One of my DIY projects is what I call my filter flip book. I use a number of colored filters for two purposes. Before you scream "do it in post" I would like to point out that I strive to obtain an optimum image in-camera rather than spending a lot of time fiddling around in post trying to get the image that I want.

Most of my filters are used to alter contrast in monochrome images. Those are old-school filters for monochrome like the classic 23A light red, and I currently have twelve of those filters in a variety of colors. Others are used to shift colors in color images, including the color compensating filters CC30R red and CC30G green, and the Hoya sepia A and B filters.

Selecting which filter to use can be fiddly with my K-70 as it uses 62mm threaded filters. Screwing on a filter, evaluating the effect that is has on the LCD screen, unscrewing it and screwing on and evaluating additional filters, is time consuming.

My interest in amateur theater, especially lighting, overlaps with my earliest years in SLR film photography. After I got the K-70 I realized that I could use a set of theatrical gels (which are now made of plastic, not gelatin) to evaluate filter effects. Gels are not good enough to use as filters, but the right gels can mimic the effects of filters closely enough for quick evaluation. The filter flip book lets me use selected gels to quickly determine which filter to use for the effect that I want in monochrome or color images.

Visit my site for details of the filter flip book - Star City Photos - My Filter Flip Book

A side note - the four filters (and I will be buying more) that I use with color images shift the colors, and I normally use them with auto white balance. That pulls the overall color balance somewhat away from the effect of the filter and towards neutral, leaving a minimum of adjustment to do in post. The image below was shot with a Hoya Sepia B filter and auto white balance. The mill is a weathered gray, and I wanted to shift the color of the wood towards brown. Because I was metering the mill the patches of sunlit grass got overexposed and blown out. All I had to do in post was restrict the gamut to pull the overexposed areas in. The result is the artistic effect that I wanted.

[Robin]

I agree with you that using external filters is often better than post processing, because I'm not convinced that an electronic adjustment can precisely mimic what a filter applies to an image.

[pschlute]

Dale. I like the image but your watermark is horrible

[Dale H. Cook]

Dale. I like the image but your watermark is horrible

It keeps people from stealing my images.

[Glen]

No doubt it will do that.

[pschlute]

It keeps people from stealing my images.

For sure. It will keep me from looking at them too.

[Dale H. Cook]

For sure. It will keep me from looking at them too.

Just for giggles I have replaced the image above (using a visible watermark) with a version which uses steganography for the watermark. It will be interesting to see if it gets pirated.

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Last edited by Dale H. Cook; 11-06-2019 at 06:23 PM.