H&Y Variable ND Filter 3 in 1 Camera Lens Filter VND3-1000 1.5-10 Stops for 37-49mm Threads - CPL Filter for Studio Outdoor Video Shooting

Un buen invento

For the price I expected at least a ok usable ND but this is not it for me. First issue I found was the mounting. It seems like a great idea but the threading is shallow and it will get knocked by accident even on slightest touch. I tried it on many lenses and it is always the same no matter what. It has a visible color tint automatically not making it very color accurate and I did have an issue with the X pattern being very pronounced and visible. I do not think this is a good value product at all

What a great design! This variable ND (neutral density that can adjust the amount of light reduction). Here is a little forehand knowledge about them in general first. This type of filter is normally used for shooting moving water (other things too, but this is by far the most useful aspect). Normally your not able to use a slow enough shutter speed to show the motion of water, so your pictures make the waterfall or river look frozen and everything is sharp. Using a slower shutter speed makes the water a blur, giving you a sense of motion, while keeping the non-water areas sharp (yes you must use a tripod). How the variable ones work is that they use 2 polarozing sheets and by changing the orientation of of vs the other, the amount of light reduction can be adjusted (a physics class can explain it if you want to know how). OK, back to reviewing this excellently designed product. There are 2 small stalks that allow you to adjust the amount of light reduction, both of these stalks can also rotate, so the polarizing aspect can be adjusted independently from the light reduction. The most unique part of this filter (and, to me, is what makes this design fantastic) is the mounting system. You don't screw it on to your lens. It has a strong spring like system so that this one filter can adjust between 58-77mm. It will save you lots of money because you don't need to buy multiple $100+ filters, or use step rings (which although will save you money, are quote the hassle to use). The spring mount is quite strong and the filter feels secure when attached). There are a couple of things that can improve it, but most people won't be affected. 1) some lenses with built-in hoods don't have their filter mount far enough in front of the hood for the filter to attach. 2) it should have some sort of front cap with it so that you can protect it while not shooting. But overall, this filter is GREAT!

Some mixed thoughts on this one, first it is BIG, much larger than even the largest filter diameter I would use on any of my lenses. It is bulky, much thicker than any filter I would typically carry. Conceptually this is essentially a CPL/ND filter with a universal step up ring. For my lenses I picked the 58-77mm range as most of my lenses fit into this range. I am just not certain this approach is better than carrying a larger filter with the appropriate step up rings you would pack for your shoot. If you are a minimalist you might be attracted to this as it does minimize the amount of things you would have to pack. For my use, I found it difficult the hold the tensioned ring in place while attempting to thread the filter onto the front of my lens, specifically for smaller lens diameters for which you need to turn and hold the inner ring as you thread it on. It would be easier if you could lock this in place while you thread it onto the lens. As for the filter itself I found no issues with it. The fact that you could stack (magnetically) additional filters on the face is a plus if you need higher ND values or another filter effect. I am going to keep experimenting with this but if you don't like gadgets (-1 star if this is you) you might be better off considering a more traditional filter option with rings.

Great concept of fitting various lens with various filter thread size. Back of the filter is filter thread grip that's spring loaded, and you rotate the slim bezel to adjust the opening - like iris on your camera to fit filter thread defined within the range indicated. This is truly "Variable ND filter" including variable filter thread size. It does, however, needs to getting used to. The bezel to rotate the thread size adjustment is very narrow and the spring tension is bit tight. Took me about 5 tries to get it working faster. One thing good about this variable grip is that since there is no threading/screwing, I don't see the filter ever stuck on a lens. Grip is very strong and won't come off once properly situated. CPL filter sits on top of the lens (inner filter), and Variable ND filter sit on top of CPL filter. With combination of both filters, I'm getting pretty good light block. Images are clear and has no distortion, color shift or chromatic aberration. Now for wide angle lenses, I see prominent X pattern on ND 2 or higher (as noted on the Amazon website product description), but at even lightest ND, I see bad vignetting (almost seems to show filter frame) on 16mm Nikorr lens, which is 77mm filter thread, so it's within scope of this filter. I usually allow/add vignetting for some landscape shots, but vignetting by this lens on my Nikon 16-35mm looks really bad at 16mm - as noted looks like filter frame shows up. Other zoom ranges are fine, like 70-200mm This filter has some quarks and features that are very interesting. I like it (except for wide angle).