Filters for B&W

<p>I mostly shoot b&w film in my film cameras, and was putting together a set of four filters. This is for "general purpose" outdoor photography. I'm thinking of these four: orange, red 25, green, polarizer. What would your choice be?</p>

<p>Second question. Does a Nikon F3HP need linear or circular polarizer? I'm thinking either will work with its meter.</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

<p>I don't have green, but I think that's good choice for people. I have the others plus yellow. I shoot landscapes. I've honed in on Tmax 100 for the film with the best grain and gradation. I process in an outside lab that uses Xtol. I just started to get into BW having used color exclusively for years. So consider that with my response.</p>

<p>Personally I'd go for a yellow (K2) over the orange. I know the circular polarizer works with the F3, not sure about the linear, but I think it does as well.</p>

<p>No Yellow Filter? Does the orange do the same job for darkening blue skies?<br /> I think the F3 can use either polarizer type - although it meters via a piggyback mirror, the light passes through the main mirror through an array (~30000, IIRC) of microscopic "holes" in the center of the mirror reflecting surface. If you look at the mirror at the right angle, you can see the slight dark oblong zone on the center region. The holes allow light through irrespective of wave orientation or polarization. This approach is in contrast to a true beam splitter (like on the OM-4) that polarizes light as it passes through the main mirror to the piggyback. So, if you used a linear POL filter set perpendicularly to the beam splitter mirror, no light would make it through to the OM-4 meter and your exposures would be screwed up.</p>

I never cared for red with b&w, although I do use

it for infrared on my dSLR. Orange would be my

main choice - darkens blue sky, lightens skin,

very versatile for difficult situations.

 

I'd skip any light yellow filter. Never had any

perceptible effect that I could see.

 

Green can be interesting on some skin tones.

 

Maybe a gradient filter for some landscapes to

minimize a whited out sky.

<p>you'll use red once or twice, most of the time even orange will ruin the neg with heavy contrast<br>

i say, yellow, gradient, polarizer... orange if you must have four<br>

better still, grab a representative (of you) sample of colour pix and simulate the effect in photoshop. then decide</p>

<p>I inherited 2 strengths of yellow, bought some light yellowish green and just like Lex see little value or no noticeable benefit.<br>

Orange seems an absolute must have for sky inclusion. (@David: IMHO it <strong>does</strong> the job, while I'd "fire" yellow.) Orange also did a great job battleing Acne.<br>

Red: I haven't tried them. - If you want black skies & carry a tripod: go for it. For handheld film they eat too much light for my taste.<br>

Polarizers and green: "owned but barely used".<br>

I'd skip the polarizer for Leica (TLRs etc.) and would most likely skip the red and green for giant SLR lens diameters. Maybe some faint softeners make sense for non-SLRs?<br>

Dip your toes wise and cheaply and march on from there.<br>

How will you be doing the logistics Kent? Giant or system filters and stepup rings on your tiny lenses? - Is there a 46mm filter on 39mm Leica lens adapter ring out somewhere?</p>

<p>Since the F3HP doesn't have a beam splitter for the meter (but a perforated mirror as mentioned), either polarizer type is fine.<br>

I have carried a K2, red, green, sometimes orange and always have handy a polarizer. (The latter for B&W or color). I think the yellow / orange debate depends on how blue the sky is and if the clouds are very puffy, white forms. Red for me almost gives me a too black sky. My opinion.</p>

<p>Jim M</p>

<p>I actually use red filters a fair amount. In winter, the ground is uniformly white here. If the sky is solid blue a red filter turns it very dark. The result is a light ground and very dark sky--the opposite of what you're used to seeing. I've also used a red filter out in the Badlands. The formations are white. In the middle of the day in summer the light is very harsh. A red 25 will turn the sky very dark, which makes the white formations look even more dramatic.</p>

<p>I mostly use orange as it darkens the sky just right. Many of my subjects are train engines in red or orange paint. A green filter helps to darken them and make them stand out against the green prairie here. I also love polarizers since then give more definition to water scenes, and cut through the glass on the train cabs so you can see the crews inside. I've settled on the 52mm multicoated filters because they are small and light. This F3/T outfit is meant to be compact, quick, and easy to carry. For my Leica IIIc I have yellow/green, orange, red, and light blue. Don't use the light blue very often. I'm always curious to see what others like as that makes me think about what I'm doing.</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

<p>I don't shoot much B&W anymore. But when did, I kept a medium yellow (probably K2) on my lenses almost all the time when shooting outdoors. It made the blue skies darker and clouds pop a little, pretty closely matching what they looked like to the naked eye rather than washing out the way they do without a filter, but not to the dramatic extend that you get from a No. 25 Red. I used the K2 routinely even for newspaper photos, where you want a nice snap but don't want to go overboard. I used the 25 red when I was doing landscape work and wanted a pronounced effect. Nothing says b&w landscape like a 25 -- it instantly gives you that John Ford/John Houston Hollywood western look. Also was good for bringing out texture in rough wood. I also used a polarizer to eliminate glare and reflections, and it gave much of the same effect to skies and clouds as the 25 red. Never used an orange -- it would have been too much for what I wanted day to day and not as much as what I wanted when I used the red, although I'm sure there would have been times when it might have been just the right compromise between the two. I know some people like green but never tried it.</p>

<p>Hi Kent</p>

<p>I mostly use a Nikon Y52 yellow filter with my B&W film - this slightly darker yellow filter I find increases contrast.</p>

<p>I also use an orange 056 filter but only where say two thirds of the picture is dominated by the sky or when I take pictures of the coast in high key conditions.</p>

<p>I keep the yellow filter on even when photographing people - usually in small groups - it does not help them to stand out in landscapes however.</p>

<p>Another thing you might want to consider is what film you use. I use FP4 whenever I can. I love it, it's smooth tone transitions work well with yellow filtration as there seems to be a better separation of tones. For high speed I like Tri-X where I get the same results - lovely smooth tones with the Yellow filter adding a little 'bite'. This is because I do not develop my own pictures - I am using films and filter combinations I have learnt give me the best results from 3rd parties HP5 is too contrasty with a Yellow filter - the results are more hit and miss - I find the same with Delta 400. No doubt if I developed my own pictures I would get around this.</p>

 

<p>Also keep in mind that each time you switch filters you create an opportunity for fingerprints and scratching your front lense, and the filter. So choose a default filter, and change it only for good reasons.</p>

<p>sometimes a orange is useful when its very bright; otherwise a medium yellow is ok. (light yellow is almost useless, imo).</p>

<p>If the air is slightly hazy, even a light yellow filter can help. Nice for cutting haze if you don't want to lose too much light. I prefer the deep yellow filter for most use, though, with the occasional red for extreme effect. Red normally darkens foliage too much for my taste. Be aware, though, that TTL metering with a red filter and CDS meter can lead to underexposure as CDS meters have higher red sensitivity.</p>

<p>Today is a dark overcast day, and I'm on my way out the door to shoot. A Red filter is useless as there is no blue to darken. If there's haze anywhere I might back up a shot with an Orange filter, but because of the textured dark clouds, I'm thinking Neutral Density Grads.</p>

<p>The effects of filters are sometimes misunderstood and overrated. For example even an orange filter won't have much effect on an overcast day. If the sky isn't blue the filter won't produce much visible effect. And under those conditions yellow filters will have almost no effect.</p>

<p>However, as Jochen pointed out, orange can help minimize acne blemishes and reddishness in photos of people. And it may lighten some orangey-red flowers, which might help separate the blooms from the foliage.</p>

<p>Unlike yellow and magenta filters on variable contrast paper, on-camera filters with panchromatic b&w films aren't global contrast filters. They're very selective in effect.</p>

<p>It's one reason why some colorized movies look peculiar. The cinematographer and costumer collaborated to choose colors that would produce the desired monochrome tonal separation in b&w, not necessarily the best look in color.</p>

<p>I'm often just as concerned with making my subjects stand out from the backgrounds as I am with the sky. Anyway, there were several packages on my kitchen table when I got home tonight. One was from B&H and had five rolls each of FP4 and HP5. Another box contained a little adapter so I could use my flash triggers on the F3/T. A third box contained a 28mm f2 AiS, and the fourth box contained a 105mm f2.5 AiS. Woo Hoo!</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

<p>Woo Hoo! Is right, cool! Just the 105mm f2.5 packs a punch right there. I hope they're good copies.</p>

<p>A blue filter can also be useful for portraits and other people photos, in respect to its skin rendition.</p>

<p>Otherwise your choice seems a good one. Has anyone yet mentioned one of the strong points for green?</p>

<p>Nature, where you might want to lighten foliage.</p>

I think blue may also be used to emphasize haze rather than reduce it.

A blue filter will exaggerate blemishes and acne

with panchromatic b&w film. Usually not a good

look, although it may have some limited use.

<p>Got to be careful with a green filter with portraits, if environmental including green foliage. Did that, and the foliage didn't look natural. The subjects skin tone looked good. Keeping in mind these B+W color filters lighten there own color, never a free lunch.</p>

<p>There is a special situation where I like to use a blue filter. In winter when the sky is blue, when I have a dark toned subject it's fun to put on a blue filter. This turns the sky white, and since the ground is already white and not affected, the dark subject seems to float in a landscape that has no horizon.</p>

<p>Kent in SD</p>

<blockquote>

<p>"I mostly shoot b&w film in my film cameras, and was putting together a set of four filters. This is for "general purpose" outdoor photography. I'm thinking of these four: orange, red 25, green, polarizer. What would your choice be?"</p>

</blockquote>

<p><br />1. Polarizing filter (to darken blue skies and/or to reduce unwanted glare and reflections)<br /><br />2. Neutral density (for situations where the available light is too bright for the ISO/shutter speed/aperture combination that I want to use)<br /><br />3. Graduated neutral density (to reduce high contrast lighting when shooting landscapes)<br /><br />4. Soft focus (to soften contrast for dreamy landscapes and to reduce blemishes and skin defects in portraits)<br /><br /> </div>

<p>Most comments have been related to sky or skin tones (acne reduction). What we forget is that all colors when translated to B&W can benefit from the differentiation of tones made possible using color filters (yellow, orange, green, blue, red and combinations of these). Our subjects exhibit a wide variety of colors which are translated to B&W tones. Sky is just one example of applying knowledge of color theory and the "color wheel" and using the interactions of complementary colors. The B&W photographer should be just as aware as the color photographer of the effects and harmony of colors in order to create tonal contrasts between subjects or parts of them.</p>