Formatt-Hitech filters and filter holder systems, long respected among professional photographers, cinematographers, and videographers for their high levels of design functionality and image quality, can now count two new seriously dense ND filters within their ranks: the Formatt Hitech 100 x 100mm Firecrest IRND 3.0 and IRND 4.8, which offer 10 stops and 16 stops of neutral density, respectively, for extended control of exposure and motion.
A common problem with denser variants of ND filters, regardless of manufacturer, is color casts that often appear in darker shadow areas of the image, as a result of the light passing through dense layers of filter media at longer-than-typical exposure times. These color fluctuations, which are more common in digital than film photography, can occur anywhere within the visible, UV, or infrared spectra. These random color shifts are among the key reasons manufacturers avoid offering ND filters with densities greater than eight stops.
"They give the photographer, roughly, a 2- to 30-second exposure time with the 10-stop filter, or a 5- to 8-minute exposure time with the 16-stop filter during the daytime."
What makes Formatt-Hitech's new Firecrest IRND 3.0 and IRND 4.8 filters worth noting is that, for the first time, it's possible to place 10 to 16 stops of neutral density in front of your lens while maintaining flat attenuation of the entire visible, ultraviolet, and infrared portions of the electromagnetic spectrum with maintained color neutrality and accuracy.
Direct benefits of Formatt-Hitech's IRND filter technologies include expanded abilities in motion control, time-lapse imaging, wide-aperture or slower shutter-speed shooting under bright lighting conditions, and other imaging applications that require extended time and exposure control. They give the photographer, roughly, a 2- to 30-second exposure time with the 10-stop filter, or a 5- to 8-minute exposure time with the 16-stop filter during the daytime.
Formatt-Hitech's 100 x 100mm Firecrest IRND 3.0 and IRND 4.8 filters are manufactured from Schott Superwite glass, and feature rare earth metal Firecrest multicoatings. In addition to minimizing reflections and flare, Formatt-Hitech's Firecrest coatings are also hydrophobic—water beads up and slides off—and help in reducing water marks and smudges.
Firecrest filter coatings, which are applied directly to the filter surface in what is described as “a vacuum-formed, hard-coated, electrolytic process,” are also scratch proof. If you shoot for a living in extreme environments, these are the attributes you want in your lenses and filters.
Formatt-Hitech's 100 x 100mm Firecrest IRND 3.0 and IRND 4.8 filters are 2mm thick and are compatible with Formatt-Hitech's 100mm Filter Holder System. If your assignments call for long exposures or wide-aperture, selective-focus imaging under bright lighting conditions or extended control of movement within the image field, Formatt-Hitech's 100 x 100mm Firecrest IRND 3.0 and IRND 4.8 filters should most definitely be part of your filter system the next time you head out on assignment.
This has been just a small sampling of the broad range of filters manufactured by Formatt-Hitech. For a more complete overview of the brand and the filters that are available for a variety of applications, see this article.
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