Shooting at a specific f-Stop

[Gene Sung]

I'm new to DSLR and just got my 7D.

For the last year I've been working on a film that I shot on 16mm and my still camera is a Canon SLR from the 1980's, so i'm a bit clueless on the 7D.

Let say I wanted to shoot at f2.8, but it's a sunny day. On a film camera since the ISO is basically unchangeable (depends on the current film in the camera), I would take the light-meter reading and then stack on NDs or a polarizer and cut it down several stops until I get to f2.8

On the 7D, since the ISO is easily changed, do you guys adjust the ISO in conjunction with ND filters and polarizers to take it down to an f2.8?

Thanks for any tips.

 

[Luis Caffesse]

On the 7D, since the ISO is easily changed, do you guys adjust the ISO in conjunction with ND filters and polarizers to take it down to an f2.8?

That's pretty much it.
:thumbsup:

Many people have been using the Singh-Ray VariND or the Fader ND filters to be able to essentially dial in whatever F-stop you want in bright daylight.

Having used the Singh-Ray I can say it's a very nice filter to have in your kit -
http://www.singh-ray.com/varind.html

Haven't tried the Fader-ND, but it's nearly half the cost of the Singh-Ray if memory serves.

 

[NoahK]

Definitely a Variable ND is a nice little secret weapon if you're into shallow focus and you're shooting outdoors a lot.

Noah

 

[Ian-T]

Another cheap alternative would be to use two linear polarizers which acts like a variable ND filter.

 

[mhood]

I got my new FaderND in and set out to see just how narrow a DOF I could get in broad daylight. I used the EF 50mm 1.4 USM, set the F-stop to 1.4, the ISO to 160, the shutter to 1/60 and adjusted the FaderND to lower the light level to something close to right on the LCD.

I have to admit to overexposing but I was nowhere near the maximum on the FaderND. If I had paid better attention to the exposure and took the time to check a few histograms, I image the FaderND would have done the job.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: No media files are hosted on these forums. By clicking the link below you agree to view content from an external website. We can not be held responsible for the suitability or legality of this material. If the video does not play, wait a minute or try again later.

I AGREE