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Holymanta - the ND filter lens adapter


Andrew Reid
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[media]http://vimeo.com/63910035[/media]

First 1.50 minutes is sample footage, you can fast forward to 1.50 for the technical info

This is something I've wanted for a long time!

Focus and exposure are the most important things on a movie camera yet DSLRs don't have a built in ND filter and you're often left to shoot at ugly high shutter speeds such as 1/1000 in bright light to control exposure.

With this adapter you can add a variable ND filter wheel to any mirrorless mount camera (E-mount, Micro Four Thirds) effectively adding the main ergonomics advantage of the Cinema EOS C300 and Panasonic AF100.

[url=http://www.eoshd.com/content/10149/holymanta-the-nd-filter-lens-adapter]Read the full article here[/url]
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Glad that this is finally an option. I've thought that this should be an ND solution for quite some time now. That being said . . . ND really ought to be built in to the camera body, especially on mirrorless cameras. With this, you still need a different one for each different lens type that you are adapting to your camera, and it also obviously does not work with other adapters like Metabones Speedbooster, etc.

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Andrew, you seem to suggest that the vari-ND in this adapter may not be the two-polariser kind. But what else can it be?

 

It could be a wheel with different NDs rotating over the sensor, or it may be a vari-ND (two polarisers) that flip down over the sensor when in use, and up again when not. Either way it is much more convenient to have these in the lens adapter or camera, and not have to add them in front of every one of your lenses on a shoot.

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I would drop $200 on this if I knew that it was a wheel inserting something like an ND.6, ND1.2 and ND.0 in separate stages like a proper ND wheel on a broadcast camera.  But if it is a variable ND I have questions about it impacting image quality.  Any way to know for sure which this is?  Seems like it's a variable.

 

Edit:

I went to the website for the adapter/ND filter and it's obvious that it's a variable ND.  Still, it's interesting since it would eliminate the need for a bulky matte box with my GH3.  Going to think about it and try to get an idea of impact on IQ.

 

I haven't used variable ND filters.  Just standard ND filters.  How much do they affect sharpness?  All the sample footage looks like a fairly heavy degree of diffusion was used.  Is this due to the variable ND?

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i've used variable nd filters from the expensive singh-ray to cheaper lcw. with shorter focal lengths loss in sharpness is very minor across the board. the more expensive ones hold up better past 70mm. they all have a bit of color cast but it's correctable in grading.

 

not sure if the effect in the sample is from the optics or not. i really like the idea. unfortunately i prefer to mount ef lenses on my canon bodies and m43 lenses on my m43 bodies.

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I love the idea of this, though I wish that it were a 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 system rather than a fader. With a fader of any kind, you are always going to experience some level of polarization and unless you are free to turn both polarizers (usually you can only manipulate the front one), you won't be able to control the amount:

 

https://vimeo.com/26687398

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I love the idea of this, though I wish that it were a 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 system rather than a fader. With a fader of any kind, you are always going to experience some level of polarization and unless you are free to turn both polarizers (usually you can only manipulate the front one), you won't be able to control the amount:

 

Thanks.  That was a really useful post.

 

-Russ

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Good idea (and strange nobody did it before). Not the perfect solution if you work with different lens mounts and adapters and the Speed Booster for example. You'll still need conventional nd filters. For me that's the reason I'm skipping this one.

 

If you (mainly) use one adapter and don't care for the speed booster, then this looks like a great solution.

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Hello everyone! I am happy to see you debating the concept here.

 

I just wanted to answer a few of your questions:

 

The reason why I went for Pol-Vari ND was that from the beginning I knew that an electronicly controlable aperture was not my field. So with e.g. a ND 0.3-0.6-1.2 variant that leaves you final adjusting your exposure at daytime with shutterspeed, since your ISO likely is set to the lowest possible. I didn't think that was flexible enough, and that would also mean compromising the shutterspeed which I wanted to be able to leave at 180 degrees. Plus - by always having that thought of "which one of those parameters do I want change know" you mind will be less present on the situation where you're at. And sure - all Vari-ND:s have flaws that can never be fully fixed, but I felt it was the best choice for people working fast.

 

Regarding color shifting (remember - all Pol-Vari inevitably suffers from this) please check out the HolyManta VND color cast test:

https://vimeo.com/64344672

 

I'll try to stick around here to answer more question, otherwise send me a mail.

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A vari ND just gradually cools or warms things it seems, depending on the direction you go, it seems.

 

I've always just adjusted WB in camera to compensate, it's no biggie compared to the convenience.

 

If I were on a cinema cam with two helpers I'd be calling for mattebox and some nice rented pure-glass NDs.

 

On a one-man show vari-ND is awesome, I can see this selling well if it gets decent coverage! Front of lens can be so annoying.

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