Are you already using filters for landscape photography?

When you photograph landscapes, a filter may well be your most-used accessory. Whether you’re capturing a stunning shot in your back garden or exploring a nature reserve, different situations call for different filters. We’re happy to explain what the most popular filters can do for your landscape photos.

We’re happy to explain what the most popular filters can do for your photos

Polarising filter

A polarising filter is a must-have in your camera bag. It boosts contrast and helps you cut out reflections and glare. Ideal for landscape photography! Nature offers us an incredible range of colours, but capturing them with a camera can sometimes be tricky. A polarising filter gives you a helping hand: skies become bluer, grass greener and your favourite flower gets an extra splash of colour.

Of course, these aren’t the only properties of a polarising filter. One important characteristic is that it only lets through light coming from a specific angle. This gives you more control when photographing reflections, so you can play with all the reflections you come across in water or on shiny objects. Sometimes reflections look beautiful, but at other times you’d rather show what’s happening beneath the water’s surface or behind the glass.

The photo on the left was taken without a polarising filter, the photo on the right with one.

ND filter

An ND filter, also known as a neutral density filter, is essentially a pair of sunglasses for your lens. It reduces the amount of light reaching the sensor, allowing you to shoot with slower shutter speeds and wider apertures. For example, if you want to photograph a waterfall with a long shutter speed, the water turns into a silky, flowing line. There is one drawback, though: when you shoot in broad daylight with a long shutter speed, your photo quickly becomes overexposed. An ND filter is the perfect solution.

The ND filter holds back the light, letting you create all kinds of creative effects, such as movement in the clouds, a silky waterfall or soft water with a misty look. With an ND filter, you can give your photos a magical touch.

This photo was taken with an ND filter.

Graduated ND filter

A graduated ND filter works in much the same way as an ND filter, but only blocks part of the light. It is dark in one section and gradually transitions into a clear area.

This is ideal when you’re photographing a sunrise or sunset, for example. While the sky turns orange, the foreground is still dark. A graduated ND filter lets you reduce this contrast by placing the dark part of the filter over the sky, so that half of the photo doesn’t get overexposed. With the help of the filter, you retain all the detail in your photo.

The photo on the left was taken without a graduated ND filter, the photo on the right with one.

Colour filter

Colour filters are often used to add a certain mood to a photo. For example, there are various colour filters that enhance the warm tones of a sunset. This way, you create an extra summery sunset.

Colour filters are also widely used in black-and-white photography. Using a red or yellow filter increases the contrast, which can give your photo a dramatic effect. A red filter strengthens this effect even more than a yellow one, so you can decide for yourself how much you want to boost the contrast.