A relative new addition to the NiSi filter range , the NiSi Natural Night Filter was designed to "block" the most common wavelengths of light pollution. Especially in cityscape scenes which may have mercury vapour , sodium and low CRI streetlights. These lights produce undesirable wavelengths that pollute the night sky.
I was definitely anxious to try this filter out , so I took it for the first test run by photographing our very own iconic cityscape skyline along Marina Bay (Singapore).
The images shared below :
- were captured with the Nikon D850 with Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8G ED lens
- White Balance of camera set to AUTO (Normal)
- Used the NiSi S5 Filter Holder system
I am going to share TWO sets of With Vs. Without Filter images for you to compare. All the images are :
- RAW captures
- Open files WITHOUT any post processing
- Resized & Saved for web display
Set 1 - No Post Processing , Time captured : 7:30pm (during Blue Hour)
WITHOUT NiSi Natural Night Filter
Warmer cast overall
Water reflection colors dominated mainly by orange & yellow tones
(Click on image to see larger Flickr Lightbox version)
WITH NiSi Natural Night Filter
A cooler tone overall but still with appropriate warm colors captured
A more appealing looking sky (as it was blue hour time)
Buildings have better contrast and better perception of definition and "pop"
A wider range of colors captured in the water reflections
(Click on image to see larger Flickr Lightbox version)
Overall for Set 1 - The image captured WITH the NiSi Natural Night Filter gets the nod from me
Set 2 - No Post Processing , Time Captured : 7:34pm (During Blue Hour)
WITHOUT NiSi Natural Night Filter
Warmer cast overall
Water reflection colors dominated mainly by orange & yellow tones
Lesser separation between cityscape and sky
(Click on image to see larger Flickr Lightbox version)
WITH NiSi Natural Night Filter
A cooler tone overall but still with appropriate warm colors captured
A more appealing looking sky (as it was blue hour time)
Buildings have better contrast and better perception of definition and "pop"
Buildings look more natural - Jubilee Bridge definitely looks more natural in color
Better separation between cityscape and sky
A wider range of colors captured in the water reflections
(Click on image to see larger Flickr Lightbox version)
Overall for Set 2 - The image captured WITH the NiSi Natural Night Filter again gets the nod from me
The NiSi Natural Night Filter that I used
150mm x 150mm
High Definition Glass filter
Ultra Low Reflection
Anti-Reflection coating on both sides
Waterproof coating on both sides
This filter is definitely a piece of High Quality glass.
Summary of First Experience with the NiSi Natural Night Filter
- Most importantly I got appealing results which had better definition & separation
- Colors obtained were appealing and looked accurate
- No noticeable side effects like unwanted color casts
- NOT just a cooling filter as the warmer colors were still captured
- Definitely a more appropriate reflection of the Blue Hour when the images were captured
- Image Quality remains excellent with this filter mounted onto the superb Nikkor 14-24mm
Were the good results obtained because this NiSi filter can really cut out light pollution ? I can't be 100% sure but whatever this filter did , it does not really matter !!
What matters were the end results (the images) and they were all very positive with noticeable improvements.
Definitely very positive results which I am very pleased to see. I have also read some reviews where the reviewers mentioned that this filter also helps in capturing the milkyway. Now this is very interesting and I am definitely going to see if this is true.
This filter is now going to be a permanent feature when I capture nightscapes especially cityscapes.
I will continue to blog about my experience with the Natural Night Filter as I continue to use it in my photography adventures.
Cheers,
Andrew