Glass Grad filter: Tiffen vs Schneider vs Formatt

Y

yoclay

Veteran
I am looking to pick up a Graduated white water glass filter in 4x4 0.6 density.

It appears the Tiffen Digital HD is very scratch resistant and a strong reference but it is very hard to get in Europe without spending at least 50% more than in the US.
I know Schneider makes something equivalent too.

What about Formatt glass grads? It appears a lot cheaper.

How do all of these compare in terms of scratch resistance, neutral grays, glass quality (white water?), IR and optical perfection?
 
I owned all of the above, and my vote goes for Schneider. You won't be able to find a thing wrong with them (and B+W, their other name). I currently own many Formatts, and they are great too, for cheaper.

Stay away from Tiffen, unless you're fond of weird ghostly flares and poor QC.
 
Formatt filters come housed in a plastic frame. That frame is too big and the wrong shape for the top keeper of a Chrosziel tray to properly keep it in place. They are cheap so that you can replace the ones that will inevitably fall to the ground and break. Avoid them.
 
You can get the Formatt filters with or without the frame - just specify on order. I only got their NDs but they are truly neutral with no discernable tinting. Recommended.
 
I have a bunch of Formatt grads (NDs, sunset, majenta, etc), and I think they're great, especially for the price. Mine all have the plastic frame, and I prefer that actually. I haven't had any problems with them fitting in my Arri matte box trays.
 
Does anyone know if the plastic frame Formatt ones will fit in the Genus Wide Matte box filter trays?
 
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The frame is specifically there for tray-less matte boxes such as the ones from True Lens Services and Formatt's own (same as TLS Kestrel) but it's outer dimensions should be within 'normal' glass filter size. Mail'em and ask.
 
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