Buyers’ guide
Cokin Filters › holdan.co.uk
glass. While this range of ND grads and NDs offers the same optical performance as the original Nuance filters, they are super tough and can withstand multiple accidental drops on hard ground.
glass and are coated on both sides with a nano metallic alloy. This helps produce a colour neutral image, free of infrared pollution. Now, there’s the Nuances Extreme range, made from hard mineral
Cokin kicked off the square creative filter revolution over 40 years ago, and the brand is still going strong. It offers the option of four sizes and two filter families, Creative and Nuances. The Creative system is Cokin heartland, and features an extensive line-up of CR39 organic glass filters – including graduates of various colours in addition to grey neutral density, soft-focus and some more creative options. Four sizes are available. It is the S (A size) series and the M (P size) series that will probably appeal to enthusiast photographers, with a wide selection of adapter rings available in both systems. The L (Z-Pro) size is a 100mm system and the XL (X-Pro) uses 130x170mm filters. The Nuances range of filters is made from B270 Schott mineral Breakthrough Filters is based in San Francisco. Its products are US manufactured, but are available here through its UK distributor, calibration specialists CameraCal. The range includes NDs and circular polarisers – plus specialist products, such as infrared and night sky filters. Breakthrough’s creative Breakthrough Filters › breakthroughfilters.co.uk
FILTER ATTRACTION Magnetic fitting filters are very popular and make using them dead easy
Kase Filters ›kasefilters.com
Circular System are weight and space saving, as well as their speed of use. But, of course, it doesn’t suit fans of graduate filters, so you need to go for one of Kase’s holder systems. A Wolverine 100mm entry-level kit is £385, and for this you get a magnetic circular polariser, a 6EV ND, a 3EV ND soft graduate and a K9 holder – which accepts up to three filters. Rotating the polariser can be done with a gear drive cog. This means you do not have to remove any filters that you might be using at the same time. Kase’s most recent introduction is its Double Grad filter – a convenient space and money saving option. Two Double Grads are available: the 0.9ND medium and reverse ND, and 0.9 ND soft and hard – at £209 each.
filters, and can be rotated without having to alter the grad’s position. Breakthrough’s grad filters are made from Schott B270 optical glass. They are also Nanotec coated to repel dust and water, and have 16 multi-resistant coatings to eliminate flare and ghosting – while keeping contrast high. You get similar features on its X4 Series filters. These are said to be the world’s sharpest and most colour neutral, thanks to Breakthrough’s technology. Its X4 circular polariser, for example, has tightly controlled light transmission around the infrared wavelengths, for warm, lively results – free of colour casts. The 77mm X4 circular polariser costs £115 and the X4 ND 10EV of the same size is £138. NDs are also available in 3EV, 6EV and 15EV strengths.
system is based on its £38 X100 holder – which will work on 16mm ultra-wide lenses on a full-frame camera, without vignetting. It’s designed with a snap-lock, so it can be used one-handedly. Adapter rings are £15 each. The circular polariser is magnetic, situated behind any grad
Kase Wolverine filters are made from tough, colour neutral optical B270 Schott glass. They are coated with a special nano electro- coating for filters that is easy to clean, scratch resistant, water repellent, with exceptional anti-reflective characteristics. Kase’s product line-up includes a magnetic circular system – 75mm/100mm/150mm – and innovative clip-in filters for Sony Alpha and Nikon Z cameras. These fit in front of the camera’s sensor, rather than the lens. The entry-level Magnetic Circular Kit starts at £220. For that, you get two NDs (3EV and 6EV), circular polariser, 77mm magnetic adapter and carry case. The Professional kit adds a 10EV ND and costs £280. The appeals of the Magnetic
H&Y Filters › handyfilters.com
great convenience. But you get excellent performance, too. The retracting blades have threaded ends for a secure fit and they overlap to avoid light leaks with very long exposures. Revoring filters have an anti-fingerprint and waterproof nano coating, to help repel water droplets and make cleaning easier. They’re made of high-quality Schott B270 glass, with anti-reflective coatings. A recent addition is the H&Y Black Mist filter, available in three grades to create soft skin tones and blooming highlights. In the 67-82mm size this costs £129. You can buy it bundled with the Revoring Variable ND + CPL for £279.
can be used across several lenses. Buy the 52-72mm adapter, and this will fit on lenses with 52mm through to 72mm filter threads and accept 77mm filters. The 46-62mm takes 67mm filters, while the 67-82mm takes 82mm filters. Or you could buy the Revoring with the combined variable ND and circular polariser with 37-49mm, 46-62mm, 58-77mm, 67-82mm and 82-95mm the sizes on offer. The 67-82mm is £210. With the ND that has a working range from ND3 to 1000 and a circular polariser combined, means you have two key filter effects covered. With the Revoring fitting several lenses, this system has
The H&Y Filters range includes the K-Line magnetic filter holders, KH100 and KC100 – with variants for ultra-wide Fujifilm, Nikon and Olympus lenses, and the Revoring. This unique holder uses retractable and variable blade technology, to overcome the need for step-up/step-down rings. The clever design means it can be fitted/removed quickly, and it’s secure, capable of taking a camera’s weight once attached. The Revoring Variable Step Adapter costs from £34 and is available in 37- 49mm, 46-62mm, 52-72mm, 67-82mm and 82-95mm sizes. Each will take round screw-in filters, so your existing filters
Issue 93 | Photography News 33
photographynews.co.uk
Powered by FlippingBook