At this stage, I've now tested, reviewed, and compared most of the major filters systems currently on the market. The only system I have no experience with thus far is from a company called Singh Ray. Aside from them, I think I might have found the best square format ND filter system on the market.
As someone who shoots architecture, I find that ND filters can be invaluable in many situations. Generally speaking, if I'm shooting an interior I probably won't need to use any ND filters. If there are any reflective surface then I may make use of a polarizing filter at most. For exteriors, however, having a high-quality filter system makes working outside incredibly easy. There are plenty of situations where simply by using a 10 stop ND filter you can eliminate many distracting elements in the frame such as people walking and cars driving past. There are however two main issues that ND filters can on occasions introduce into the image. The first is a color shift and the other is loss in sharpness. Now personally, I haven't seen any real-world situation where a high-quality square ND filter has caused any perceptible loss in detail. For this reason, I think that any loss in sharpness is a minor point at best. Color shifts, however, are a very real issue with most if not all ND filters and this is what I really look at when comparing different filter systems.
In our latest video, Anete and I compared ND filters from Wine Country Camera against the current and very popular M10 system from Haida. In several discussions, I've been told that the Haida filter system was the best both in terms of sharpness and colors and due to that I was very interested to see how they would compare. Performance aside my biggest immediate gripe with the Haida system is the fact that you can't stack multiple square filters or multiple drop-in filters. This is quite preventative in many situations for me. In any case, check out the full video linked above to see which system might just be the best you can buy.
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Good review, thank you, I spent several months this year reviewing filter systems and Wine Country Camera (WWC) was the clear winner. The company was wonderful to deal with and provided great service pre and post purchase. Two additional selling points not covered in the review were first off, the nano type coating on the filters which is highly scratch resistant and a breeze to clean, one wipe with a proper lens cloth and the lens is clear, perfect for rainy outdoor shots. The second issue for me was that WCC are located in southern California so prompt and informative emails were the norm while any inquiry directed to Haida got routed through China where their filter systems are made. This caused long response times for technical questions and translations were often not accurate and hard to understand. I also received several marketing emails from Haida who seemed more interested in recruiting dealers than selling me their product. And the build quality says it all, Wine Country Camera wins hands down over their competition.
This reviewer had absolutely nothing positive to say about the Haida system. All things being equal which is more likely: wine country is such a perfect product that it does everything better than its competitors or this reviewer is a paid influencer? Answer is easy. Same for Michael Butler.
Seriously folks, try to make it more obvious next time and take pictures of yourself with the bribes falling out of your pockets.
Haida M10 is an awesome product. Fast and easy to use and the color cast is in the same ballpark as that bloated overweight expensive wine country. More to the point Wine Country is a fine product but not a clear winner.
Nothing positive? Really?
I generally find that people who are emotionally invested in a product or have previously bought a product tend to make the kind of baseless accusations that you're making right now. The Haida system performed worse, get over it.
Nice try but sadly you have failed to identify my motivation. The amount of camera equipment I have purchased and disliked outnumbers the amount that I have liked. To call me a fanboy is a weak attempt to deflect your obvious bias. You had nothing positive to say about Haida. Was Haida that far off the mark? Is Wine Country that good? Really?
No need to disagree with me. We know where each other stand. I simply care to inform the reader to dig a little deeper than just your recommendation. Beware of those that present unbalanced and fawning reviews of products.
If you want to prove my accusations are baseless I dare you to say one things about the Haida system that was superior over the Wine Country. Be careful, weak compliments will show your true colors.
I didn't call you a fanboy, neither did I make a direct comment about you, I said generally.
You're right, there's no need to disagree because the evidence dictates the results and findings. WCC were sharper and had better colour. I wonder why you're getting all bent out of shape about this comparison, are you paid by Haida?
I already pointed out in the video how usability on the Haida is better compared to the WCC filters. Usability is a big deal and I also describe how most people (in my view) will care more about that over something looking and feeling fancy.
I find it interesting that you don't attempt to counter the results I provide but instead you try and discredit me as an individual. Speaks volumes doesn't it?
Also just to clarify, WCC was not even aware of this comparison prior to arranging this with Haida who did, in fact, agree to this comparison and sent me the filters specifically for that purpose.
Soo let's see if we can unbundle your latest comments. You didn't call me a fanboy; you just inferred it. Then you turn the tables and accuse me of the same thing I suggest you are doing. Then you suggest that I should show proof about Haida being better. I think that is the gist of your thin rebuttals.
How about you do your job and present a better review. Did you even mention the significant cost difference (even if you did I can't recall which means that it wasn't emphasized).
Your compliment is that Haida may be more useable. To quote you, "Just a little bit better (uses his hands to gesture a pinch better) but plastic construction crappy, come on (goes immediately back into a dismissal)". By the way Haida is lightweight and well constructed; check out a Cokin P for flimsy plastic. You never discuss how drop-in filters help workflow like when recomposing and focusing with a 10 stop. By not explaining the usability factor the reader doesn't understand the value of your comments and dismisses it as not a game changer.
To be fair I shouldn't have accused you of being a paid influencer although they abound in this industry and on the internet (see how easy it is to infer something). Suffice to say your review seemed very uninformative to me, the reader.
The interesting part is that you compared only Haida and WCC, none of the other filter systems. Maybe because Haida is kicking WCC and the other filter system's butt in sales. The whole premise of your comparison and your title appears bent on knocking down what has obviously been a disrupter to filter companies. Why is that? Oh yea because they have done some things better. In your review I could never tell.
You assumed, I didn’t infer.
Also I didn’t accuse, I asked; very different from what you did. Anyway I don’t have time to discuss anything further with you. You seem to enjoy making stuff up and then arguing about it.
Also if you’re so brilliant why don’t you produce a video comparison?
So comfortable throwing shade from behind a keyboard without doing anything yourself right?
You are right. I will leave making stuff up to the professionals like you. Take a breath, its just a joke.
To the readers: Check out all the videos in review of the WCC and M10. I am sure both are good systems with pros and cons. Neither is superior over the other. Each has their audiences.
I chose the Haida M10 system after owning the Progrey system and before that the Lee and Cokin P systems. I am very satisfied with it but I have had certain challenges. The M10 has a certain filter thickness tolerance. I had Hitech filters that were sliding loosely. I spoke to Haida and they very promptly sent me a new set of rails (no China delay) even though there site clearly stated that my Hitechs may be out of spec to their design. Their customer service was exemplary and the new rails resolved my issue.
I appreciate the drop in filter and have had no issues with the single slot design even though I stack multiple filters. By the way if a combined CPL ND is your thing Haida produces a CPL+ND combo. Did Usman mention this? You can buy one and its still cheaper than WCC. And the plastic Usman mentioned is actually brushed aluminum adapter ring and holder with some polycarbonate parts. No wood though if you like the feel of cabinet finishes on your camera (I couldn't resist WCC).
Some have mentioned that the M10 slots are fairly close to the holder and worried about it scraping the filters, but I have not experienced this. But it is close. I suspect this is intentional to limit light seepage during long exposures and to limit vignette effects. I use a 24mm and have had no vignette. I will leave it to others to talk about their experiences with wider lenses. Did Usman talk about vignette? Maybe he could include that with a robust breakdown of the cost of each system. If you want more info also check out fstoppers Haida review:
https://fstoppers.com/originals/fstoppers-reviews-haida-m10-filter-holde...
I am also glad to answer more questions if needed as I have not included all my thoughts about the M10. That's the problem with people like me; we haven't quit our day jobs to become dedicated reviewers yet. But watch out.... we still care to get the facts out to our fellow photographers.
I encourage a WCC owner to now share their thoughts. Unfortunately I do not have the benefit of checking out both systems, and I would not want to opinion without doing so. So maybe a WCC owner can shed some light. I am truly not here to diss WCC but rebalance the conversation.
Best of wishes to you Usman. Believe it or not I don't have ill will towards you. I hope you can grow as a writer and reviewer from my comments.
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