ND filters for 200-400mm Zoom-Nikkor?

[avro707]

I'm looking into getting some ND filters for the AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 200-400mm F/4.0G IF-ED lens. This lens uses a drop-in filter holder at the back.

I'm unsure if something like this will work or not:

http://www.adorama.com/BW52ND64XW.html

Probably looking at 8x and 64x filters - I want to reduce the amount of light getting into the lens in daylight to drop the shutter speeds lower.

Has anyone done this already and could confirm that it will work? I may visit a local camera store this afternoon - but it's so much cheaper to buy from Adorama!

 

[initialsBB]

I may visit a local camera store this afternoon - but it's so much cheaper to buy from Adorama!

I found that most camera stores don't have these "extreme" ND filters in stock, only on order.

You may want to look at going all the way to the B+W ND110 (1000x) filter instead if you want really long daytime exposures. Just watch out for noise inherent to this exercise.

 

[avro707]

I went to my local store and got a Hoya one, 8x. That should be enough - seems to work well. And you were right, the extreme ones are indeed not in stock.

 

[initialsBB]

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I wouldn't mind if you posted an example shot... Been on the fence about a ND filter for a while and can't make up my mind !

 

[mariocapo]

For what it's worth..

I went shooting with a pretty big time landscape photographer. He shoots film, but he stressed many times how great of an asset a grad filter can be for shooting landscapes (especially for digital photographers). He does a lot of long exposure stuff. After seeing his work, I was sold. It is a little hard shelling out $250 for a tiny pane of glass though. lol. It is probably going to be my next photography purchase. Just thought I'd throw in my (or a pro's actually) 2 cents.

 

[avro707]

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I wouldn't mind if you posted an example shot... Been on the fence about a ND filter for a while and can't make up my mind !

I will - provided Sydney weather clears up on the weekend.

 

[avro707]

initialsBB: Here you go:



1/25sec, F/8.0, ISO100, 380mm

It worked perfectly for what I wanted - as you can see from the EXIF. Normally, I'd not be able to get 1/25sec in daylight unless I used some extreme aperture setting (with the risk of diffraction).

 

[initialsBB]

I'll have to get a stronger one, I'm hoping to do architectural shots and daylight time lapses with as strong motion blur as possible so 8x won't be enough. Thanks for the info and shot !

 

[avro707]

64x should reduce the shutter speed a large amount - and you can use F/11 or so if you wish.