Orange Filter Question

[Zept]

ReyeR asked...
BTW, can anyone technically explain what an orange (or any other colour) filter does?

From my understanding of filters it absorbs the other colours of the spectrum in varying degrees so strictly speaking it's not 'adding' on top of the available light but 'taking away'.

That's how I understand it. The red filter takes out some of the blue light so you end up with a more balanced spectrum. The downside is that less light reaches the lens so your shutter speed has to be slower.

The effect of the filter varies with depth (b/c the available spectrum changes). In the shallows I find it overkill. The Sony version can be removed underwater, so it's easier to take a shot with and a shot without and choose between them later.

A strobe gives much better results, no argument about that, but... right now, with only 130 dives under my cummerband, I am more interested in looking at things than in taking photographs. I like the fact that my camera is compact and can be clipped off to the hem of my BC when I am not using it. A strobe would make it a lot more cumbersome. The filtered photos are a million miles from perfect, but I find them easier to work with in Photoshop than the unfiltered ones. It's a compromise, but one I am happy with .

But my real purpose in posting the with and without pix was to show the difference, not to make an argument for or against the filter.

Zept

 

[Dee]

If you're pleased with the orange filter, that's all that counts! I appreciate you posting the with and without photos. It's infinitely better than trying to describe it.

 

[Cecil]

Zept, why didn't you have the internal strobe On? Please don't tell me you are concerned about backscatter. Turn on the strobe, the pictures will be much, much better. I love my little Sony and it's internal strobe. Out to 3' it rocks.

 

[Zept]

Cecil, I use the strobe for macro (on a good day, I remember to remove the red filter first). Probably would have worked on the lionfish, but I was too far away from the octopus.

Zept

 

[blacknet]

Hello,

If you are looking for a detailed description on filters check out this site

http://photographytips.com/page.cfm/300

ORANGE FILTER

An orange filter goes a step beyond the yellow filter in bringing out contrast between blue and white tones in a scene, rendering a sky in very dark shades of gray while clouds remain a bright white. Its high blue/green absorption also causes greens to come out much darker. The effect is highly dramatic, and may be overkill for most landscapes. However, because of its dramatic contrast, an orange filter can make an excellent picture with the right subject – a bright red factory belting out clouds of steam and smoke, for example.

Because a filter transmits more of its own color to the film and that color is rendered in a lighter shade of gray, an orange filter can be complimentary to skin tones and can make freckles and other blemishes seem to disappear. However, people with sun tans will appear paler.

The orange filter is somewhat more effective at haze reduction than the yellow filter, and can be very effective in shooting snow scenes or in underwater photography. It can be an excellent filter for black and white architectural photography, lightening the color of orange and brownish bricks, and is good for accenting detail in textures of trees, stone, sculptures and so on.

The orange filter (Wratten No. 21) has a filter factor of 5 and requires an exposure increase of two-and-one-third stops. A light orange (Wratten No. 15 - also known as a deep yellow) filter provides more contrast between cloud and sky than the yellow filter, but lightens skin tones so much that people can look anemic. A Wratten No. 22 deep orange filter has even greater green absorption than the No. 21.


Any questions?


Ed