First test
PRICE: £140
KASEFILTERS.COM
Kase Filters K9 holder kit
A good filter holder needs to help, not hinder, shooting, and Kase’s new K9 has plenty of refinements to make photography easier
SPECS
› Price £140 › In the box K9 100mm filter holder with 2x2mmbays; 90mm slimline magnetic X-CPL; 77mm and 82mm geared adapter rings; 67-82mm and 72-82mm stepping rings; 1x auxiliary 2mmbay; 1x three-slot 1.1mmbay; spare gaskets; allen key and screws › Materials Aluminium, plastic moulding
well, but also lets you rotate the holder when it’s slackened slightly. The polariser bay is a big benefit and could be attractive if you’re still using a holder without one. The solution of fitting a polariser inside the holder isn’t new – the K8 and lots of other holders allow it – but this one works smoothly indeed. Being magnetic, it attaches easily and, thanks to the gearing, turns smoothly, if a little noisily. Compared to the K8, the turning knob is more pronounced, so it’s easier to use, especially in gloves – not that I noticed a problemwith the previous model. Overall, the polariser system is about the easiest I’ve found to use, and the magnetic approach is great – somuch easier than screwing it in. Additionally, the front of the filter has cut-out areas, whichmake it easier to remove the polariser when it’s not needed, rather than having to remove the holder to get at it. The circular polariser itself performed very well indeed, showing no significant shift in colour or loss of sharpness, and good handling of flare. The K9 is wider than the K8, and uses a 90mmpolariser instead of an 86mmone. This, as well as the low- profile filter bays, means it claims no vignetting even at 14mm, and that proved true in our testing with a Nikkor Z 14-30mm f/4. Using the slimmer 1.1mmbays, the same is true. However, when fitting with the extra 2mmbay, we
Are you a landscape or travel shooter? Then you’ll most likely already have a filter holder, which lets you add full and grad ND filters to your lens, as well as other square filter types. So why would you need a new holder?Well, time marches on and innovations happen. Case in point is Kase’s K9. It’s full of clever little tweaks on the previous K8, so we decided to take it for a spin. In the K9 kit you get the titular aluminium filter holder that takes 100mmwide square filters, and a 90mm magnetic circular polariser, which fits within the holder itself, behind the filter bays. There are also two geared adapter rings, which will fit lenses with 77mm and 82mm threads, and stepping rings for 67mm and 72mm threads. Finally, there’s an alternative set of three-slot 1.1mm filter bays, and an additional 2mmbay that can be added to the standard twin 2mm slots. It’s also worth noting that the packaging is nice; it feels like a premiumproduct. The aluminium 100mmholder has a solid feel, resisting any flexing, but weighs only 35g. With the 77mm geared adapter, it comes up to about 75g, and with the 90mmmagnetic polariser added, weighs 100g. It’s a pretty lightweight set-up, and everything is nicely machined, so it screws together smoothly. The holder slips on to the geared adapter neatly, and the knurled locking pin tightens quickly, holding
› Filter slots Two 2mm/ three 2mm/three 1.1mm › Weight 35g (holder); 40g (adapter) › Visit kasefilters.com
Verdict The K9 is an excellent 100mm filter holder, accompanied by a high- quality circular polariser. It’s very well machined, engineered for easy handling and the kit includes adapters and stepping rings to cater for most enthusiast lenses. If you need to fit the holder to smaller lenses, additional stepping rings are cheap. The K9 is an excellent buy, whether to use with ultra-wide angle lenses, or for your first foray into the world of 100mm filters. Very much recommended.
“THE HOLDER SLIPS ON TO THE GEARED ADAPTER NEATLY, AND THE KNURLED LOCKING PIN
noticedminor vignetting at 15mm and below. Still a good performance, and swapping slots over was not at all fiddly using the included allen key. The shape of the holder is more curved than with the K8, and this allowedmore purchase on filters as they were slotted in. Like its predecessor, it has a gasket on the face of the holder, which prevents light leaks when strong NDs are used in the first of the slots. Filters pressed neatly up against it, cutting out any light, and it seemed to be well attached; only long-termuse will prove whether the gasket stays in place as filters are inserted and removed, but if the rest of the build is anything to go by, they should last a long time. Additional gaskets are included in the box, so they can be added if the originals degrade or are damaged. KS
TIGHTENS QUICKLY”
PROS Build quality, handling and value; you get plenty for £140
CONS Nothing of note
ABOVE One of the design changes from the K8 is the more pronounced control knob, which makes it easier to turn, especially when wearing gloves
Issue 73 | Photography News 51
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