lindsay
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I was sent this sample new filter by H&Y for review.; first impressions were positive, in that I liked the protective, zipped pouch that it came in, and the magnetic front cover was substantial and secure (the rear cover is also solid, secured by the lens gripping mechanism). You are greeted with three knurled screw knobs which stick out from the sides of the rather substantial filter that is fully 12mm thick, but with a combined ND3 to ND1000 variable neutral density glass plus circular polariser, I guess the size is understandable. The fact that it is made using very high-quality glass is a factor in this.
I did however struggle a bit to get used to the mechanism that attaches the filter to a lens: you first must hold the rear cover whilst turning the body of the filter, to release the rear cover; after a few goes, I did manage this, but it wasn’t easy. I think it’s something you must acquire the knack of, but once you do it seems obvious and is clever, and I did get the hang of it quite quickly. Likewise attaching the filter to a lens requires the knack to be developed, but this is easier. The attachment ring has a set of grips that make the ring smaller as you turn, so that when you release pressure, the grips then spring back to hold the attached lens in a friction mount rather than screw mount as with the step-up/down rings of other filter systems. One of the three knobs sticking out is a securing screw for the lens attachment; this is to make it that much stronger an attachment (this apparently is a particular feature of this Mark II version of the filter, the original using this system having been launched 5 years ago without the securing screw). The other knobs are for turning the two respective filters (CPL and ND), with screw threads to lock them in position, which is a very handy feature for fixing exposure.
My first use of the filter was on a Sigma 24-35mm lens on my Nikon D850; filter size was 82mm, the maximum size for attachment of the version under review (the Revo Ring is available in five different filter size ranges, the test one was for 67-82mm but the others cover 37-49, 46-62, 58-77, 82-95mm). It was certainly secure, and with the camera attached to a tripod, it was easy to adjust the circular polariser ring and the variable ND ring to get the exposure I wanted. In fact, I was really enjoying this, as it was so much easier to fiddle with the exposure than by sliding various ND filter combinations into and out of a holder. I got so engrossed in getting a variety of exposures that I failed to notice the incoming tide washing over my feet! I think the only flaw in the approach was that I forgot to make a note of the level of ND filtering I used – it is marked on the ND ring of the filter – but the metadata of the exposures gave me the most important information about the exposure details. I also used the filter on a Tamron 35-150mm lens with a 77mm filter thread, which again was nicely secure.
20241019-Beach with filters by Lindsay Pennell, on Flickr
This one was shot at 30mm at f13, 1/100 and ISO200; ND setting was not noted but circa ND3 or 4 using the CPL and on a windy day
I’ll be honest that my experience with ND filters is minimal and more theoretical than practical. However, the thing I really liked about this filter is that I could learn whilst using it – rotating the ND filter taught me instantly how I had to adjust my exposure to compensate, and in the images I captured, when reviewed, identified the need to lock the polariser ring once I’d attained the setting I wanted with no ND dialled in. Using the filter also taught me about focus locking before dialling in the ND values, obvious to experienced users of such filters but not entirely understood by me until now. If I have one criticism of the ND aspect of the filter, it is that I would prefer the variation of density to be more gradual as you turn the ring, but really all this requires is a bit more finesse on the part of the user.
20241019-Beach with filters-3 by Lindsay Pennell, on Flickr
This one was shot at 30mm, at f14, 1/15s, ISO200, with an ND setting of around 6 and the CPL (it was very sunny despite the gale that was blowing).
I would have liked to have more images to share at this point but the weather lately has not been very conducive to photography; hopefully I can shoot more to share in the coming weeks.
So, in conclusion, I think this is an excellent filter combination which provides a great range of exposure control options for photographers all in one package, and it is an especially valuable learning tool for less experienced camera users who are looking to grow their understanding of the control of their exposures. It is very high quality and much less cumbersome than traditional square and screw-in filter systems for the same functions, although I understand that there are attachments that permit regular square filters to be additionally mounted in front of the RevoRingII unit.. I can see this living in my Nikon camera bag permanently.
I believe the retail prices of these filters vary depending on the filter size range, from circa £115 to £215, to be confirmed when it is officially launched on 28th October. H&Y are going to follow up my review in the next couple of days with some offer codes on their products for TP members, which I will post here in this thread when I receive them. One will be a 25% discount code.
I did however struggle a bit to get used to the mechanism that attaches the filter to a lens: you first must hold the rear cover whilst turning the body of the filter, to release the rear cover; after a few goes, I did manage this, but it wasn’t easy. I think it’s something you must acquire the knack of, but once you do it seems obvious and is clever, and I did get the hang of it quite quickly. Likewise attaching the filter to a lens requires the knack to be developed, but this is easier. The attachment ring has a set of grips that make the ring smaller as you turn, so that when you release pressure, the grips then spring back to hold the attached lens in a friction mount rather than screw mount as with the step-up/down rings of other filter systems. One of the three knobs sticking out is a securing screw for the lens attachment; this is to make it that much stronger an attachment (this apparently is a particular feature of this Mark II version of the filter, the original using this system having been launched 5 years ago without the securing screw). The other knobs are for turning the two respective filters (CPL and ND), with screw threads to lock them in position, which is a very handy feature for fixing exposure.
My first use of the filter was on a Sigma 24-35mm lens on my Nikon D850; filter size was 82mm, the maximum size for attachment of the version under review (the Revo Ring is available in five different filter size ranges, the test one was for 67-82mm but the others cover 37-49, 46-62, 58-77, 82-95mm). It was certainly secure, and with the camera attached to a tripod, it was easy to adjust the circular polariser ring and the variable ND ring to get the exposure I wanted. In fact, I was really enjoying this, as it was so much easier to fiddle with the exposure than by sliding various ND filter combinations into and out of a holder. I got so engrossed in getting a variety of exposures that I failed to notice the incoming tide washing over my feet! I think the only flaw in the approach was that I forgot to make a note of the level of ND filtering I used – it is marked on the ND ring of the filter – but the metadata of the exposures gave me the most important information about the exposure details. I also used the filter on a Tamron 35-150mm lens with a 77mm filter thread, which again was nicely secure.
20241019-Beach with filters by Lindsay Pennell, on FlickrThis one was shot at 30mm at f13, 1/100 and ISO200; ND setting was not noted but circa ND3 or 4 using the CPL and on a windy day
I’ll be honest that my experience with ND filters is minimal and more theoretical than practical. However, the thing I really liked about this filter is that I could learn whilst using it – rotating the ND filter taught me instantly how I had to adjust my exposure to compensate, and in the images I captured, when reviewed, identified the need to lock the polariser ring once I’d attained the setting I wanted with no ND dialled in. Using the filter also taught me about focus locking before dialling in the ND values, obvious to experienced users of such filters but not entirely understood by me until now. If I have one criticism of the ND aspect of the filter, it is that I would prefer the variation of density to be more gradual as you turn the ring, but really all this requires is a bit more finesse on the part of the user.
20241019-Beach with filters-3 by Lindsay Pennell, on FlickrThis one was shot at 30mm, at f14, 1/15s, ISO200, with an ND setting of around 6 and the CPL (it was very sunny despite the gale that was blowing).
I would have liked to have more images to share at this point but the weather lately has not been very conducive to photography; hopefully I can shoot more to share in the coming weeks.
So, in conclusion, I think this is an excellent filter combination which provides a great range of exposure control options for photographers all in one package, and it is an especially valuable learning tool for less experienced camera users who are looking to grow their understanding of the control of their exposures. It is very high quality and much less cumbersome than traditional square and screw-in filter systems for the same functions, although I understand that there are attachments that permit regular square filters to be additionally mounted in front of the RevoRingII unit.. I can see this living in my Nikon camera bag permanently.
I believe the retail prices of these filters vary depending on the filter size range, from circa £115 to £215, to be confirmed when it is officially launched on 28th October. H&Y are going to follow up my review in the next couple of days with some offer codes on their products for TP members, which I will post here in this thread when I receive them. One will be a 25% discount code.
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