First attempt at long exposure

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Samsonite

Senior Member
Im using the rectangular filters which you put in front the of the lens, not the round screw on type. So do you think the pictures are over exposed? Should it try using more than filter next time? Maybe an ND 8 and ND 6 together then increase exposure time? Much appreciated!


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Geoffc

Senior Member
BackdoorHippie said:
FYI, I just looked out the window and saw some great cloud movement so I decided to do some test shots. Unfortunately the filter, a Marumi DHG ND2-ND400 Variable ND produced the major dark spots that make variable ND's so difficult to produce. It's going back and I guess I'm going to need to go for a straight ND400.
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Jake, the B&W ten stop screw in seems to be ok. I've just bought a couple of single coated versions for my wife and I. I got mine from Amazon for about £85.

The funny thing is, the first time she used hers we got a strange blue blemish at the top of the image on long exposures. It turns out that the D300 leaks light through the AF light and it's a known issue. I tried my D300s and it did the same. We now just put a cloth over the AF light when doing this type of shot.
 
BackdoorArts

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
Thanks for the heads up, Geoff. I wound up ordering a straight ND400 from B&H instead (love them since I can order by 4 and I get it next day with ground shipping - an impulse buyer's dream). A bit of a pain in that I'll need to do my framing and focus first and then add the filter instead of having the luxury of doing it at ND2, but I should at least get consistent results. Next show I go to I'll test drive some variable ND's to see what works well. I guess you get what you pay for, right?

No leaking light issues on the D800 - and I'm so thankful for the built-in eyepiece cover. No more almost dropping the little black plastic thing into the water. LOL
 
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Samsonite

Senior Member
Can anyone suggest a good set of ND filters? What brands should I be looking at? Not necessarily the best, but good quality amateur ones...


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Geoffc

Senior Member
BackdoorHippie said:
Thanks for the heads up, Geoff. I wound up ordering a straight ND400 from B&H instead (love them since I can order by 4 and I get it next day with ground shipping - an impulse buyer's dream). A bit of a pain in that I'll need to do my framing and focus first and then add the filter instead of having the luxury of doing it at ND2, but I should at least get consistent results. Next show I go to I'll test drive some variable ND's to see what works well. I guess you get what you pay for, right?

No leaking light issues on the D800 - and I'm so thankful for the built-in eyepiece cover. No more almost dropping the little black plastic thing into the water. LOL
Click to expand...

Yes the 800 is good Jake and I like the eyepiece cover. The cover is like the 700.

Impulse buying, never :). Today I ordered another used SB900 as my wife decided she likes mine, then I got my mate to order me a Sekonic 478DR meter. He works in the trade so I get a very good deal. Now I'm just waiting to get some pocket wizards to go with them. I really shouldn't be left alone :)

Until recently my main thing was RC planes and helis. I had some big stuff including turbine helis and planes. Looking back it now seems like that was a cheap pastime!!
 
BackdoorArts

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
I have Hoya HMC's ND2, 4, 8 & 400. With the first 3 I'm pleased with the clarity and minimal impact on color. Haven't shot with the 400 yet.
 
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Samsonite

Senior Member
2nd attempt today at the same location with some bigger waves. Turned off VR and tried focussing a bit more, stayed out of the wind to reduce camera shake, still not happy with results though... They still lack clarity and sharpness... I think it must be due to the cheap eBay filter... Can't think of any other reason... I took some sample shots at faster shutter speeds without the filter to compare... Will upload them tomorrow!


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Dave_W

The Dude
Did you use exposure delay function? When I want to squeeze out the sharpest possible photos I use the 3 sec exposure delay coupled with my wired remote to reduce the potential for mirror induced camera shake. In addition, I seldom go higher than f-8 when trying to get these razor sharp images since anything higher than f 10-11 will introduce diffraction and reduce overall sharpness.

But you may also have an issue with your filter. Maybe instead of using ND filters to slow down your exposures consider doing a little night shooting. The entire world looks so different at night, even boring things can suddenly become interesting!
 
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Samsonite

Senior Member
I didnt actually set the aperture, just put it in shutter priority and focused my attention on getting the right focus for the pics...

What is exposure delay exactly? Any idea how to set up on a D5100?

Coincidentally I tried some long exposure shots last night too...


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Samsonite

Senior Member
To be honest I completely forgot to play around with the aperture... Will try it again sometime and let you guys know of it makes a difference.... I was using the shutter release remote with 2 second delay to minimize camera shake...


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Samsonite

Senior Member
Really? I thought shutter priority since that was the main thing that's impacts this type of photo?


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BackdoorArts

BackdoorArts

Senior Member
Shutter/Exposure delay can be done in three ways, two of them automatic. The one that works on every camera is the self timer, but it activates the mirror and the shutter together. The other, and better, method is found in the shooting menu and allows you to set the fixed amount of time between when the shutter is pressed and mirror raised, and when the shutter actuates - 1, 2 or 3 seconds. The manual method is with the remote, and you set that in the Custom Menus section so that the remote works in 2 steps - press once for mirror up, press again for shutter. This allows you to wait as long as you want for all vibrations to stop before activating the shutter.
 
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Samsonite

Senior Member
So just got my lot of second attempt pictures onto Flickr....

Here goes...

These were all shot with the 18 - 55m kit lens set to shutter priority with a shutter speed of between 4 - 6 seconds. Didnt pay any attention to aperture im afraid :( That something to keep in mind for next time! Camera was set on my cheapo tripod and I used the previously mentioned Cheap Ebay ND8 Filter.... I used remote shutter release with a 2 second delay to minimise camera shake. These are all JPEG images, straight off the camera, no touch ups (Evidently :p).

This first pic was taken without ND filter at 1/250 and autofocus to give you guys an idea of the area I was working at, and the clarity without the ND filter.

DSC_0185 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

They seem slightly sharper than first attempt I think...

DSC_0189 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0190 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0191 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0193 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0195 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0198 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0199 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Change in Location (These were taken on the other side of the island later the same day)

DSC_0209 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0210 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0212 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

DSC_0213 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Full bay with cheap ND filter, very poor clarity...

DSC_0216 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Full bay at 1/320 without ND filter

DSC_0218 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Little peak of Malta :)

DSC_0219 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Another shot I took later in the day, I quite like this...

DSC_0238 | Flickr - Photo Sharing!


Comments and criticisms?

All help much appreciated!
 
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Dave_W

The Dude
The only thing that jumps out at me is horizons that are not straight but other than that they seem like nice photos of the ocean and the cactus shot is cool. However, I feel obligated to point out that the rules on the Photo Critique section is to post 1 photo per day. Otherwise it's far too daunting a job to critique a long list of photos. Perhaps it would be best to post a single image that you're most interested in hearing about in a new thread.
 
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