Most useful filter for B/W?

[david_craig1]

If you could only have 3 filters for shooting B/W which colours would

you choose?

[peter_evans4]

I'd look at the photos I'd taken and ask myself how they'd be improved by

this or that filter (if at all). What deficiencies are you noticing in your

photos, David?

[chip l.]

Peter has a point.

 

The use of filters in B&W is to correct for the spectrum differences.

 

For many the choices would be:

 

Yellow - it allows for clouds to be rendered the way your eye sees it when shooting B&W

 

Green - lightens foliage, and said to help with flesh tones

 

Red - makes the difference between sky and clouds even more dramatic

[working camera]

David this is really an impossible question as we do not know what type of

photography you are into or asking about or what climate you inhabit or where you

intend to go. Or are you just running a survey of forum prefernces?

 

Regardless, here are my B+W filter picks of the day

 

Medium Yellow, (of cause) �.for general and landscape work to add tone to blue skys

and to bring out cloud textures, and also good for overcast days to add some

contrast to shadows.

 

Yellow/green or medium green filter �. to bring out texture in general foliage and

jungles etc.

 

Orange� for stronger effects than medium yellow

 

Some love the strong effects of a red filter but the effect given often looks over done

if not used judiciously.

 

Light Blue�.to enhance skin tones in portrait and most important for B+W nude

work. And for use under tungsten light.

 

I hope this is the sort of thing you were after.

 

Cheers, Craig

[al_kaplan1]

Over the years I've picked up lots of filters, mostly used, but about the only one I think I've actually used in at least 10 years is the medium yellow. I guess if I shot more scenics I'd use them more. The polarizing filter is also very useful but it's a royal pain to use on a rangefinder camera.

[EricM]

Unsharpened mask, Gaussian blur and noise.

[Brad_]

What Eric said... The only screw-on <I>camera filter</I> I use is a B+W 093 for infrared

pix.

[dan_brown4]

1. No filter.

 

2. Medium yellow.

 

3. Dark red.

[working camera]

Eric, are you nuts unsharpmasks are just an absolute pain to make and they can take

days to get right. Filters at the time of exposure are a much easier way to go.

 

Gaussian Blur is not so bad, I just move the enlarger head/base board up or down,

 

for noise I use the radio.

[mikep1]

1. Red

2. none

3. none

[hans_beckert]

Yellow-green

 

Orange

 

Red

[EricM]

Craig, all scanned negs need a slight unsharp mask correction afterwards. Unless it�s programmed and automated with the software.

[Rob F.]

1. A light yellow with 1/2 stop filter factor, or else a medium yellow (K2), with a one-stop factor (equivalent of wratten #8); when I need one filter to do it all, not having to waste time changing filters. This is my general-purpose correction filter.

 

2. A stronger yellow, equivalent to wratten #9. Also known as the K3 cloud filter. I only use it for darkening skies, for strong contrast with clouds.

 

3. A light orange filter, but on rare occasions. Same purpose as #2. I may bring just one or the other, to simplify things.

 

I've been avoiding red, as I think pictures shot with it often look over-filtered.

 

I'm going to try using a yellow-green as a general purpose correction filter; but I can't say I'm advocating them, since I haven't tried it yet.

 

Under gray skies, all filters come off, as a rule.

[richard_milner2]

Yellow-green.

 

Medium yellow.

 

Red for infra-red. It's generally too strong for normal use.

[david j.lee]

i read somewhere that a red filter plus a polarizer will give you black sky. can

somebody confirm this, maybe including a shot...?

thanks!

[vic_.]

Yellow-green is also good for Asian skin tones. I don't know what is good for other skin tones, maybe someone has compiled some experience.

[ronald_wills]

Yellow-Green , Orange, Red.

[working camera]

Eric,

 

I too prefer the digital �unsharpmask�, but have you ever tried making fuzzy edged

masks and �unsharpmarsks� in the wet darkroom. Just a little darkroom v digital

humour.

[Rob F.]

"i read somewhere that a red filter plus a polarizer will give you black sky. can somebody confirm this . . ."

 

Yes. It can easily make the sky black, or nearly so. With a contrasty light, it can be used for what filmmakers call "day for night." That is, a night scene that is shot, for reasons of convenience and scheduling, in the daytime. A little underexposure augments the effect.

[david j.lee]

thanks rob. i will go to the beach this weekend just to try it!!!

 

david