For photographers, it's essential to know how to use ND filters (Neutral Density Filters), understand the different types, and work out their conversions. Without further ado, let's explore all that in this article.
In this article, you will learn:
An ND filter, also known as a neutral density filter, is a type of light-reduction filter. It cuts down light without changing its color (ideally).
It works by evenly reducing all wavelengths of light. It won't shift your image's color balance.
It's made from special optical materials that absorb or reflect light across the spectrum. ND filters don't favor any color — red, green, or blue light all get dimmed equally.
It lets you use slower shutter speeds or wider apertures in bright conditions without overexposing your shot.
Imagine slipping a pair of sunglasses onto your camera lens. That's exactly what an ND (Neutral Density) filter does. By reducing the amount of light entering your camera, it opens up creative possibilities that you can't achieve otherwise.
Have you ever wanted clouds to streak across your sky or waterfalls to look like flowing silk? In bright sunlight, long exposures will just overexpose the shot.
An ND filter darkens the scene enough that you can drag your shutter for several seconds (or even minutes) without blowing out the highlights. The result? Dreamy landscapes, ghost‑free crowds, and endless creativity:
For example, in the comparison picture below, the left shot was taken without an ND filter. The right shot was taken with an ND filter.
Love that creamy background blur at f/1.4 or f/1.8?
Normally, on a sunny afternoon, even your camera's fastest 1/8000 s shutter and lowest ISO can't stop an over‑bright image. Throw on an ND filter, and you can keep shooting wide open while beautiful bokeh is intact, without your subject turning into a white blob.
Filmmakers follow the "180° shutter rule," which means at 24 fps you shoot around 1/50 s shutter to get natural motion blur. In daylight, that rule is impossible without overexposure, unless you use an ND filter. It's the must‑have accessory for any videographer chasing that movie‑style look.
Sometimes you need a specific depth of field or want to keep noise levels down. But you still crave motion blur.
An ND filter lets you slow your shutter speed without changing your aperture or ISO, so you get the effect you want without compromising image quality.
ND filters come in two basic styles:
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Beginners, single‑lens setups, or anyone who values portability.
Pros:
Cons:
Best for: Landscape pros, photographers with many lens sizes, anyone demanding top image quality, or those who combine filters (ND + GND).
ND filters are labeled as "ND" plus a number. The higher the number, the stronger the light reduction.
ND filter ratings you'll commonly see include ND2, ND4, ND8, ND16, ND32, ND64, and ND1000. These numbers show how many times the light is cut:
For example, if your normal exposure is 1/100 s, adding an ND1000 filter means you need 1/100 s × 1000 = 10 s to get the same exposure without over‑brightening.
If the math seems tricky, here's a quick reference:
ND Rating | Stops of Reduction | Light Transmitted | Typical Uses |
---|---|---|---|
ND2 | 1 | 1/2 | Slight light reduction (great for cloudy days) |
ND4 | 2 | 1/4 | Shooting flowing water on a sunny day (4× longer shutter) |
ND8 | 3 | 1/8 | Slow‑shutter effects in bright light (like misty waves) |
ND16 | 4 | 1/16 | Capturing car light trails at noon |
ND32 | 5 | 1/32 | Wide‑aperture blur for video |
ND64 | 6 | 1/64 | Daytime long exposures (e.g., moving clouds) |
ND1000 | 10 | 1/1000 | Slow shutter in extremely bright conditions |
Using an ND filter in bright daylight lets you shoot long exposures. You can turn waterfalls, rivers, and ocean waves into silky-smooth scenes.
When you point your camera at the sky, the filter lets you use slower shutter speeds so fast-moving clouds streak across your frame, adding drama and motion to your shots.
For city nightscapes, an ND filter lets you stretch your exposure time. This captures car light trails and other moving lights, giving your photos a dynamic, artistic feel.
On sunny days, it's almost impossible to shoot wide open without overexposing. An ND filter solves that.
It cuts the light so you can use a large aperture for shallow depth of field, perfect for portraits or close‑ups that make your subject pop against a soft, blurred background.
When you shoot video in bright light, your shutter speed often jumps up to around 1/200 s. That makes your footage look too sharp and loses that natural motion blur.
With an ND filter, you can slow your shutter to about 1/50 s. This adds a gentle, realistic blur to moving subjects while keeping your video smooth and lifelike.
To adjust your camera settings when using an ND filter, first find your base shutter speed without the filter. Do this by metering the scene under normal light.
Each stop of the ND filter doubles your shutter time. Say your base shutter speed is 1/125 s:
For an ND1000 (10 stops), you multiply 1/125 s by 2¹⁰ (about 1000), giving you roughly 8 s.
The easiest way is to use a smartphone app or a web calculator. Just enter your base shutter speed and the ND filter's stop value. The app then tells you the new shutter speed.
If you shoot with ND filters often, these tools save you from doing the math yourself.
That's everything photographers need to know about ND filters. In real‑world shooting, though, theory only goes so far. You may run into all kinds of issues when using an ND filter. Below are some key points and tips to help you out:
You'll still run into quirks even with top‑quality ND filters, but you can fix most flaws in post. For example, if your shots have a slight color cast, just correct the white balance during editing.
Those tweaks are easy on a single image, but sorting, editing, and color‑grading dozens (or hundreds) of photos one by one gets tedious fast. That's where a creative controller like TourBox really shines. It speeds up your post‑production and makes the whole process more enjoyable.
With TourBox, you can group your favorite adjustment sliders into a single TourMenu, so you don't have to hunt through panels for each tool. And TourBox offers even more shortcuts, letting you handle complex editing tasks with just one controller.
Interested? Check out our photo‑editing page to learn more.