Despite advances in software, filters remain an
essential tool for landscape photography
Add punch with filtration
There are some filter effects that are difficult
or even impossible to replicate in post-
production: for example, removing glare from
non-metallic surfaces with a polarising filter
or extending exposure length with a neutral
density filter.
By removing glare, a polariser restores
natural colour saturation and improves
contrast; the resulting images have more
‘punch’. The effect is especially pronounced on
foliage and blue skies, making it an essential
filter for summer landscape photography.
They are simple to use: polarisers have a
rotating front element and as you turn it, you
will see reflections and glare come and go,and blue skies darken and lighten. Simply
rotate the filter while looking through the
viewfinder until you see the effect you like.
The effect can be very seductive and it is easy
to over-polarise a scene, so that skies look
unnaturally dark.
Neutral density filters reduce the amount
of light coming through the lens, allowing you
to artificially extend exposure times. Although
most known for creating misty-looking water,
this is not their only use: they can create
interesting effects with moving clouds and can
also be used to blur the movement of crops.
When it comes to using filters, there are
basically two types – screw-in filters andslot-in, system filters. Although the former are
often cheaper, they have the disadvantage
that you are likely to encounter vignetting
if you stack two or more filters together
and if you have lenses with different sized
filter threads, you’ll need duplicate filters.
In addition to this, using a polariser in
combination with other filters – especially
graduated filters – is awkward. System
filters solve all of these problems – they are
designed to be stacked without resulting in
vignetting, polarisers are easy to operate
and rather than having to duplicate filters of
different sizes, you just need to get an adaptor
ring for each lens.Techniques