Haida Red-Diamond Reverse GND 0.6 | Review

Author: Duarte Sol

Almost all photographers are familiar with common lens filters like polarisers, solid neutral density filters and graduated neutral density filters.

On the other hand there's another filter that you can find in the range of filter of the most common filter makers…the reverse graduated neutral density filter.

After receiving the Medium GND filter from Haida I got 2 extra filters to test and one of those was the Haida Reverse Graduated ND of 2 stops.

Since I didn´t had the opportunity to test it in Iceland last month I tried to do so in a short visit to Tenerife in Spain.

THE HAIDA RED-DIAMOND FILTER LINE

This new Red Diamond set of filters is defined as being “the hardest and the strongest of all diamonds”…and we are here to see how that will adapt to their “glass”!

This filter is made of high quality optical glass providing high definition and sharp results. Due to the ultra-thin nano multi coating, on both sides, ghosting and flare are prevented still maintaining superb sharpness.

The filter is waterproof and oil and fingertips repellent, therefore suitable for practically any type of weather and very easy to clean. This characteristic will make your life much easier when you’re in action, for instance, shooting seascapes... you will know how important this feature really is!

All these characteristics result in a very low color cast and provides you with faithful color reproduction.

This new Red Diamond line comes in the market holding his ground with a double shock-prove strength glass, low risk of accidental breakage, scratch resistance and rounded corners that make the installation, on the field, much easier.

WHAT IS A REVERSE GRADUAL NEUTRAL DENSITY FILTER

If you've ever used a graduated neutral density filter, you know that they're main gold is to darken the top of the scene and then gradually fade towards the bottom trying to compensate the differences in luminosity and there for allowing you to get a single exposure well balanced.

In that manner the darker area serves to limit the amount of light entering the lens bringing the brighter areas down helping your camera to create a better-exposed image.

A reverse ND grad acts in a very similar way.

Even doe the general objective of the filter is the same the big difference is that the darkest area of this specific filter is not on the top of the filter but in the middle instead.

WHAT IS THE GOAL HERE?

Well the answer for that is that this particular filters are specially designed for shooting at sunrise and sunset, when the sun is very close to the horizon line.

The small transition is directly place on the horizon line allowing light to get in to the dark middle portion of the filter reducing brightness in that specific area. At the same time on the top of the filter the dark area starts to deam allowing that a part of the scene, that normally gets very dark with a normal soft or hard edge filter, to get a bit more light allowing a much better exposure in general.

So in conclusion the reverse GND filter acts like any traditional ND grads but the bottom of the filter is clear and the top of the filter comes with a softer transition.

ON THE FIELD

The Haida Reverse GND filter is compatible with Haida filter holders but also filter holders from any other brand that supports 2 mm thin filters.

FIRST EXAMPLE

No Filter

With Reverse GND of 2 Stops

SECOND EXAMPLE

No Reverse GND

With Reverse GND

This shots are SOOC (Straight Out of the Camera) so there is absolutely no editing beside the correction of the lens.

FINAL EDIT SHOTS

CONCLUSION

Overall the Haida Reverse GND is VERY good!

They are reasonably priced and if  you are planning on taking photos of anything that has bright highlights on the horizon then you should definitely be packing these in your filter bag. 

Overall I would say that they are worth every penny.

In this small review i would also like to recap on the Red Diamond Filters key features:

-Double Shock Proof strength over a normal glass filter

-Low risk of accidental breakage

-Ultra-thin Nano multi coating retains superb image sharpness

-Faithful color reproduction and next to zero color cast

-Waterproof, Oil and Fingerprint proof, easy clean surface

-Scratch resistant for use in harsh environments

-R5 rounded design makes installation much easier into the filter holder

The Red Diamond Haida GND Line of filter will be a game changer and this new reverse is a great example of exactly that.

The original review link:

https://duartesol.wixsite.com/duartesolphotography/haida-red-diamond-reverse-0-6-s-rev?fbclid=IwAR0NgDIQYS3rZxCywk2fS-ZQPCrxOQVRk66HI7ITYDxkzDHpx7vhROS2bXc