Experimenting with nd filters

[Andyc240]

So I have never done much photography before and this setting up and getting light etc is all a learning curve to me and filters lol but it's so interesting when I get going, so looking a bit of advice with this picture is it good etc I had the polar pro nd4 lense on as it was sunset and histogram up along with the zebra stripes lol

This is taken at murlough Bay Co Down just facing Dundrum

 

[queeg730]

Love the place.... I have relatives who live in Killough, and I learned to drive on Tyrella beach..... but back to your picture.
Images are very personal, and people look at them differently... what one person likes, another may not.

I'm not sure I would have used an ND filter at all, since it was sunset, and the light would have been going, but many people use them for effect, especially ND Polarising filters to increase colour saturation....
The ND4 effectively underexposes the image by 2 stops.... unless you want to get a particular effect, why reduce the light getting to the camera sensor?
Also, for still images, I personally wouldn't use ND filters as a rule (maybe occasionally for a special effect)..... I use them for video, to get the shutter speed down to around twice the frame rate.

Don't know if that has been of any help, but please keep posting pics of this area.... I'm homesick!

 

[Moose1967]

I find you need the ND filters more for video.

 

[Meta4]

a learning curve to me and filters lol but it's so interesting when I get going, so looking a bit of advice with this picture is it good etc I had the polar pro nd4 lense on as it was sunset

The ND filter has done nothing at all to improve or change the look of your picture.
All it's done is to cut 75% of the light and force you to use a 2 stop slower shutter speed to get proper exposure.

Unless you have a particular reason to want a slower shutter speed, there's no need to use ND filters for drone photography.

 

[25Vettes]

As a photographer with over 50 years experience, I respectfully disagree with the last post above. ND filters can be necessary in photography of any kind, especially when the bright sunlight causes overexposure beyond the limits of the camera's exposure system. Drone cameras are no different. You probably did not need one in the light of your photo above, and most likely, the filter flattened out the details. Post processing in Lightroom/Photoshop can help make it look a bit better. I took the liberty to fool around with the image a little. Not a great edit, took less than a minute in PS.

 

[25Vettes]

I took the liberty to fool around with the image a little. Not a great edit, took less than a minute in PS.

 

[Meta4]

As a photographer with over 50 years experience, I respectfully disagree with the last post above. ND filters can be necessary in photography of any kind, especially when the bright sunlight causes overexposure beyond the limits of the camera's exposure system.

I only have 40-something years of serious photography experience so you outrank me.
But when your camera has a max shutter speed of 1/8000th like DJI cameras do, you aren't easily going to find bright sunlight causing overexposure beyond the limits of the camera's exposure system.
I stand by what I said, and would be interested to hear/see anything to change my opinion.

 

[Andyc240]

was on my phone earlier so heres the rest of the pictures and it seems its the old marmite problem you either love the filters, or not lol, the only thing i get would be ocd as when looking throught the sc and using some of the helpful tools

 

[Andyc240]

Love the place.... I have relatives who live in Killough, and I learned to drive on Tyrella beach..... but back to your picture.
Images are very personal, and people look at them differently... what one person likes, another may not.

I'm not sure I would have used an ND filter at all, since it was sunset, and the light would have been going, but many people use them for effect, especially ND Polarising filters to increase colour saturation....
The ND4 effectively underexposes the image by 2 stops.... unless you want to get a particular effect, why reduce the light getting to the camera sensor?
Also, for still images, I personally wouldn't use ND filters as a rule (maybe occasionally for a special effect)..... I use them for video, to get the shutter speed down to around twice the frame rate.

Don't know if that has been of any help, but please keep posting pics of this area.... I'm homesick!

glad it brough back those memories and only in n ireland , ireland could u learn to drive on a beach we def have our wee qurks
i think sometimes there is to much changing pictures to suit individual taste but for me personally if a picture can stir up emotions from memorys etc then its done its job

 

[25Vettes]

I only have 40-something years of serious photography experience so you outrank me.
But when your camera has a max shutter speed of 1/8000th like DJI cameras do, you aren't easily going to find bright sunlight causing overexposure beyond the limits of the camera's exposure system.
I stand by what I said, and would be interested to hear/see anything to change my opinion.

Understood, and this is why photography is such a great profession/hobby.... we all have our own techniques, likes/dislikes.... I am amazed at what great images others take, saying "how did they do that?".... and then sometimes, they say the same things to me at the other end of the spectrum!

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

I agree with general acknowledgement of ND and NDPL being for video only, to get shutter speed roughly double frame rate.
Unless wanting slower shutter for motion effect on water movement (waterfalls, flowing water / tidal movement etc).

For most general landscape drone photography, a CPL or NCUV can help with less glare off water, glass etc, and/or more vivid colours straight up.
I usually leave my NCUV on all the time to protect my camera lens too.

 

[Andyc240]

All great input everyone so I'm going to head out next time and use the histogram for pics and not worry about the zebra setting untill using video where people say the rule is between 4 and 8 aperture before it becomes grainy but again some peoples experience would come in handy

 

[Andyc240]

I took the liberty to fool around with the image a little. Not a great edit, took less than a minute in PS.

Looks great must get some photo editing software and not just video

 

[queeg730]

All great input everyone so I'm going to head out next time and use the histogram for pics and not worry about the zebra setting untill using video where people say the rule is between 4 and 8 aperture before it becomes grainy but again some peoples experience would come in handy

I would still keep the zebra setting ON... its OK to have a few stripes, but focus more on the histogram.
Unless you want a particular effect, I would drop the ND filters for stills and lower light situations.
I agree with what Meta said re the ND filters.

And like 25Vettes, I too spent a few minutes on your original image in PS.... this is a different look... a little colder (more blue).

 

[DMS]

Beautiful shot!

 

[Andyc240]

I would still keep the zebra setting ON... its OK to have a few stripes, but focus more on the histogram.
Unless you want a particular effect, I would drop the ND filters for stills and lower light situations.
I agree with what Meta said re the ND filters.

And like 25Vettes, I too spent a few minutes on your original image in PS.... this is a different look... a little colder (more blue).

Thanks and it's defo more a colder Irish look lol and so I'm heading to South africa soon so maybe for the summer sun there use the filters slightly more and then for video adjust accordingly but any suggestions again are welcome

 

[Andyc240]

Beautiful shot!

Thanks ??

 

[macfawlty]

I only have 40-something years of serious photography experience so you outrank me.
But when your camera has a max shutter speed of 1/8000th like DJI cameras do, you aren't easily going to find bright sunlight causing overexposure beyond the limits of the camera's exposure system.
I stand by what I said, and would be interested to hear/see anything to change my opinion.

I'll back you up on not needing ND filters for taking photos. A polarizer perhaps. Generally, a faster shutter speed is preferred for the long-view landscape pics as a slower shutter speed would typically be less sharp. If my intent is to take photos, I don't use any ND filters.

The ND filters are primarily for video. Since I shoot mostly video, I use them all the time, primarily the ND64, 32, 16, 8. I do take pics with the ND filters on if I'm already in the air filming, but it's not optimal. The pics still look remarkably good to me @1/50. Even still frames from moving video clips can look quite good.

What I see in your pics is a lot of noise and in-camera sharpening (which makes the noise worse). That's the result of the camera using a higher ISO, due in part to the ND filter. The phone pics are proxy images, so they're not gonna be the best quality. These DJI cameras on auto settings tend to be too contrasty, too saturated, noisy and over-sharpened. In Northern Ireland, you're gonna be shooting a lot in lower light conditions. It's critical to learn your manual settings and bracketing functions.

I bracket all images (RAW) so I'm sure to have good exposure(s) to work with. Photo grading is done primarily in Lightroom, not Photoshop.

 

[Dave Maine]

In general, the best way to do video is with a polarizing filter and no ND. I have never found that the speed of the drone, even close to the ground needs motion blur to avoid staccato effects.

Shooting manual exposure gives me better control for the highest quality results. The DJI auto exposure causes some sudden exposure shifts that really break the flow. I always shoot manual, making use of key frames in my post processing flow to make smoother adjustments when required.

I never use the in camera picture adjustments for either video or stills. The post processing tools in Lightroom are far better for adjusting the raw still images, and Final Cut Pro as very powerful tools for video adjustments.

 

[Andyc240]

Thanks for all the info and your experience folks its just a learning experience at the end of the day and every time I go out in learning ?