Photo Effects Shortcut: Camera Filters

Using camera filters is becoming an "old art." Gone are the days of photo manipulation while you capture images in the camera. Photo editing software is replacing what was once a common practice in advanced amateur and professional photography.

My peers and family have often referred to me as "The Queen of Shortcuts." Some say this nickname was born from my undiagnosed Attention Deficit Disorder; some attribute it to my laziness. I, however, like to associate my nickname with the name of the game of business. The best product produced in the fastest amount of time without sacrificing quality means greater profit. Let's face it, I'm busy! I do not want to sit at my computer and make a digital effect on an image that takes an hour. It is far quicker to hold a piece of glass in front of my camera for 1/60^th of a second, than to sit still in front of a computer recreating the effect for minutes or even hours.

A filter is an object that you can either screw on your lens, hold in front of your lens, or drop in a filter holder attached to your lens, which gives different effects to your images. While there are many filters available, I carry with me at all times the UV Filter, Neutral Density Filter, Soft Focus Filters, Star Filters, and Warming Filters.

• UV Filter - This is the most important and highest priority filter. This filter is impossible to duplicate in photo editing software, because its main purpose is to protect. This clear filter absorbs harmful UV rays and gives your final image a clearer crisper look. It is recommended to leave this on your lens at all times. It serves another purpose as well. It protects the expensive glass on the part of your lens exposed to life. It is a cheap insurance policy on your lens. If you smudge, scratch or break this all you have to do is toss it out and replace it with a new one, which I "clearly" need to do with this one! If this was not on my lens, my lens would look like the glass on the filter. Cost: $12.00-$25.00
  
  
• Neutral Density Filter- This will cut down on the amount of light passing through your lens. Think of it as sunglasses minus the color shift for your camera's eyes. If you were photographing a waterfall on a bright sunny day and chose a long exposure to show the movement of the water you might not be able to achieve the effect you wanted. Why not? Perhaps at the smallest f-stop, or aperture, f/22, the slowest shutter speed you could properly expose may be 1/200^th of a second. That would not stop the water. Adding a neutral density filter would cut down some of the light letting you decrease your shutter speed. ND filters, as they are commonly referred to, are available in different strengths. They can absorb from one to three f-stops of light. For example an ND 2 filter will absorb half the light allowing you to decrease a shutter speed of 1/60^th of a second to 1/30^th of a second, which is one f-stop of light. Two f-stops of light would let you decrease it one more time to 1/15^th of a second, and three f-stops of light would let you decrease it to 1/8^th of a second. Cost: $12-$75.00 depending on brand and strength.
  
  
• Soft Focus Filter - Available in degrees of softness generally 1-4 with 4 being very soft and 1 being faintly soft, this filter will soften images. The highlights of the images will have a glowing appearance, which is used for a dreamy, highly emotional effect. This filter is great for weddings, kissing photos, child portraits and mother/baby photos just to name a few. Cost $25.00-75.00
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Star Filter - Also known as a Cross Light Filter, this filter will split strong points of light into rays or crosses and is often used for photographing candlelight wedding ceremonies and the glare of the sun hitting chrome, cars, and sunglasses. These filters are available with or without softening, and come in a variety of styles, or points. A Four-Point Star Filter will split a point of light into an "X" leaving four points of light instead of the original one. A Six-Point Star Filter will split a point of light into an asterisk * leaving six points of light. You can turn these filters to change location and angles of the streams of light. For instance, at a wedding you may need to spin the filter to keep the streams of light from making lines across the bride's and the groom's faces. Cost: $15-$50
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Warming Filters- These filters are a light reddish brown. Added on the lens on a gray day can give the appearance that the sun is out and glowing. You can also use this while shooting a sunset to amplify the warm hues in the sky. In this image taken on a cold October day, I added the filter to warm the image up to bring out the fall feel of the day. It will also intensify the fall colors of leaves. They come with or without softening effects and are graded by numbers to degree of warmth, and or degree of softening, by manufacturer. One of my personal favorites is the #2 Warming Filter. It has a light to medium softening effect in addition to adding the warm tones.
  

Visit http://www.camerafilters.com/ for additional information on these and many other filters. Shortcutting your way to some artistic effects in photography will save you some needed time to scrap all those wonderful photos.

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