Filter stacking? Yay or nay?

[runnah]

What is the consensus on this?

The reason I ask is that I just shot some moving water with a ND and a polarizer. Results are decent but I certainly noticed some image changes.

 

[Overread15 3]

If you need to do it, but know that it comes at a cost.

Sometimes you can't do a shot without stacking filters, maybe you need that ND and a polarizer; maybe you need two ND filters or maybe even three.

The more you add the more hit you will take on the overall image quality and the more chance you introduce for things like flaring and reflections to take place. Having quality filters will help lessen (not prevent) this.

 

[480sparky39 38]

What is the consensus on this?

The reason I ask is that I just shot some moving water with a ND and a polarizer. Results are decent but I certainly noticed some image changes.

What did the image change into?......... a '68 red Corvette?

Sorry..... I couldn't resist that one.

As Overread said, adding glass in front of your lens is going to affect image quality. Adding more glass simply compounds the problem.

Maybe you should get a couple darker ND filters.

 

[Ilovemycam]

If you don't like it don't do it. I've done it and results are OK for me.

 

[hirejn]

There's no consensus. There's just what you like. My practice is to avoid it. Pretty much any filter I'd use can be done with a click in post, other than a polarizer. With UV filters you're putting a $20 piece of glass over a several hundred dollar piece of glass. It does make a difference. I didn't think it did at first, but that's because I never had a filter-free image to compare it with. Once I took the filters off, it was like shooting with a new lens. The more you put in front of your expensive lens, the more you degrade the image. I've gotten out of the practice of using UV filters to protect lenses because I realized that without them the lenses are just as safe.

 

[Josh66]

I don't have anything against stacking filters - when you have to, you have to... I find that I very rarely have to though. As in almost never...

Probably the only time I would stack filters is when I'm shooting B&W film and want a colored filter for contrast, and a polarizer at the same time... I can't think of any other times I would need more than one filter at once.