amoz
Established
Do you use a filter for your black & white shots, and which one? I am leaning towards orange-red for general outdoor daylight usage... Feel free to share your thoughts and example pics!
Thanks a lot
Thanks a lot
To filter or not to filter? (for B/W)
- Thread starter amoz
- Start date
- Latest activity Latest activity:
- Replies 24
- Views 2K
amoz
Established
Euhm... anyone?
R
Richard Black
Guest
As with anything, your mileage may vary. I use them, yellow, dark yellow, orange and red. Depends on the setting , the light, and what I want to achieve. My CV Color-Skopar 28 f3.5 is quite contrasty so I don't use the orange/red filters with C-41 B&W film. With Tri-X or traditional B&W I use them on all my lenses. What do you want to achieve?
Graham Line
Well-known
Filtering B&W is a nice way of tweaking film characteristics, slowing down fast films on bright days, or getting some tonal separation the film wouldn't record otherwise.
Filtering color is a good way to cut haze and reflections, or eliminate and add color casts.
There's no one set-it-and-forget-it solution.
With XP2 Super, outdoors on a sunny day, I'll often add a mid-yellow or orange filter to improve contrast.
Also, responses take a while to build on this list. Some people seem permanently parked on it but a lot of the wise sages only seem to look in once a day, or even less often.
Filtering color is a good way to cut haze and reflections, or eliminate and add color casts.
There's no one set-it-and-forget-it solution.
With XP2 Super, outdoors on a sunny day, I'll often add a mid-yellow or orange filter to improve contrast.
Also, responses take a while to build on this list. Some people seem permanently parked on it but a lot of the wise sages only seem to look in once a day, or even less often.
Biggles
My cup runneth amok.
I don't use them any more, mostly because I simply can never find any (43mm and Series 5.5!), but I used a yellow-green a lot for girl portraiture back in my SLR days. Liked the way it darkened lips. I'd use one again, if I could lay my mitts on one in a size I need, on the cheap.
I sometimes pack a 2.5- stop neutral density filter when I'm out with a camera full of Neopan 1600 on a cloudless day. It's come in handy.
I sometimes pack a 2.5- stop neutral density filter when I'm out with a camera full of Neopan 1600 on a cloudless day. It's come in handy.
Xmas
Veteran
Biggles
You should be able to get 43mm easy the series 5.5 are more difficult. The leitz 43mm abberational pitch are more difficult.
I normally use a light yellow or a deep yellow, have to be real careful to remove when I have only a colour film left.
Noel
You should be able to get 43mm easy the series 5.5 are more difficult. The leitz 43mm abberational pitch are more difficult.
I normally use a light yellow or a deep yellow, have to be real careful to remove when I have only a colour film left.
Noel
ZivcoPhoto
Well-known
I prefer yellow-green filters for most B&W work although an orange filter can really enhance the mood of a particular scene.
Yellow-Green - 50%
No filter - 30%
Orange -10%
Yellow -10%
Yellow-Green - 50%
No filter - 30%
Orange -10%
Yellow -10%
Last edited:
sunsworth
Well-known
Yellow most of the time. Be aware that if you use a red filter you'll get very pale caucasian skin tones, which depending on what you're shooting may not be a good thing.
M
Magus
Guest
Post deleted by posters request
Tuolumne
Veteran
I have started using my R-D1 to take B&W by beginning with a color shot that I then change to a filtered black and white. You then get to select from among a numerous array of color filters that perform their magic after the fact. I use Picasa alot and this is a two button tweak in that application. I highly recommend your experimenting with it. I've gotten some great results with it. In fact, I'm beginning to think I should shoot all of my B&Ws in color and convert them that way. There was an article in a recent magazine showcasing a professional art photographer who has started shooting B&W with large format color film, scanning it and converting it to B&W while applying filters during post-processing. He had some very impressive images displayed in the article.
Any one else do this?
/T
Any one else do this?
/T
Last edited:
CosmicCharlie
Established
I use a 2 yellow on my pre-war non coated elmar all the time.
Olsen
Well-known
I don't shoot B&W anymore. Haven't done in 20 years or so. But I used yellow filters, and still have it on my Hasselblad Planar 80 mm 2,8 - which also fits lenses up to 250 mm 5,6. I did it to separete clouds from the darker sky.
Bryce
Well-known
I usually use a filter for outdoor shots, but which one varies depending on the situation. No filter on a sunny day yields white skies and that just doesn't look right to my eyes. Most of the time I use either a yellow or yellow green filter, both render clouds on blue sky nicely. The trouble with the yellow one is that it renders green foliage quite dark, so where there are evergreen trees I use a yellow green. Red objects appear unnaturally dark with the yellow green one though...
I occasionally use an orange one, I find it useful for shooting the shaded side of buildings on sunny days.
Under overcast skies, or indoors no filter or a U.V. is usually best.
If I only had one colored filter, I'd make it a yellow green one.
I occasionally use an orange one, I find it useful for shooting the shaded side of buildings on sunny days.
Under overcast skies, or indoors no filter or a U.V. is usually best.
If I only had one colored filter, I'd make it a yellow green one.
40oz
...
I used to use a red filter alot, and the number of ruined shots from ugly flare killed that little phase. Now, I only use it in carefully considered circumstances. I'd rather have the shot with no filter than no shot at all because of the filter. There are certainly circumstances where a filter is a nice effect, but it is no longer an accessory I carry everywhere.
Keith
The best camera is one that still works!
I accidentally shot a roll of Fuji Superia Colour with a dark orange filter in place ... the results were strange to say the least! 😀
Berliner
Well-known
"The leitz 43mm abberational pitch "
What is this, And what does it fit? I think I may have one. It's 43mm, but the threads seem tighter than every other filter a I own.
What is this, And what does it fit? I think I may have one. It's 43mm, but the threads seem tighter than every other filter a I own.
George Bonanno
Well-known
I use a light yellow filter when photographing people in B&W with an SLR to minimize blemishes and smooth out skin tones. This works equally well with light and dark skin people under most lighting conditions. Although some might argue this only works on Caucasians.
When using a rangefinder it's typically not a good idea to use a filter as you cannot anticipate (visualize) flair and internal filter reflections that might occur.
However, if you're fixated on using a filter as a permanent fixture on a rangefinder, well then, all the best.
George
When using a rangefinder it's typically not a good idea to use a filter as you cannot anticipate (visualize) flair and internal filter reflections that might occur.
However, if you're fixated on using a filter as a permanent fixture on a rangefinder, well then, all the best.
George
Wayne R. Scott
Half fast Leica User
I use a 25a red filter when shooting Kodak HIE.
Wayne
Wayne
Xmas
Veteran
Berliner said:
Hi
The 50mm lux with a 43mm thread wont accept all the normal 43mm filters, the lens and the leitz filters are 0.5 pitch the standard is 0.75 or vice versa. If you wanna a filter to fit for sure you gotta buy leitz, many 3rd party will fit but it may be hard on the lux's threads, I'd not use force.
Noel
amoz
Established
Thank you all! I think I will go for a yellow-green and an orange one, and see how it works out.
