ND Filters

Stal · Oct 14, 2015

Which filters does everyone recommend, that they actually own, use and love? I'm looking for the cheapest, decent quality filter. I feel like I've already dropped a down payment on a house on this new little hobby....

Acroduster · Oct 14, 2015

The highest I have is an ND4 and it has worked well for me. I understand that in very bright sunlight on a super clear day, you may want to go as high as an ND8.

ChrisM101 · Oct 14, 2015

Go to peauproductions and get the adapter and the plastic lenses you'll only be out about $20 shipped.

30mm External Filters : Peau Productions - Store

Stal · Oct 14, 2015

ChrisM101 said:
Go to peauproductions and get the adapter and the plastic lenses you'll only be out about $20 shipped.

30mm External Filters : Peau Productions - Store

Do you use this? Does this throw the gimbal off?

Stal · Oct 14, 2015

Acroduster said:
The highest I have is an ND4 and it has worked well for me. I understand that in very bright sunlight on a super clear day, you may want to go as high as an ND8.

I'm looking for a specific ND filter. I worry about weight throwing off the gimbal so I want to see what people are actually using and liking. I don't want suggestions based on what someone has read, real life experience with one

ChrisM101 · Oct 14, 2015

Stal said:
Do you use this? Does this throw the gimbal off?

Well you may still need to off set the weight to balance the gimbal, but im willing to give it a try.

Products
------------------------------------------------------
1 x 30mm Filter Adapter Ring - Lens Surround (filter_adapter_30mm_lens) =
$5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - UV - Glass (F-UV-30-G) = $3.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 2 (ND2) - Plastic (F-ND2-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 4 (ND4) - Plastic (F-ND4-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 8 (ND8) - Plastic (F-ND8-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Circular Polarizer (CPL) - Glass (F-CPL-30-G) = $5.00
------------------------------------------------------
Sub-Total: $28.00
United States Postal Service (Priority Mail™ Flat Rate Envelope
(3-day)): $5.75
Total: $33.75

Mine should arrive Thursday or Friday... I had to do something, as the sun here has been intense every evening and would just wash out everything. No clouds, no Rain for weeks... come on fall...

Stal · Oct 14, 2015

ChrisM101 said:
Well you may still need to off set the weight to balance the gimbal, but im willing to give it a try.

Products
------------------------------------------------------
1 x 30mm Filter Adapter Ring - Lens Surround (filter_adapter_30mm_lens) =
$5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - UV - Glass (F-UV-30-G) = $3.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 2 (ND2) - Plastic (F-ND2-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 4 (ND4) - Plastic (F-ND4-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Neutral Density 8 (ND8) - Plastic (F-ND8-30-P) = $5.00
1 x 30mm Filter - Circular Polarizer (CPL) - Glass (F-CPL-30-G) = $5.00
------------------------------------------------------
Sub-Total: $28.00
United States Postal Service (Priority Mail™ Flat Rate Envelope
(3-day)): $5.75
Total: $33.75

Mine should arrive Thursday or Friday... I had to do something, as the sun here has been intense every evening and would just wash out everything. No clouds, no Rain for weeks... come on fall...

Let me know how it works out for you. Glass is what I have read is the way to go.

Lamda · Oct 14, 2015

Stal said:
Let me know how it works out for you. Glass is what I have read is the way to go.

The PolarPro Frame 2.0 filters are one of the lightest and are glass. I bought the 6 pack that was newly released but you can buy some of them individually or buy the 3 pack. They have been working fine for me - I use the ND8 and ND8 PL the most. With GoPro at native ISO 400 and an f2.8? lens, nice days can easily take a few stops reduction.

I have not been balancing my gimbal with the PolarPro mounted, although I may try it as a test sometime to see if it makes a difference. Others have commented on this in other threads.

Stal · Oct 14, 2015

Lamda said:
The PolarPro Frame 2.0 filters are one of the lightest and are glass. I bought the 6 pack that was newly released but you can buy some of them individually or buy the 3 pack. They have been working fine for me - I use the ND8 and ND8 PL the most. With GoPro at native ISO 400 and an f2.8? lens, nice days can easily take a few stops reduction.

I have not been balancing my gimbal with the PolarPro mounted, although I may try it as a test sometime to see if it makes a difference. Others have commented on this in other threads.

Thanks for this. Can you point me to these posts? Much appreciated.

Lamda · Oct 14, 2015

Stal said:
Thanks for this. Can you point me to these posts? Much appreciated.

http://www.3drpilots.com/threads/adding-nd-filter-to-gopro-with-gimbal.1738/

You can search "ND Filter" and all the others will come up.

1264_Solo · Oct 14, 2015

Stal said:
Which filters does everyone recommend, that they actually own, use and love? I'm looking for the cheapest, decent quality filter. I feel like I've already dropped a down payment on a house on this new little hobby....

I have the polar pros and they've worked really well for me so far

erikgraham · Oct 15, 2015

PolarPro or Blurfix.

I have mainly used the Blurfix, but the PolorPros are lighter (slightly).

Unlike most folks on these boards, I do not counter balance. The gimbal has worked just fine.

Get an ND4/CP and an ND8/CP, at least to start out. I mostly use the ND8 as my default. This requires adjusting exposure in post, but gets the best results.

You don't want to use plastic.

erikgraham · Oct 15, 2015

erikgraham said:
PolarPro or Blurfix.

I have mainly used the Blurfix, but the PolorPros are lighter (slightly).

Unlike most folks on these boards, I do not counter balance. The gimbal has worked just fine.

Get an ND4/CP and an ND8/CP, at least to start out. I mostly use the ND8 as my default. This requires adjusting exposure in post, but gets the best results.

You don't want to use plastic.

Someone will undoubtedly reply that by not counter balancing these filters, I am doing long term damage to the gimbal by putting extra stress on the motors. Consider this though... how much stress does a steady wind put on the gimbal? How about sudden gusts of wind? The answer is that even a light wind puts more stress on the gimbal motors than these incredibly light weight filters.

Stal · Oct 19, 2015

Which to buy?
GoPro Frame2.0 Filter Professional Edition 6-Pack (6-pack $100) OR
Frame2.0-FPV Quadcopter Filter 3-Pack (3-pack $50)

ChrisM101 · Oct 19, 2015

Id just get the 3 pack... Do you really want to have 6 options every time you pull it out of the box?

Stal · Oct 19, 2015

They offer completely different ND....I usually shoot when it is bright out, or when the sun is going down.

ChrisM101 · Oct 19, 2015

ND8 or higher then...

Their info is pretty contradictory on the site

flabango · Oct 19, 2015

I have the Polar Pro 6 pack. My go to filter for sunny days is the ND-16-PL.

As far as quality goes they are glass so that's good but I'm not very impressed with the edges of the glass as it appears the coating or glass is chipped on some of them. I don't think this effects the performance so I'm not too worried about it except for my ADD tendencies don't like it very much.

I haven't done any counter balancing and the gimbal performs just fine. I'll probably throw a nickle on the back and call it good.

I weighed them all...
PL 6.0g
ND-8-PL 5.9g
ND-16-PL 6.8g
ND-8 5.5g
ND-16 5.3g
ND-32 4.8g

plastic hood 1.3g

For comparison...
penny 2.5g (newer) 3.1g (older)
dime 2.27g
nickel 5.0g
quarter 5.67g

erikgraham · Oct 19, 2015

A combo ND8 with Circular Polarizer (ND8/CP) is my go to filter. That's when shooting 4K 30fps, Protune On, 400 Iso limit, 0 ev comp.
That set up requires color correction in post.

I suspect that without Protune ON, an ND8/CP would still be a good default filter. At a minimum, I personally would want an ND4, ND8, and ND16. The circular polarizer is optional, but they can be great to reduce glare and reflections (if properly aligned). Even if you don't nail the angles with the CP, it won't hurt your footage.

And I should mention that I don't like the PolarPro ND16/CP - too much lens flare.

Stal · Oct 20, 2015

flabango said:
I have the Polar Pro 6 pack. My go to filter for sunny days is the ND-16-PL.

As far as quality goes they are glass so that's good but I'm not very impressed with the edges of the glass as it appears the coating or glass is chipped on some of them. I don't think this effects the performance so I'm not too worried about it except for my ADD tendencies don't like it very much.

I haven't done any counter balancing and the gimbal performs just fine. I'll probably throw a nickle on the back and call it good.

Would you recommend a different brand? If you don't need to counter balance, why do it?