Tiffen Variable ND

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Prophetmatt

Well-known member
Tiffen Variable ND. I've been researching a lot of different products and started to become mad when there weren't any examples of some products. Insert the Tiffen Variable ND. I couldn't find any great examples with the tiffen vari nd on a tele lens. I wouldn't call this a great example, but I will compare it to the LCW once I get a little more time.

I recently picked up a Tiffen Variable ND 77m for my Sigma 50-150mm 2.8 Lens. I run a 77 to 67 step down ring. I am VERY pleased with the ND filter. I first ordered a heliopan as I heard there is no loss of sharpness and color through the long ranges. However a good price came to me on the Tiffen saving almost $200.00 With that difference, I figured what the heck, if it turns out well then awesome.

Well it did. As far as sharpness loss, I am very pleased. There is a little color shift, but nothing that can't be corrected. I use a LCW on my 17-50mm 2.8 and was not pleased one bit on the 50-150mm. For 200 less than the heliopan, I couldn't be happier as of now.

Disclaimer: I just tested out the lens for a few minutes. I haven't used it in any real shooting scenarios. I'm headed on a trip this weekend and should be able to shoot a bit with the ND filter. Both were shot at the 150mm range. The photo with the ND filter zoomed in may look like it shifts the color towards a green tint. However, this was in the middle of changing the ND setting. Actual color shift is much less.

ND Filter
ND Filter.jpg


No ND Below

No ND.jpg
 
I ordered one of these months ago through B&H. They said it wouldn't be available until - well, now. So I went with a different brand. Nice to see it's working out well for you.
 
We have been using them on a few jobs- Controlling Shutter speeds for various shots, and such (5Ds, and an FS100).
I've found them to be very tricky. Sometimes they're fine, but under MOST situations (light and aperture), I run into problems with either soft detail, and or crazy vignetting.
We are currently looking into other solutions. Possibly NSI VND filters..
For the FS100, we'll probably just pony up and get real filters for our cumbersome matte box..
 
not sure if you're asking me, but yes.. we have the appropriate sizes for our various lenses. No step up rings or anything like that.
The vignetting is the biggest pitfall for us. If you've got a camera like the FS100, I would get the best glass/filters you can afford.
We have 5 Tiffen VND filters that'll be up for sale on ebay/amazon shortly.
Cheers-
 
PTRush said:
not sure if you're asking me, but yes.. we have the appropriate sizes for our various lenses. No step up rings or anything like that.
The vignetting is the biggest pitfall for us. If you've got a camera like the FS100, I would get the best glass/filters you can afford.
We have 5 Tiffen VND filters that'll be up for sale on ebay/amazon shortly.
Cheers-
Click to expand...

If vig is your problem why don't you try a big ND filter on a smaller lens and see if your problem goes away. (by using a step up ring for $12)
 
Ive got two from Tiffen 77VND - have not done lots of testing - run them on my 35-70 and 18

One on a step up ring and the 86 (!) Fronted 18mm a step down

No problems yet

S
 
eric teotico said:
Why go Tiffen when you can get the best. Heliopan is only a bit more. No color shift, crisp clear image at 200mm+. I got burned because I first went cheap with my LCWFader. Thanks to Postmaster, we can now buy direct. Follow this thread.
http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthrea...s-good-news/page3&highlight=vaiable+nd+filter
Oh and email Sally of Heliopan. She gives excellent service.
Click to expand...


I was able to get the tiffen for 150 on amazon which is half the price of the tiffen. I figured if it didn't work out I could sell it back on amazon. I'm very happy with the Lcw on my 17-50mm.
 
Is LCW the same as Light Craft? Because I have one of those for my FS100, on the kit lens and Tamron 17-50 - both use the same 67mm diameter filter, which is great. I've been very happy with mine.
 
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