Filter advice

[snowwalker]

I am looking forward to taking my newly acquired M6 and 50/f2 Summicron to Egypt with me in August. I plan on taking mainly (but not exclusively) B&W. What filters would be best suited for this type of environment? Red? Yellow? Linear Polariser? UVa? None?

Sorry if this is basic question but I am pretty new to this so please don't flame me!

Thanks

 

[peter_n]

Welcome to the site snowwalker! 🙂 As a filter guy, I would take a UV for the non-B&W film. A contrast filter may well depend on the film you take. I would imagine Egypt is pretty contrasty already so maybe a yellow or light yellow might be sufficient if you like contrasty pics (as I do). Congrats on the new cam & lens. Awesome combo! 🙂

 

[Ben Z]

Unless you're one of those people who believe a lens hood can protect against sand particles, some kind of a filter is probably a good idea. Spring for the B+W multicoated/resistant ones, they're really good. I tend to use a medium yellow most of the time outdoors for b&w film, but if the sky is already deep blue against really white skies it's probably not that important and a UV will do fine. You might also consider a 2-stop neutral density filter. The Leica's shutter only goes to 1000 and unless you've got a stash of APX-25 it tends to limit you from opening up the lens to blur out backgrounds. A great thing would be the Leica polarizer, because it can accentuate the sky-clouds, and serve as a ND filter. If you've got the latest edition of the Summicron with the built-in shade you'll need the Universal Polarizer which is very expensive and big, or one of those vented step-up adaptors for a larger polarizer filter. The earlier 50 Crons can take the earlier Leica polarizer which is smaller and less expensive.

 

[Sean Moran]

I've just got back from Egypt and found that HP5+ downrated to ISO 200 reduced the contrast to a manageable level. For the pyramids and the Sphynx, I used an orange filter, which darkened the blue sky nicely.

Enjoy.

Sean.

PS As you would expect, most Egyptians are decent people, but the camel-jockeys, touts and taxi-drivers are mainly a pain in the arse. A useful word is "Imshe" which I think literally means "Walk". I didn't pay anyone who asked for a fee for having their photo taken: they had finished with the photons which I gathered onto film to excite the silver halide. Neither did I photograph anyone who indicated discomfort with this process either, though. Perhaps you think this is harsh advice, but if the average Egyptian (if there is such a thing) is not a grabbing, persistent nuisance, those few that do occupy the extreme end of the bell-curve ought to be treated with disdain. Apart from that, you'll have a great time - using the phrase "Salaam aleikum" at every opportunity.

 

[snowwalker]

Thanks everyone for your input and help.

Does downrating HP5 to 200 have a marked effect on contrast?

 

[StuartR]

I definitely agree with Ben here -- a UV filter is a very good idea for use in the desert. As for which filters to use, you are probably best off thinking about the color principles. A filter lightens the color that is appears to your eye, and darkens the complimentary color. So if you have a scene with blue sky, white clouds and orange sand, and orange filter would darken the sky, increase the contrast, and lighten the orange sand. On the other hand, a blue filter would darken the sand, lighten the sky (and lower the contrast in the sky...probably washing it out).

One way to decide which filter to bring is pretty easy if you have photoshop.
Step 1: Find some color pictures of the places you plan on visiting.
Step 2. Save them to your desktop (delete them when you are done if they are not open use images).
Step 3. Open photoshop and run the "photo filter" utility in the adjustment menu.
Step 4. Apply whatever color filter you feel like trying.
Step 5. Convert the image to grayscale.

That will allow you to see the effect of the filter on the scenes that you plan on photographing! As for filters, I would spring for the B+W MRC filters...they are just better. The brass rings make them easy to get on and off, and their coating not only prevents almost all flare and ghosting, it actually sheds dirt, fingerprints and so on. They are really worth it, especially if you plan to be using high quality rangefinder lenses. It's another thing if you are using a 4-4000mm consumer zoom...

 

[mad_boy]

A Snowwalker in the desert.

I'd like to see a picture of that😛

mad_boy

 

[Andrew3511]

One consideration with orange and red filters that I have learnt from experience is that as well as darkening blue sky dramatically they also considerably darken shadows and reduce shadow detail (as shadow hues are relatively blue under clear blue sky) so expose generously if you want shadow detail.

 

[varjag]

If you're going to shoot color, polarizer is a good idea. Skies there at daytime tend to be washed out this time of year.

 

[peterm1]

I like to use the following:

- UV for geenral purpose and lens protection
- Yellow for light enhancement of contrast in B/W
- Orange of red for stronger or very strong contrast in B/W
- Pale green (sometimes called apple green) for better rendition of skin tones
- If you intend doing some colour work and really want ot lash out, a polarising filter is a nice to have but hard to find.

cheers hope this helps