Most Neutral Screw on Filters 52mm

[Matt W.]

I've heard good things about Tokina IRND and Schneider FSND for 4x5.65 filters – so I'm assuming B+W or Hoya Solas would be good options?

Is stacking filters recommended? Like buying .3, 0.6, 1.2, 1.8, 2.4 and fine tuning with the .3 filter.

 

[Les Hillis]

Not totally up to date on N.D's, but a while back I replaced some 52mm B+W ones with Formatt Firecrest versions, which as I recall were better/more neutral but nothing amazing.

Didn't know about the Hoya/Tokina Sola IRND's, they look interesting.

I see there are some 'NiSi 52mm PRO Nano IRND' filters now too, but not a fan of outer coatings.

I wouldn't stack any of them unless I had to, relying more on fine-tuning the image in post if possible.

 

[Shannon O'Donnell]

I have some screw on Hoya Sola's and from my limited time using them I've liked them. Screw on filters in general can be annoying for fast past shooting but other than that, they've been pretty clean image wise. I haven't done extensive testing for color cast but I've enjoyed them.

 

[Matt W.]

I have some screw on Hoya Sola's and from my limited time using them I've liked them. Screw on filters in general can be annoying for fast past shooting but other than that, they've been pretty clean image wise. I haven't done extensive testing for color cast but I've enjoyed them.

Thanks, they look like a good option. The only issue is they're thick enough I worry about stacking them. Vs buying like seven filters.

No surprise, for now, I'm back to my variable ND. :/

 

[Shannon O'Donnell]

I only own two and stack them when needed. I'm sure there is more degradation of the image but it's a cheap solution and would be similar to stacking in a matte box. I'm hoping that E-ND takes off and we can enjoy one filter for all scenarios Then again, probably a hefty price tag. haha.

 

[Matt W.]

I only own two and stack them when needed. I'm sure there is more degradation of the image but it's a cheap solution and would be similar to stacking in a matte box. I'm hoping that E-ND takes off and we can enjoy one filter for all scenarios Then again, probably a hefty price tag. haha.

I sort of doubt the degradation is too extreme, I'm more worried about vignetting. But that's a concern, too.

Agreed about E-ND. The current style seems to be "all wide open all the time" and I don't know how I feel about that but it makes variable NDs compelling.

I find variable NDs pretty neutral but the shift in polarization angle is awful, especially for lenses with rotating fronts (admittedly these are rare).