Singh-Ray Filters.pdf

Capture more of what you’re shooting for...

Singh-Ray Filters • 1-800-486-5501 • 21

Capture the dramatic highlight detail in your images

When photographing landscapes and other

outdoor scenes, it’s often a challenge to

capture enough detail and color saturation

in the bright sky, distant mountains and in

areas along the horizon while also properly

exposing the scene’s foreground. The photo

below illustrates what can happen when the

range of exposure levels (f-stops) within a

scene exceeds the “dynamic range” of the

ilm or digital sensor in your camera.

When we’re photographing a scene

such as this, with its wide range of light

and shadow areas, our ilm or digital

camera is unable to take in as many levels

of brightness as our eyes. That’s why

some areas in

our slides or

digital images

of a beautiful

scene will often

appear washed

out and much

less dramatic

than what we

visualized.

One way

to extend the

dynamic range

of the ilm/sensor and capture more of

the dramatic detail and colors of such

high-contrast scenes is to use a Singh-Ray

Graduated Neutral Density (ND) Filter

to “hold back” the stronger light from

the bright sky and mountain areas. The

upper half of the Graduated ND Filter is a

neutral gray color and the bottom half is

completely clear—you’ll ind a photo of

this ilter on Page 16. By placing the ilter

in front of your lens and looking through

your camera’s viewinder, you can quickly

see how the ilter’s denser gray half reduces

the bright areas in the upper part of your

image to help balance the overall exposure.

For example, to capture the lighthouse

scene as it appears below, the photographer

positioned a Graduated ND Filter in front

of his lens to hold back the sky area and

lighthouse. The lens opening and shutter

speed for both images were the same.

With no ilter

Graduated ND Filter

©Darwin Wiggett

If you’re using a digital camera that

provides a histogram display of each image

as it’s made, it’s easy to gauge the effect of

the Graduated ND Filter. Start by shooting

an image of a high-contrast outdoor scene

without using any ilter. Meter your image

to properly record the open shadow areas

in the foreground and take the picture.

When you check the histogram of

your irst image, you’ll ind the shadow

areas are properly exposed, but the

brightest light levels in the sky will likely

be piled up against the right side of the

histogram—indicating that they are

burned out with little or no detail in the

Graduated ND Filter ©Ralph Lee Hopkins

2 • Singh-Ray Filters • www.singh-ray.com

with Galen Rowell Graduated Neutral Density Filters

Graduated ND Filter ©Art Wolfe

image ile. If you reduce the exposure by a

few f-stops, the brightness of the highlights

can be controlled, but the shadow areas

are now stacked against the left side of

the histogram—warning you that the

shadow details in the foreground may be

lost. An exposure in between the previous

exposures will show neither the highlights

nor the shadows looking their best.

By positioning a Graduated Neutral

Density ilter in front of your lens, you can

easily hold back the brightness of the sky.

If you make another exposure at the same

setting used for your irst image, you’ll

see a big improvement. The histogram

will show much less burning out of the

highlight areas. With practice, you’ll learn

how easy it is to capture more detail in all

your high-contrast scenes simply by using

Singh-Ray Graduated ND Filters.

The series of six “standard” Singh-Ray

Graduated ND Filters was originally

developed with extensive ield tests by

renowned outdoor photographer Galen

Rowell. The series includes 1-, 2-, and

3-stop gradient densities in both hard-step

and soft-step gradient patterns. Singh-Ray

currently offers 4- and 5-stop gradient

densities as well.

Many outdoor photographers consider

Singh-Ray Graduated ND Filters essential to

their success for several reasons:

•The84x120mmsizeofeachilterits

Cokin P-size ilter holders and allows

raising, lowering and tilting the ilter

to position the gradient area precisely.

Filters can also be hand held.

•Superioropticalclarity,spectral

response and color neutrality assure a

high-quality image every time—even

when used with other Singh-Ray Filters.

•Abroadrangeofgradientdensitiesand

gradient patterns gives photographers

a wide choice to handle many different

composition and lighting challenges.

•Photographersworkingwithdigital

cameras report their Graduated

ND Filters save considerable post-

production time and effort by enabling

them to control high contrast scenes

and balance exposures for most of their

shots right in the camera.

Graduated ND Filter ©Bob Krist

Singh-Ray Filters • 1-800-486-5501 • 3

Reverse Graduated ND and 4x6-inch Graduated ND Filters

beneits of using Singh-Ray’s 4x6-inch size

ilters,whichare50%largerandthus

provide greater handling ease and control

than the standard P-size ilters.

Manually positioning the 4x6 Graduated

ND Filters can really help when working

in quickly changing light to capture a

rainbow, fast-moving clouds or the rising

sun. It’s also easier to “bracket” the scene

using various gradient positions and ilter

combinations.

When photographers use their Singh-Ray

Graduated ND Filters for sunset and

sunrise scenes, they soon discover that the

standard gradient patterns—which are

darkest at the top and lighter toward the

middle—may at times work against them.

The standard gradient pattern holds

back the upper areas of the sky more

than is sometimes desired. When shooting

toward the glowing sun at sunrise or

sunset, the foreground is often dark or

backlit and the upper sky is not as bright

as it is along the horizon.

Several years ago, outdoor photographer

Daryl Benson discussed this problem with

Singh-Ray. His call soon led to the Reverse

Graduated ND Filter which has a gradient

pattern that is densest near the ilter’s

midline and then becomes gradually lighter

in the upper third of the ilter (see ilter on

page 16). When the rising or setting sun is

close to the horizon and shining brightly,

this unique ilter can help you achieve

a better exposure balance in both the

foreground and in the open sky overhead.

Singh-Ray offers the Reverse Gradient

ND Filter in densities of either 1, 2, 3 or

4 f-stops, with the 3- and 2-stop used

most frequently. Sometimes, experienced

photographers will “sandwich” this ilter

along with other Graduated ND Filters for

even greater control over the scene.

Working closely with leading outdoor

photographers helps Singh-Ray learn new

things about how our ilters are being

used. For example, we’ve found that many

photographers prefer to hand hold their

standardP-size84x120mmGraduated

ND Filters rather than placing them in the

Cokin lens-mounted ilter holder.

Their reasons for manually positioning

their Graduated ND Filters include faster

handling, no holder to carry, and being

able to avoid vignetting by placing the

ilter directly in front of their wideangle

lens—since it’s the ilter holder not the

ilter that usually leads to vignetting. When

you want to “sandwich” two Graduated ND

Filters together, it’s also much easier to

hold them up to the light to “ine tune” the

gradients before holding them in front of

the lens and making the exposure.

Photographers who hand hold their

Graduated ND Filters should consider the

The larger 4x6-inch ilters also help

reduce the possibility that your image will

accidentally include the edge of the ilter or

an intruding ingertip.

The Singh-Ray 4x6 Graduated ND Filters

are sized to it Cokin Z-Pro and Lee ilter

holders. Except for their size, they are the

same as standard Graduated ND Filters and

are available in the same gradient densities

and patterns—including the Reverse

Graduated ND Filters.

4 • Singh-Ray Filters • www.singh-ray.com

For added versatility in the ield, Singh-Ray also offers the

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