Can ND Filters be Used at Night? – Detailed GUIDE

A lot of beginner photographers use an ND filter to sharpen the images when shooting at night time. So, how good are ND filters to use at night time? Some cases proved to use Nd filters and some of them are made worse. So, Can ND filters be used at night?

Yes of course. You can use ND filters until you don’t care about the sharpness of the image. ND filters and some other filters might degrade the original photo and there must be a solid reason to use them. Especially, using Nd filters might possibly result in reflections of bright light and they don’t reduce glare.

The final answer would be kinda neutral. I have witnessed some awesome improvements when using Nd filters and sometimes I feel like it’s better to get rid of these ND filters. To be honest, I liked some other things at night photography than these ND filters.

Now let’s talk about the types of filters that improve your final work. Also, Nd filters can be excellent add-ons if you properly use them. So. let’s dive into the topic.

When to Use Nd filters?

If you are a fan of nature photography, you might have come across an awesome collection of photographs. One of my favorites is a night photography. City photos at night make the most beautiful sense and create a visual appeal. 

Long exposure shots are more likely to fit with the Nd filter when there is no proper lighting source that covers the whole scene. 

The two common reasons why the ND filter is used are to allow for a longer shutter speed that matches the aperture when you are at the minimum ISO. Photographs that show Waterflow from waterfalls need to have a high shutter speed and low ISO. And when your camera doesn’t have the faster speed settings, an ND filter is used. 

Any filter you see on the market will affect the sharpness of the image because they are focusing on something else. if you want to add something that isn’t there, you have to compromise.

Can Nd filter decrease Glare?

No, Nd filters cannot decrease the flare in fact, it helps to whiten the pictures than the original which sometimes leads to overexposing the images if there is a straight light that hits your lens. Depending on the quality of the ring, it may raise the glare and flare. 

When can you use an ND filter?

You can use Nd filters in such conditions where it needs to be. It needs a situation that can make your photograph better but not worse. If there is a straight light that is focusing on your lens and sensor then you must need an Nd filter. 

For example, here is a photo that used an ND filter to highlight the exposure time in the shadow areas and he used a small aperture value. If you want to know the actual color progression, experiment at different time situations.

A polarizer will reduce the glare and it might be the perfect choice to use for landscape and night photography. The problem with the polarizer is the light has to be out of your original picture. 

So, if you can see in the picture, the light is straight to the camera. Nd filter does a good job here compared to the Polarizer in this situation. In other situations, no doubt polarizers will do a better job. So, here is one of the finest polarizers that I’ve come across. 

My friend is using this polarizer and she was too happy. As a first-time viewer, you may not find any difference, but the sharpness and noise will vary from filter to filter. 

Image credits – PhotgraphyAndVision

So how to get rid of this problem? Nd filters aren’t the only solution to use at night times. I have recently come across a new Natural light filter by Nisi company. 

According to the official report, it might be the perfect filter for night photography. The main reason is it blocks light wavelengths that cause light pollution as low CRI streetlights. The layer of the Nisi filter helps with the flare. Here are some Nisi filters from Amazon, pick the desired lens for your camera.

So here is my experience. I am not a pro photographer, after some suggestions, I thought to use this Nd filter to have brighter exposure in darker areas without overexposing the other colors. After so many attempts, I learned that shutter speed is also a thing that you have to think about when using the filters.

Now it’s aperture value turn. If you are at the highest aperture of f/22 or at the lowest like f/2 or f/4, it bothers the photographers. In landscape, the aperture value must be f/16 or f/8. No need to go beyond f/16 for most landscape photography. 

Effect of HDR with ND filter

Few photographers talk about HDR to replace the Nd filter. If the lens is 70 to 200 and aperture is minimum, an Nd4 or Nd6 filter is needed and the IOS must be around 100. 

The exposure will be around 8 to 10 seconds. If the same photo has to be taken without the Nd filter, the exposure time needs to be 25 seconds. This is a bit longer exposure to prevent the colors from washing out at sunset. 

There are different situations you have to keep in mind. If it is landscape photography of the city with vehicles and lights, the shutter speed should also be noted. The higher shutter speed will make better photography. This is the perfect case to use Nd filters. If you aren’t including traffic and focusing on the sky and clouds, longer exposure can be used. 

Optical Density Number	Filter Factor Number	Amount of light reduced
0.3 (ND 0.3)	2 (ND2)	1/2
0.6 (ND 0.6)	4 (ND4)	1/4
02 (ND 2)	100 (ND100)	1/100
04 (ND 4.0)	10000 (ND10000)	1/10000

These filters have a range and the most popular filters are Filter factor ND4, ND6, and more. For every stop of the ND filter, the amount of light entering the camera will be reduced to half. And when the light is halved, you have to double the shutter speed to maintain the same exposure. 

ND filters come in different strengths of darkness levels. Most of the beginner photographers are not aware of these.

Types of ND filters

The main disadvantage of Nd filters is that in different situations you need a different range of filters. This may become more expensive. Filters like VND filters might cut down your expenses and here are other types of Nd filters.

Graduated Nd filter (GND): The GND filter transmits from light to dark. The purpose of the GND filter is to balance the exposure in an image that contains a bright background and darker foreground. Landscape photographers use the GND filters for sunset Images. 

Variable Neutral Density Filter (VND): VND filter gives the photographer the ability to dial in the amount of filtration and the outer ring is adjustable. Unlike GDN filters, you can carry only one VND filter for a variety of darkness levels. 

Center Neutral Density Filter (CND): The CND filer has a dark center and brighter edges to serve the balanced exposure across the frame when using wide angles. They allow all the light on the edges of the lens but diminish the light in the center of the lens.

Polarizing filter: Your polarize filter is such a beautiful Nd filter type that is a 2 stop ND filter (ND 4) and most people use this and sometimes it works better than the ND filter.

Which is the Best ND Filter to use at night time?

For long exposure shots to cover the sky, clouds, and the scene you need ND 0.6 to ND 3.0 Optical density filter type. The higher number filter will give you a longer exposure time to match the shutter speed. 

And when taking high speed moving objects, an ND0.6 filter with high shutter speed and low ISO is recommended. remember, you need a good tripod to take these pictures to prevent shaking. I’ve covered some Best tripods for hiking and those tripods are recommended. 

Coming to the conclusion, the use of ND filters is finalized only after your experience. If you are a beginner, I have already recommended the situations and filter types to use. With nigh shooting through, the results are even more accurate when you use some filters and accurate ISO and shutter speed. 

Many landscape Photographers recommended different Nd filter stops for different photography types. Architect photographers to capture buildings in the evening time uses Nd 1.6 filter type that shows smooth motion and would be better for slowing your shutter speed. 

Some wedding photographers use 3 stop ND filter to give them a wide-open aperture combined with 6 stop filter. The 10 stop Nd filters add more darkness to the picture by decreasing the amount of light in the camera and are becoming popular with many photographers shooting under bright sunlight.