Camera Labs

I recently tried to get an ND Grad filter for my NikonD40X..the guy in the shop (Jessops) wanted to sell me one of the square types and stated that the round screw types are not really sold much anywhere anymore..is this correct?

Also, I have seen some ND Grad filters for 8 pouns (Kood) and some for around 30 pounds..im a bit beleiver in you get what you pay for, but thats a big difference

Thoughts?...thank you.

A possible problem with round ones is you can't shift where the transition happens, hence the square ones make more sense in general use.

Price difference, same as any other filter really. Cheaper ones may not be coated, so risk more overall light loss and unwanted reflections, glare sensitivity, and for NDs, they might not be as "neutral" as they could be and induce a slight colour cast.

Having said that, I have bought bargain priced ND filters and they do the job ok. I guess it depends how serious you expect to use them.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Thanks for that Popo..I thought the whole of the filter surface was coated..obviusly not.

I wanted one because I tried to take a picture of a moving stream..which came out fine, unfortunately it was spoilt by the sky bleaching out due to the longer shutter speed I had to use in order to get the blurred effect with the water.

There's both types - ordinary ND filters cover their whole surface, and are useful if you want to extend exposure times. ND grad are part covered, and allows you to selectively alter the exposure in part of the image. One example is like you mentioned, to reduce a bright sky compared to the rest of a scene.

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Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

Great..thats good news..I wasnt sure if they were the same thing or not...I just want an ND filter...are they widely available with the screw mount?

Yup, they're obtainable in screw in types. I usually pick cheap ones off ebay where you can balance the lower prices of the far east and longer delivery times, or something more local but typically cost a bit more.

_________________
Canon DSLRs: 7D, 5D2, 1D, 600D, 450D full spectrum, 300D IR mod
Lenses: EF 35/2, 50/1.8, 85/1.8, 135/2+SF, 28-80 V, 70-300L, 100-400L, TS-E 24/3.5L, MP-E 65, EF-S 15-85 IS
3rd party: Zeiss 2/50 makro, Samyang 8mm fisheye, Sigma 150 macro, 120-300 f/2.8 OS, Celestron 1325/13
Tinies: Sony HX9V.

'Typically'

Thanks very much for that...Ill put the mrs on the case...another present sorted!