Cokin Filters

Jvg · Joined: 07 Nov 2012 Posts: 205 Location: New York City

Which cokin filters you use the most and why?
Are they even worth to bother with on digital? Meaning most of their "special effect" filters can be replicated in PP....

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

Very few. I have a box full of Cokin A filters that I've accumulated over the years, mostly from buying kits and about the only Cokin one I have used is a graduated red for boosting a sunset; but that's easier in Photoshop.

I do use a set of Cokin P filter holders but with a set of graduated neutral density filters. I use them quite a lot, but mostly I use screw on ND and Polarizer filters.

!Karen · Joined: 20 Jul 2013 Posts: 836 Location: Belgium Baby

The graduated neutral density filters to avoid having to bracket shots to get both the foreground as the sky well exposed. For the rest..I too have a box full of them, but don't use them. Not for digital.

Jvg · Joined: 07 Nov 2012 Posts: 205 Location: New York City

Interesting. Seems that most of Cokin filters designed for Landscape photography (and macro perhaps with those close up filters). Saw some "special effects" filters, such as Dream, Dream 2, Fog, Diffuser, Multi-Image, Masking. My initial guess was, these filters were photoshop substitutes for film? I could see the use of graduated NDs, and most likely i'll get those, maybe graduated color filters as well. But, i'm actually more interested in their InfraRed filters, prices are 3-4 times less than what Hoya or B+W would cost.

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4744 Location: Cheshire, England

Well before photoshop, there was nothing. In my opinion Photoshop is a substitute for filters. I dont go in for this tobacco grad skies business but a graduated blue is quite effective on overcast skies. Many of the effects obtained by using specialist filters are almost impossible to replicate in photoshop.

Cokins have their place in the digital world, this is why they are still making them, and why there are other systems compatible with Cokin holders. Not to mention Chinese knock-offs.

Lloydy · Expire: 2022-01-01

the Cokin holders and all that kind of stuff is good, I use all Cokin P Series lens rings and filter holders.

The filters are OK, but I have very few P Series Cokin.

The A Series filters, which are the smaller and more common ones, have one big fault - the box they come in. It looks good, the filter comes protected in a plastic container, but they can shake around in them and the filter rubs on the joint edge of the container body and lid which scratches the filter. If the filter is put in the other way up it's scratched in two places! I've thrown loads away because of this stupid design flaw. Rolling Eyes

Jvg · Joined: 07 Nov 2012 Posts: 205 Location: New York City

Lee|Ratters · Joined: 23 Sep 2014 Posts: 78 Location: Bristol | UK

I use grads quite a bit [I have Hitech 85mm & a 100mm Lee set up] for sea/landscape. I just prefer to try to get it in one shot rather than bracketing & blending in PP but that may just be me. They also come in handy for the rarer occasions of shooting film when the bracketing/PP option isn't really available to me.

PhantomLord · Joined: 08 Apr 2013 Posts: 472 Location: Szczecin, Poland

I use Cokin A series filters: ND4, ND8 and a bunch of gradual neutral greys which are great for both analog and digital.
I think that neutral grads and normal as well as polarisers are impossible to simulate or replicate in PS so they still have use.

I agree that from RAW you could save your overexposed sky with gradual -1 or -2EV, but anything over and it looks unnatural, while using neutral grads everything looks fine and natural.

What's the most important I prefer spend a few more minutes in the field with my camera adjusting filter on the lens before capture than spending the same time in front of my computer clicking in LR or PS Wink

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Mateusz

philslizzy · Joined: 07 Aug 2012 Posts: 4744 Location: Cheshire, England

Langstrum · Joined: 16 Feb 2014 Posts: 351

Most of these filters are not necessary with digital, except the ND. It's very important to me to use fast lenses like f1.4, f1.2 under the sunshine and when the sky is too bright. I have the full set of Cokin adapter but only use the 72, 77, 82mm with ND8 or gradual ND.

DConvert · Joined: 12 Jun 2010 Posts: 921 Location: Essex UK

I do a fair bit of photography outside the visible range (mainly infra red But I'm trying to capture UV too) so use filters a lot more than most.
I've found several old filters designed for black & white photography can have interesting affects on a full spectrum camera. Post processing can't acheive the same effects here as IR & UV show in all three chanels of the digital files with different sensitivity at different wavelengths.

However few of my filters I use are of the cokin type. I've used a Cokin A020 recently (it transmits about 90% of IR wavelengths from 700-1100nm along with the blue it was designed for whilst reducing the red about ten fold).

I have found the Cokin adapters very useful however -
They can be stuck onto welding glass to give an easy mount for these very cheap 10+ stop filters
They allow me to hold filters infront of my 9mm BCL fisheye (which has no filter threads) without getting my fingers in the shot! 52mm or larger filters show no sign of vignetting when mounted this way. Cokin filters can also be held in place for this lens but there is a risk of scratching the filters.
I'm also planing on using cokin adapters to make up some coupling rings in sizes I've not seen... Smile