List of filter questions

[PaulWog]

I have a list of questions. (TL;DR = in bold). I have my Lee 10-stop ND filter, and my Haida 150-series filter holder is arriving next week (can't wait to use it). All of my questions pertain to 150x150 filters on ultrawide.

1. Graduated neutral density filters help you get the right exposure in camera, in one exposure. However, that's one additional filter that will go in front of the camera. As I understand it, all 150x170 graduated ND filters are resin, rather than glass, and they tend to scratch much more easily (and on UWA lenses, scratches can actually be visible). Multiple exposures, or the black card technique, are two options. Relying on highlight recovery in Lightroom is a good option as well. If I got a single graduated ND filter (not today but in the future), do you think 2-stop, or 3-stop soft grad would be more versatile? And even with high quality filters, couldn't 3 filters degrade the image quality a fair bit (ie. one ND grad, one ND, and a polarizer or second ND)?

2. Polarizing filters are damned expensive in 150x150 form ($200). And on ultrawide, I'm just not convinced that the uneven sky effect is worth the trade-off for a more "saturated" image. Aside from the obvious use (removing glare from snowy scenes, rapids/waterfalls/rocks/etc, foliage), where do you find yourself using a polarizer for long exposure or landscapes?

3. Do you have any experience comparing 150x150 filter manufacturers? (Namely: Lee, Haida, Nisi). I currently just have the one Lee filter (10-stop), and I hear that Haida has much less color cast on their ND filters. Lee has a fairly strong blue cast on their filters. In the future I will likely be picking up one or both a 3-stop and 6-stop filter, and I'm curious about your thoughts between the 3 brands.

 

[petrochemist]

Unless I really needed to boost/reduce reflections from water or artificial surfaces I would be unlikely to use a polariser with an UWA. They do work wonders for longer lenses though.
I generally don't get on with graduated filters either. In some cases the horizon is flat enough for them to be practical but in most cases trees/hills etc make the sky impossible to match up. Digital techniques tend to be much easier.