lf-photo.org.uk

Having been informed ( some time ago ) on here that my Red filter was probably the wrong thing for B&W landscapes, I was recommended to get a Yellow one. I never got around to ordering it, but I'm looking now, with the workshop in mind, but I don't know which one I should get, having little experience of "proper" B&W photography.

Should I go for the number 8 one ( which Robert White seems to advocate ) or the weaker number 3?

which do you all use?

The yellow 8 filter will have a more pronounced effect. Also for half the price of one resin filter you can buy a set of 4 Lee Polyester black & white filters including the Yellow 8.

Hello,
Polyester filters: I have a few for B&W work. They give clear enough pictures but (i) they tend to attract muck and (ii) they are difficult to clean being flexible and prone to creasing. Bad combination. Is there a magical solution?
Thanks,
Charles

Glass

Charles Twist wrote:Hello,
Polyester filters: I have a few for B&W work. They give clear enough pictures but (i) they tend to attract muck and (ii) they are difficult to clean being flexible and prone to creasing. Bad combination. Is there a magical solution?
Thanks,
Charles

I must admit most of my B&W filters are, er, glass and I have a set of the 75mm Lee resin filters. The polyester filters though flimsy (like my old beloved gelatins ) are cost effective if they will only be used rarely (eg my fluorescent set wil probably be used only a few times). As I've never used my polyesters frequently enough I have yet to experience the degradation Charles warns about.

DJ. Hope this helps. There really are no right or wrong filters. If you enjoy what your red does, then thats fine. If I were putting together a set of filters together for b+w I would have red, orange, a deeper yellow, and a green. A polariser is good also. There are times when yellow just isn't enough, and times when a red is too much, and times when it would be good to combine the green and yellow. If you are after another filter I'd go with the deeper yellow. It's all subjective stuff!
I know Lee filters are good, but you can't beat glass for straight foreward contrast filters. It scrubs up well. scratches less and with a bit of care, lasts longer.
Have fun!
Richard

I confess to having a number of filters for B&W, and for landscapes the no 8 gets the most use, followed by the no 22 (orange). I also agree that glass is better—no, much better!

DJ wrote:Having been informed ( some time ago ) on here that my Red filter was probably the wrong thing for B&W landscapes, I was recommended to get a Yellow one. I never got around to ordering it, but I'm looking now, with the workshop in mind, but I don't know which one I should get, having little experience of "proper" B&W photography.

Should I go for the number 8 one ( which Robert White seems to advocate ) or the weaker number 3?

which do you all use?

It depends on your choice of B&W films. The Kodak Wratten number 8 (formerly known as K2) is often cited as providing the most natural tone reproduction of colours into shades of grey. Modern films such as T-Max, Delta and Fuji Acros are reckoned to provide better tone reproduction than older type films when a filter is not used, so a number 3 filter might be fine with these. Red filters tend to over correct tone production of blue skies with clouds and make the scene look some what unatural, but dramatic. The downside of red filters is that they can `kill` shadow details if you don`t meter carefully. My preferred filters are the Hoya K2 yellow and the O[G] orange which I use for distant scenes.
For many subjects which exclude sky, I just use a standard skylight filter or a polariser.

I picked up a Lee No 8 yellow yesterday, I'll see how I get on with it.