I am thinking of buying a Singh-Ray Vari-ND or Vari-ND-Duo. I shoot with a D700 and all of my lenses take 77mm filters. I like the idea of the duo(combined ND and Polarizer) but it only comes in 77mm. I'm concerned with vignetting especially at 24mm or below. The standard ND comes in an 82mm but then I would have to stack it on top of a polarizer if I wanted the same effect as the duo. Does anyone have experience with either filter on a full frame camera and lenses 24mm or below?
I've got the Vari-ND as my wide lenses take 82mm, so the Vari-ND-duo is out - I would love to have it. I've not had any problems stacking the Vari-ND with a polarizer, when called for on a 24mm lens. I've not shot it wide open at 16mm with them stacked, but in the 24-35+ mm range, I've not had a problem with vignetting. I'm shooting a full frame Canon 5dii.
It is a bit tricky as you have to rotate the ND to dial in the appropriate shutter speed, but you don't want to impact the polarizer rotation. You'll also have to dial back the ND setting to its lightest to be able to focus the shot. Then you can dial back in more ND to get the shot. I love the Vari-ND - I can dial in almost any shutter speed I want, with very low ISO settings & get great shots with smooth water, cloud motion, etc.
Unfortunately on ultra wide angle you still might have the cross effect coming from two polarizers. The same concerns the Lightcraft Workshop Fader ND
http://www.rc.au.net/blog/2011/01/16/lightcraft-workshop-fader-nd-variable-neutral-density-filter/
check also here:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=985703
IIRC, on a 5d + 17-40 setup, I put a 77mm polarizer + 82mm Vari-ND (on a 77-82 step-up ring) + grad filter holder and that all required zooming out to 26mm. The holder was on a 82mm Lee wide adapter so most of the thickness was the pol + Vari-ND. I don't like the odds of going much wider than 24mm when using a pol + Vari-ND.
The specific lens being used could make a difference. For example, the same setup on a 24-105 required zooming out past 35mm ...
On the wide end I've got the 16-35mm and the 24mmPC so I'm thinking the 77mm duo filter will not work well especially at the higher ND settings. I'll probably go with the 82mm ND and stack it onto a polarizer if needed. At least it should be ok with my other lenses.
Mike
Posted by Anne K. Rusk on April 10, 2011 at 11:46 PM
I had major issues with my 82mm variND as far as inconsistent effect to the point I sent it back. Just watch for it and test it before you really rely on it.
Discussion
5 repliesThanks,
Mike
It is a bit tricky as you have to rotate the ND to dial in the appropriate shutter speed, but you don't want to impact the polarizer rotation. You'll also have to dial back the ND setting to its lightest to be able to focus the shot. Then you can dial back in more ND to get the shot. I love the Vari-ND - I can dial in almost any shutter speed I want, with very low ISO settings & get great shots with smooth water, cloud motion, etc.
http://www.rc.au.net/blog/2011/01/16/lightcraft-workshop-fader-nd-variable-neutral-density-filter/
check also here:
http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=985703
IIRC, on a 5d + 17-40 setup, I put a 77mm polarizer + 82mm Vari-ND (on a 77-82 step-up ring) + grad filter holder and that all required zooming out to 26mm. The holder was on a 82mm Lee wide adapter so most of the thickness was the pol + Vari-ND. I don't like the odds of going much wider than 24mm when using a pol + Vari-ND.
The specific lens being used could make a difference. For example, the same setup on a 24-105 required zooming out past 35mm ...
Mike