well, I think I'll go ahead and order one for my 18-55 lens and give it a try. I'm sure that the more comples ND systems, like the Cokin system, will probably work better.



But, I want something that I can use very quickly and when I don't have my tripod handy.



Thanks for the examples. I'll post some when I get my GND filter.



Ciao`



Ed

[JLB]

Ed, what do you hope to achieve with the ND filter? Typically they are used to darken a portion of the picture such as the sky at sunset, bright sky, etc.
Perhaps the the photos shown by Steve would have been better with a polarizing filter. The polarizer would have brought out the colors and added more contrast to the blue sky and clouds.
John

[EddyinGA]

While on a recent trip, I took a number of photographs which, even with a polarizer, had blown out skies. My want is to be able to get the shots with the foreground properly exposed and not have that overpowered by a blown out sky.

[mtngal]

The only potential disadvantage I could see to the screw-in type graduated ND filter is that you are somewhat limited when it comes to composition. If you have a Cokin system, the filter can be moved up or down as appropriate, while with the screw-in type you would have to change the composition to have the filter mask the appropriate parts. I've never tried to hand-hold a lens with a Cokin frame and grad mounted so don't know if it's possible to manage it all while handholding a camera or not.

[syoggy]

As I mentioned I may not have been using it correctly. I bought it in hopes of not having "blown out" sky in a landscape photo, but I need to work on it. It works on the same principle as a CP in that you are able to rotate the darkened portion, seemed like an ok idea. I have a CP and have used it to great effect and will more than likely use it more than the Graduated ND.

Good luck with yours Ed, I look forward to seeing how your photos turn out.
steve

[bper]

This may be of interest. Last month my brother and I were making a last hike in the high country. We had parked at Chinnok Pass in Washington State and decided to take aside tripback to the car by Tipso Lake. We meant a couple of fellows photographing the lake and Mt Rainer. We stopped and talked a bit andone fellow said this is what you need for that picture. He pulled out a piece of glass about 3" x 6" with the top half shaded like a neutral density filter. He said it was made by a company called Lee and was a #3 graduatefilter.

You simply held it by the clear glass at the bottom and moved it up and down over your lens until you got the shaded area on the horizon line. It worked very well as the picture shows. I only took one and bet I could improve on it with use. Noticehow the foreground is nice and bright, yet Mt Rainer and the sky are not washed out. He did mention the filter cost about $130, butif you do a lot of landscapes, it may be worth it. It was quite a tool. The lens I used was the 18-55 kit lens that I happened to have on the camera at the time- Bruce

[bigdawg]

I have and use several Grad ND's but I use the Cokin system which allows you to move the filter up and down to get differing amounts of filtration using one filter...I almost always stack a Skylight 1-A, a polorizing filter and a grad ND when shooting out doors. Would rather have just one good lens as long as I can keep my Cokin Filters.



Dawg