Aurora Aperture Variable Neutral Density Filter: Blur the Background in Full Daylight

When shooting outdoors in the sunlight, you’ll often need to use a very small aperture/iris setting to get the right exposure. That is not necessarily an issue unless you want to blur the background to draw the attention of your audience to your main subject. This is where a neutral density filter can help. A neutral density filter is like high quality sunglasses for your camera’s lens. This allows you to use an aperture setting which will blur the background and still allow you to expose properly.

Aurora Aperture was kind enough to send us their Power XND 2000 variable neutral density filter for review. Full disclosure: This filter was given to me for this review, I did not purchase it with my money. I was not paid to do this review.

If you’d like to learn how to record and post process your sound, be sure to have a look at my sound for video courses at http://school.learnlightandsound.com  My Dialogue Sound Post Processing with Adobe Audition course just launched at the end of August 2016.

Visit us at http://learnlightandsound.com for more updates on how to improve your lighting and sound for video. Also be sure to subscribe to get new episodes every week!

Gear used in this episode:

—————————————————————————————

Aurora Aperture Power XND 2000 Variable Neutral Density Filter

B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1272890-REG/aurora_aperture_pxnd2k_39_39mm_powerxnd_2000_variable.html/BI/19904/KBID/12941/kw/AUPXND200039/DFF/d10-v2-t1-xAUPXND200039

—————————————————————————————

Panasonic GH4 m4/3 Camera

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2dWzbNH

B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1028453-REG/panasonic_dmc_gh4kbody_lumix_dmc_gh4_mirrorless_micro.html/BI/19904/KBID/12941/kw/PADMCGH4B/DFF/d10-v2-t1-xPADMCGH4B

—————————————————————————————

Panasonic 12-35mm f/2.8 Zoom Lens

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2e3OCDH

B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/865111-REG/Panasonic_H_HS12035_Lumix_G_X_Vario.html/BI/19904/KBID/12941/kw/PA123528XB/DFF/d10-v2-t1-xPA123528XB

—————————————————————————————

Olympus 45mm f/1.8 Lens (for talking head shots)

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2dB3Dea

B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/971404-REG/olympus_v311030bu000_m_45mm_f1_8_lens.html/BI/19904/KBID/12941/kw/OL4518B/DFF/d10-v2-t1-xOL4518B

—————————————————————————————

Audio Technica AT4053b Microphone

Amazon: http://amzn.to/2dB4Imc

B&H: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/642499-REG/Audio_Technica_AT4053B_AT4053b_Hypercardioid_Condenser_Microphone.html/BI/19904/KBID/12941/kw/AUAT4053B/DFF/d10-v2-t1-xAUAT4053B

—————————————————————————————

Sound Devices 633 Audio Mixer/Recorder

DVeStore: http://www.dvestore.com/guy-says-gear-reviews/audio/audio-recorders-mixers/sound-devices-633-six-input-compact-mixer-with-10-track-recorder/#aid=6242

—————————————————————————————

Copyright 2016 by Curtis Judd

Ethics statement: Some of the links above are Amazon.com, B&H Photo, or other affiliate links.