ND filters for still pictures
- Thread starter TedShred
- Start date
- Status
Montana John
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 17, 2018
- Messages
- 250
- Reactions
- 177
- Age
- 82
They surely are for hand held/ground cameras. You'd have to want and be willing to work for photos that are intentionally partly out of focus.
stapenhillphoto
Well-Known Member
For a Drone I don't see much use for using a ND filter for stills. You could use it to shoot a waterfall and slow down the shutter to blur the water.
Using a Polarizing can be useful for still photo's and video. It cuts some of the haze, it darkens the sky when pointed at about 90 degrees to the sun. It also can kill reflections in water so you can see what's lurking under there better.
Using a Polarizing can be useful for still photo's and video. It cuts some of the haze, it darkens the sky when pointed at about 90 degrees to the sun. It also can kill reflections in water so you can see what's lurking under there better.
So I use ND filters on my DLSR for long exposure shots, I don't see why this would not apply to the Drone still footage if you were after long exposure shots of moving water features for that silky blur look
stapenhillphoto
Well-Known Member
Depending on wind condition, turbulence of surrounding features, it should be good enough to get down to 1/2 second shutter (strong ND filter) based on results I've seen around the internet. I am all new to the drone world so have not tested this on my rig to date, but in theory it should work.
Polarizing filter is always a great addition in any camera bag, make sense on the drone as well especially at altitude
This is the first time I was using ND filters this week. This is one of my first attempt at long exposure with a drone. So far, I have gone down to 4 seconds exposure, which I find amazing, considering that there must always be a bit of a breeze up there....
So yes, ND filters can be used for still photography...
San Antonio, TX
So yes, ND filters can be used for still photography...
San Antonio, TX
Last edited:
San Antonio, TX
If you use long exposure during day time, eventually, you can make the traffic disappear with a filter, and enough of an exposure. King of cool, but not always what you may want.
The 4 sec exposure worked in the case of this sunrise.
It created long streaks of lights along the freeway.
ND 4 filter was sufficient, since the ambiant light was low to begin with. (Other than the freeway being well lit obviously)
All bets are off when it is windy, and in fact, I wouldn't even bother do long exposure then.
I would use a ND 16 during daytime when it is bright. ND 8 between low light and the brightest part.
I don't do videos, so I can't help you there....
ND filters are used for all kinds of photography and I use an ND 4 on the drone in cloudy day lighting.
For a minimum motion blur start by setting ISO to 100 and shutter to 50-60 (only these 2 parameters are adjustable on the bird). This will get a small natural appearing motion blur. Apply the filter to reach the desired settings and motion blur. If any of the images on your monitoring device have alternating white and black lines it tells you that these areas of the image are over exposedA little trial and error with some patience is a requisite . In Sunny AZ I use ND 16 and ND32 most often to be able to stop down to where I want it.
Unless you have a particular reason to want to slow your shutter speed, there is no reason to use ND filters when shooting stills from your drone.
ShermanFlyer
Well-Known Member
As mentioned by others, an example of using an ND filter for stills
John-O
Member
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2018
- Messages
- 5
- Reactions
- 7
When you are shooting stills, you want to have a fast shutter speed for sharp images. Your drone is still moving slightly hovering up there in the breeze and not perfectly still as it would be on a tripod. The fast shutter speed will reduce softness in your photos caused by movement of the camera. If you have an ND-filter on, especially a darker one such as a 16, it means you will have to use a slower shutter speed or a higher ISO which are both bad for still images.
Unless you intentionally want a longer shutter speed as mentioned in prior comments, it makes sense to avoid having an ND filter on your drone when shooting still images.
Unless you intentionally want a longer shutter speed as mentioned in prior comments, it makes sense to avoid having an ND filter on your drone when shooting still images.
Ummm… WHY?
There is absolutely no good photography reason to use an ND filter unless you want to slow the shutter down to show fluid motion in an image. You say you use one on your drone in cloudy daylight, what earthly reason would that be for? The last thing you want to do is make the shutter any slower than a cloudy day would do to your exposure.
You may be misunderstanding what photography is all about. For the record, you do not want to use an ND filter on your drone or DSLR camera for still shots unless, unless... you have a good reason to slow the shutter down even more than the ambient lighting conditions will do, in order to come up with a correct exposure.
As has been stated, a waterfall blur is about the only reason, (well getting a river flow blur or a seascape to look like milk, both great effects) that you would need to use an ND filter for still photography.
Really cool photos. It is amazing how clear the freeway road sign is for that long of an exposure. What drone are you using?
Ummmm...Why not use an ND filter!
What about "graduated ND filters", know them well in my understanding of photography!
You get better cloud detail and saturation using graduated ND filters, but hey my understanding of photography is obviously lacking
Oh, did I say I was a published photographer An ND filter is most commonly used to filter or block unwanted light from reaching the sensor in the camera. A good analogy is thinking about how when going out on a bright, sunny day you would take a cap and more importantly a pair of sunglasses to block out light. To this end, you can use an ND filter like a pair of sunglasses in front of the lens when it is too bright. This allows us to reduce harsh daylight reaching the sensor. In turn, we can use this to our creative advantage. Another way to think of it, is that an ND filter turns down the volume of light entering the lens when there is too much light, meaning you don’t have to use as fast a shutter speed, as smaller an f stop or as lower ISOs. Again these can all result in different artistic and creative looks in the final photograph.
Here are two of my pictures with an ND filter on a cloudy day, enjoy
1) Taken with my Canon EOS M50
2) Taken with my drone (SOOC) Straight out of camera
Note: Images may not be used without my permission, thanks.
Last edited:
Ummmm...Why not use an ND filter!
What about "graduated ND filters", know them well in my understanding of photography!
You get better cloud detail and saturation using graduated ND filters, but hey my understanding of photography is obviously lacking
An ND filter is most commonly used to filter or block unwanted light from reaching the sensor in the camera. A good analogy is thinking about how when going out on a bright, sunny day you would take a cap and more importantly a pair of sunglasses to block out light. To this end, you can use an ND filter like a pair of sunglasses in front of the lens when it is too bright. This allows us to reduce harsh daylight reaching the sensor. In turn, we can use this to our creative advantage. Another way to think of it, is that an ND filter turns down the volume of light entering the lens when there is too much light, meaning you don’t have to use as fast a shutter speed, as smaller an f stop or as lower ISOs. Again these can all result in different artistic and creative looks in the final photograph.
Here is one of my pictures with an ND filter on a cloudy day, enjoy.
View attachment 63552
I'm afraid you can not change goal posts mid game, to help you win
The discussion was about ND filters for Photography with a drone.
A "Graduated ND filter" is a different thing all together, and there are plenty of uses for that. However, if you care to re-read the post from the OP, you will see there was no mention of "Graduated" ND filters, therefore your comment regarding graduated ND filters is irrelevant, regarding my comments on ND filters, for drone still photography, whether you are a "Published" photographer or not.
Now if the original discussion was about graduated ND filters, then yes, your comment would be valid, unfortunately, that is not the case here. Equally irrelevant would be if someone would now bring in the benefit of using a PL filter. That too would have nothing to do with the OP question about using an ND filter for drone still photography, as valuable as those also are for photography and drone video, to some extent.
Your comments about comparing a cap and sunglasses to an ND filter, that really does not warrant inclusion, because our eyes have a huge contrast range, which no camera made to date, can even come close too. Therefore using an ND filter would be of no benefit because you may darken the sky but you will then equally darken the ground, and that would not be desirable. If it were, then simply changing the aperture on your drone's camera would give you the same effect.
And if you are thinking about the f-stop working against you, that too is irrelevant because the sharpness and depth of field of a drone camera is such that you would get absolutely no benefit of a shallow depth of field that a low aperture would be giving you, since these are aerial photos, which means EVERYTHING is in focus! Again, this is in no way similar to a DSLR with a telephoto lens, where you may wish to have a shallow depth of field.
Unfortunately, your case for using an ND filter for drone still photography, still does not hold water. And remember we are speaking of an ND filter, not a graduated ND filter here. But thanks for your comments, they may well help out a still photographer on the ground using a DSLR.
Last edited:
Regarding your enclosed sunset photo, that would be just as easy to accomplish without using an ND filter. There is no benefit to using an ND filter when taking that shot. However, if you think there is, I would love to hear why, although this is not a scene that a drone would have been the only way to have captured this. This could have been taken just as well , and it might have been, with a ground based DSLR. And it is a nice photo but you would have been better off creating an HDR image because you photo has lost most of the detail in the shadows, which would be the case with or without an ND filter on this shot.
I'm afraid you can not change goal posts mid game, to help you win
The discussion was about ND filters for Photography with a drone.
A "Graduated ND filter" is a different thing all together, and there are plenty of uses for that. However, if you care to re-read the post from the OP, you will see there was no mention of "Graduated" ND filters, therefore your comment regarding graduated ND filters is irrelevant, regarding my comments on ND filters, for drone still photography, whether you are a "Published" photographer or not.
Now if the original discussion was about graduated ND filters, then yes, your comment would be valid, unfortunately, that is not the case here. Equally irrelevant would be if someone would now bring in the benefit of using a PL filter. That too would have nothing to do with the OP question about using a ND filter for drone still photography, as valuable as those also are for photography and drone video, to some extent.
Your comments about comparing a cap and sunglasses to an ND filter, that really does not warrant inclusion, because our eyes have a huge contrast range, which no camera made to date, can even come close too. Therefore using an ND filter would be of no benefit because you may darken the sky but you will then equally darken the ground, and that would not be desirable. If it were, then simply changing the aperture on your drone's camera would give you the same effect.
And if you are thinking about the f-stop working against you, that too is irrelevant because the sharpness and depth of field of a drone camera is such that you would get absolutely no benefit of a shallow depth of field that a low aperture would be giving you, since these are aerial photos, which means EVERYTHING is in focus! Again, this is in no way similar to a DSLR with a telephoto lens, where you may wish to have a shallow depth of field.
Unfortunately, your case for using an ND filter for drone still photography, still does not hold water. And remember we are speaking of an ND filter, not a graduated ND filter here. But thanks for your comments, they may well help out a still photographer on the ground using a DSLR.
Thanks for your comments.
A picture is worth a thousand words as they say and I do have some knowledge of photography which, and I quote you;
"You may be misunderstanding what photography is all about. For the record, you do not want to use an ND filter on your drone or DSLR camera for still shots unless, unless... you have a good reason to slow the shutter down even more than the ambient lighting conditions will do, in order to come up with a correct exposure".
The pictures were merely posted to show what ND filters can be used for.
Nuff said
Look at the exit data and I have the flight logs to prove this was taken by a drone. Look at the rotor wash in the water. BTW, these pictures were taken on Thursday 6th April 2017 looking at my Google pictures folder.
DEXIF Data: FC330 DJI P4 camera
If you want a link to the pictures and video that I took that day then I will gladly provide that for you.
Last edited:
- Status
Similar threads
DJI Drone Deals
1. Mini 2
2. Mini 3 Pro
3. Mini 4 Pro
4. Air 2s
5. Air 3
6. Avata 2
7. Mavic 3 Pro
8. Mavic 3 Classic
2. Mini 3 Pro
3. Mini 4 Pro
4. Air 2s
5. Air 3
6. Avata 2
7. Mavic 3 Pro
8. Mavic 3 Classic
Forum statistics
