As a landscape photographer, I believe in using filters in the field to get the best capture possible before I head back to post-processing. Getting it “right” in camera is part of the artistry. And, there are some things that you just can’t fix in post, such as glare off of wet foliage or off of the water. So, I carry and regularly use filters in the field in order to balance my exposures and cut down on glare. I’ve gradually reduced the amount of filters I carry with me over the years and am now down to what I consider the essentials for me; 2-stop soft graduated neutral density (GND), 3-stop soft GND, circular polarizer, 6-stop ND and a 10-stop ND. I carry these with me on every photo outing, they have a dedicated place in my camera bag, so I’m never without the proper tools to do the job. I am very excited about a magnetic filter system that I recently purchased to further my use of filters in the field.
Over the years I have used the products from most of the major filter manufacturers; B+W, Hoya, Lee, Singh-Ray, Breakthrough, etc. I’ve even mixed and matched which brands I use for GND versus ND versus circular polarizer. One of the things you’ll notice about some brands is that there could be a color shift or color cast when using a filter, even though most claim they are color neutral. It can get even worse when you stack multiple filters on top of one another (e.g. 2-stop + 3-stop) I’ve struggled with this over the years and had to develop processing techniques to remove/adjust the color cast caused by filters. For the past couple of years I’ve been exclusively using filters from Breakthrough Photography. Their filters are made from the highest quality glass and their coatings and tinting are the most color neutral I have found! Many other companies use a resin to produce their filters, but Breakthrough uses Schott glass which is optically very pure and incredibly strong (trust me, I’ve dropped/abused my filters). The glass is scratch resistant and doesn’t warp, mar, or collect grime like resin filters do. As much as I love their filters, to be honest, I’ve struggled a bit with their filter holder system for GND filters. It’s large and heavy and is a bit overly complicated to use quickly in the field. Oftentimes I just resorted to hand holding my GND filters instead of breakout the filter holder. And, on a recent trip to Iceland/Norway, where weight savings is at a premium, I elected not to bring the filter holder. I came to regret this decision as there were many occasions where I would have benefited from a dedicated filter holder. Normally a filter system for GNDs is a friction affair that you slide in the filters and tension holds them in place in the holder. This has worked for many years just fine, but with the heavier glass filters, the friction method is a bit challenged and the filters can move/slide down out of position if you’re not careful. It was on this trip I saw someone using a magnetic filter holder system from a company called H&Y (which I’d never heard of) and I became intrigued by the ease and flexibility of the system.
H&Y is a photography filter company based in the UK and is gradually making in-roads in the U.S.. When I returned I started researching the company and products and eventually plunked down my hard earned cash for some of their items. I was not sure exactly what to expect and when the items arrived and I had a chance to unbox and examine them, I was blown away by the build quality and attention to detail that is in every product. To go down the magnetic filter system route, you need a magnetic filter holder and then some way to have the filters magnetized so that they “stick” to the holder. With H&Y, they have developed magnetic filter frames to go around their filters (or you can retrofit frames on your existing filters) plus a magnetic filter holder. The other cool feature that intrigued me is the ability to use a circular polarizer (CPL) behind the GNDs. If you’ve ever tried to use a polarizer and GND, you know that you have to adjust the polarizer and then put on your GNDs. With this innovative system, you can drop in a CPL and then put on GNDs and you have a handy scroll wheel to adjust the CPL. More on that later!
Investing in a magnetic filter system is something that needs to be considered….will you benefit from it, will it be a worthwhile investment? I thought so so I purchased the K100 Magnetic Filter Holder with included drop in CPL, an H&Y 6-stop ND filter and a couple of magnetic filter frames to go on some existing filters. I was impressed with how the items were packaged and labeled and with much excitement, I tore in to them.
Magnetic Filter Holder
The K100 magnetic filter holder (with included drop in CPL) came in a basic box and then a nicely padded and partitioned nylon carry case to carry the holder and associated pieces.
Opening up the bag H&Y includes adapter rings to screw on the front of your lenses which the holder will attach to. Plus, they include a drop in spacer for when you do not want the CPL in, you can pull it out and put the spacer in place to block any light coming in.
shown with CPL in place
One of the cool features of this holder that I appreciated is that they put foam around the holder in order to block any light that wants to come in behind the GND filters. The filter holder is machined from aircraft grade aluminum as well as the adapter rings. The holder came pre-assembled with magnets already in place, so really there was no assembly to speak of for the holder…it was ready to go!
backside of filter holder with CPL dropping in
On the back of the filter (above) you can see how the CPL filter can easily drop in or be removed. The fit of the CPL in to the holder is very snug and secure with minimal chance of light leak. There are two locking knobs on each side that lock the filter to the adapter ring on your lens (you can lock it down or have it loose to rotate the filter holder). To the right in the pic above you can see the knurled scroll wheel that will turn the CPL to rotate the polarizer to get the amount of polarization that you need for the scene.
I chose to purchase the H&Y 6 stop ND filter and it came with a magnetic frame around the filter. H&Y uses Schott Glass for their NDs and Corning Gorilla glass to produce their GND filters. Gorilla glass is tough, virtually un-scratchable and very optically pure. It’s the same stuff used on many smartphones. I used the 6-stop recently while conducting a workshop in Arizona and it performed flawlessly and I did not detect any noticeable color shift or cast from it.
Magnetic Filter Frames
I do like my Breakthrough filters and wasn’t quite ready to switch my filters fully over to another brand (not to mention the $$ to invest in new filters), so I chose to purchase a couple of magnetic filter frames to go around my existing 100mmx150mm graduated neutral density filters (plus the H&Y 6-stop filter). The frames came nicely packaged with awesome instructions for how to assemble them (which is fairly intuitive anyway). The frames came with a bunch of nice things to have as well, including a carry pouch and a cleaning cloth all packaged wonderfully. And by the way, I will be adding more H&Y filters to my bag, that’s how impressed I’ve been with the quality of filters they produce!
The frame itself is fairly simple; 4 pieces that snap together around the filter. The filter fits in to a channel in the frame and inside of that channel is a narrow strip of adhesive. As part of the assembly, you have to remove the cover over the adhesive and H&Y thoughtfully provided a small plastic toothpick to reach in to the channel to pry up the adhesive backer. Once that’s done it’s a simple matter of putting each piece on the filter and snapping it together. It was a very snug fit on my filters and yet it went together smoothly. And honestly, I’d prefer it to fit very snug at first knowing that with use things might loosen up a bit. Below you can see the locking tabs for the frame on the upper and lower sections and the markings on the side rails to help you position the filter in the holder accurately.
Installation took less than 5 minutes on each filter and the frame fit perfectly around the glass. When ordering these, make sure you order the correct size as they offer many different sizes of the frame. Besides the obvious of the magnetic frame securing the filter to the holder, the frame also is a wonderful way to handle your filters….it gives you a place to pull the filters out of the pouch and handle them without putting filter prints on the glass. And, if you happen to drop the filter, having a frame will protect the edges from any damage that could occur. The magnets in the frame also allow you to stack multiple filters together! At one point during a recent sunset shoot, I had my 2-stop GND stacked with my 3-stop GND to knock back some light in the sky plus my 6-stop ND filter to slow down the shutter speed and all 3 stacked magnificently together!!!! It was easy to adjust each filter independently or adjust as a group.
In the Field
Using the filters is a snap! Simply choose the right adapter ring for your lens and screw it on. Then grab the filter and put it in to the holder. The magnets will grab it and hold it securely in place. If you want some added security, there is a small knob to lock the filters so they won’t move if you’re carrying the camera or just want the added security. To adjust the filters all you have to do is slide them up and down in the holder to align with your horizon or bright areas in the image. The images below are from my recent workshop to the desert of Arizona where they preformed flawlessly.
Conclusion
I’ve been using this magnetic filter system heavily for the past few months and I’m very impressed with it! The build quality has been fantastic and I haven’t had any issues in the field. The magnetic frames and holder have done exactly what I have needed them to do and I haven’t had to think twice about my filters/holder so I can concentrate on making images. I am going to continue to evaluate this system plus add some H&Y GNDs to my kit to evaluate their performance as well. As it stands right now, I’m a complete believer in this system and I can heartily recommend it to you.
You can purchase this system directly from H&Y in the UK and it will arrive in 5-7 days without VAT. Or, you can also find many of the items at B&H Photo and Adorama. These are quality pieces and for me I feel that the price is more than worth what you get in the product; from packaging, to the attention to small details, the build quality and lastly the superior performance in the field.
Leave A Comment