Variable ND filters

Capture stunning long exposures in a variety of lighting conditions

Helping you shoot longer exposures

www.manfrotto.co.uk B+W XS-Pro Digital ND Vario MR C Nano From £224/$189 Sizes: 52-82mm

1 THIS is one pricey screw-in filter – but maker Schneider Optics claims it’s a cut above the competition thanks to a Multi Resistant

Coating. Where an uncoated filter can reflect around 4% of light, this one only reflects 0.5%, while also minimising ghosting and reflections, and repelling water droplets.

The filter is 9mm deep, not including the thread, with knurling around the fixed ring that makes it a doddle to fit and unscrew. The rotating front ring has hard stops to mark the minimum and maximum filter densities, but markings in-between don’t correspond to f-stop light reduction amounts. Rotation is smooth, with pleasing resistance.

The filter is said to provide between one and five stops of light reduction, which we found to be accurate, but expect uneven light transfer beyond around three stops of reduction. Filter neutrality is good, with only a hint of a yellow cast.

Pros: Well-made; a pleasure to use; beads away water

CONS: Very expensive

VERDICT☆☆☆☆★

www.hama.com Hama Vario ND2-400 Neutral-Density Filter From £33 Sizes: 52-77mm

2 It may be a budget buy, but Hama’s filter puts in a respectable performance. It only generates a trace of a yellow cast, although sharpness is ever so slightly down on the competition. You get one to eight stops of light reduction, but stick to three stops or fewer for an even exposure.

Inevitably the filter’s quality doesn’t feel as premium as some, with audible scraping between the rotating elements, and there are no hard stops – only printed markings – to indicate minimum and maximum densities. The fixed portion of the filter is a larger diameter than the rotating front ring, though, so it’s fairly easy to grip when you’re fitting and unscrewing it.

Hama claims the filter is coated, but gives little detail of the benefits. They certainly don’t include moisture or fingerprint resistance, as the filter attracts both. It’s also a pity you can’t get the Vario in an 82mm diameter.

Pros: Respectable performance for the money; easy to fit and remove

CONS: No-frills design, fit and finish; not good in wet weather

VERDICT ☆☆☆☆★

www.hoyafilter.com Hoya Variable Neutral Density Filter From £100/$59 Sizes: 52-82mm

3 Hoya’s entry looks and feels good, but issues become apparent

during use. The fixed portion is smooth and the same diameter as the rotating front element, so you inevitably just rotate this rather than the whole filter when you attach it to your lens. The problem is compounded by the lack of hard stops to prevent the front element rotating further than maximum or minimum densities. These range between 1.5 and nine stops.

We found the maximum completely even density to be around four stops, which sounds poor, but is actually jointbest with the Syrp filter. The two filters are less closely matched for neutrality, however: in our lab tests, the Hoya glass generated a small but noticeable yellow cast at darker densities.

We were also slightly disappointed by the apparent lack of effective lens coatings: the filter does nothing to bead away water or resist fingerprints.

Pros : Good outright density range; wide range before cross effect appears

CONS: Average neutrality; fiddly to fit and remove; attracts muck

VERDICT ☆☆☆★★

www.kenro.co.uk Marumi DHG Vari ND2-ND400 From £55/$93 Sizes: 52-82mm

With its ND2-ND400 density range, Marumi’s filter enables between one and eight stops of

light reduction. Inevitably, you’ll need to stop well short of the max if you want a completely balanced exposure; we found three stops to be the maximum density with no sign of brightness inconsistency. There’s only a hint of a warm tone when shooting a neutral test surface, and no visible colour casts in real-world shooting.

Marumi’s build quality is more than acceptable for the money, with a fairly smooth rotation that has a good amount of resistance. There’s also a ridged texture around the fixed section, so it’s easy to grip while fitting and unmounting. The only minor omission is a lack of hard stops to mark each end of the density spectrum.

No mention is given of advanced coatings, but the filter does shed water quite well, and fingerprints rarely stick.

Pros : Easy to fit; quite weatherresistant; reasonable price

CONS: Narrow density range before unevenness appears; slight colour cast

VERDICT☆☆☆☆★

www.srbphotographic.co.uk SRB Neutral Density Fader Filter From £33 Sizes: 52-77mm

If SRB’s filter looks familiar, it may be because the design is identical to the Hama Vario, even down to the same printing to mark the density range and min/

max points. They also cost similar cash for the smaller filters, but kudos to SRB for pricing the larger sizes so keenly.

Like its Hama doppelgänger, the SRB filter puts in a sound performance for light neutrality, barely generating a colour cast, even in lab testing. It does also share Hama’s slightly lower sharpness performance, however, and you get a slightly lower three-stop reduction before the inevitable variable ND cross pattern comes into view. This isn’t too surprising, though, as the SRB glass is rated for a slightly narrower seven-stop ND4-ND400 density range, compared to Hama’s eight-stopper.

You can’t expect a budget filter to be loaded with features, so there isn’t a coating to repel raindrops or oils.

Pros : Respectable colour neutrality; well-priced, especially larger diameters

CONS: Relatively limited density range before unevenness is evident

VERDICT☆☆☆☆★

www.syrp.co.nz Syrp Variable ND Filter From £139/$139 Sizes: 52-82mm

SYRP likes to do things a bit differently, and even its humble Variable ND Filter gets a unique treatment. It comes packaged in a classy cylindrical cardboard outer carton; the filter gets a round, leatherwrapped zippered storage pouch.

Instead of the usual range of multiple filter sizes, there are only two core versions of the SYRP filter: a 67mm and an 82mm. The former comes in the Small kit option, which includes adapter rings to mount the filter to 58mm and 52mm lenses, while the 82mm Large kit contains 77mm and 72mm adapters.

SYRP’S fancy packaging isn’t a case of style over substance, though. We found the filter neutrality to be the best of the bunch, with no colour casts evident. The ND2-ND400 range also contains an impressive four-stop band with no visible exposure inconsistency. Factor in the water and dirt-resistant front coating, and you’ve got one fab filter.

Pros : Flawless optical performance; quality build and presentation

CONS: 67mm Small version overkill in size for compact kit lenses

VERDICT☆☆☆☆☆