Obviously it was a thing for film cameras, but now that everything is digital, something like “just make the picture darker” seems extremely easy to do with software
quick edit, I know what ND filters are for and how to use them, no need to explain. it just seems to me that it could be engineered in a way that doesn’t require them, which is what I’m asking about
In: 181
Cameras make the picture darker by capturing less light, which is either done by shorter capture times, or done by using higher f-stop (which makes backgrounds less blurry), or done by using a lower ISO value.
But if you want a super long exposure, even f22 and ISO 100 may not be enough to get the image dark enough.
For video, you have the 2x rule, in which the shutter speed (capture time) is 2x the frame rate, unless going for some stylized effect. In which case your 3 tools are resized to just 2 (f-stop and ISO), so an ND filter is needed even more.
Latest Answers