The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Solid neutral density filters lengthen exposure by cutting out a specific amount of light. This is very useful for creative purposes, whether you want to blur a wave, waterfall, leopard or a street scene. They are available in many different densities, ranging from 2 to 20 stops, but the most popular are 3-, 6- and 10-stops. Please read the bullet points below to understand the purpose of each. 

• 3-Stop | 0.9 - This filter is used to add a slight blur to water before the sun has set or after it has risen. At f/16 and ISO100, it is impossible to achieve a slow enough shutter speed to get the ideal amount of blur in the waves while the sun is up. Three stops of darkening will normally allow a shutter speed of 1/10s to 1/2s during this golden sunlight phase, producing soft lines in the waves. 
• 6-Stop | 1.8 - This filter serves the same purpose as the 10-stop, but it is better suited for sunset and sunrise. When the sun is close to setting or rising, a 10-stop ND will require a very long shutter speed at f/11-16 and ISO100 to produce the correct exposure - often as much as 5-10 minutes. A 6-stop ND is thus much more suited for capturing long exposures of 30-60s around sunset and sunrise. 
• 10-Stop | 3.0 - This filter is used primarily for blurring the sea to a flat mist and for blurring clouds into abstract lines. It can also be used to remove traffic and people from urban scenes by blurring the moving elements. At f/11-16 and ISO100, it usually produces a shutter speed of 20-30s in the early morning or late afternoon with strong sunlight.

IR Blocking - This filter blocks out unwanted Infra-red light that can cause strange colours in undesired areas and rob images of critical shadow-contrast.

Nano Coating - This filter features a super tough scratch-resistant and hydrophobic nano-coating that ensures that it lasts for years. It also ensures that any rain or spray from the ocean beads properly and is easy to wipe off so you can continue shooting the sunset.

The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Solid neutral density filters lengthen exposure by cutting out a specific amount of light. This is very useful for creative purposes, whether you want to blur a wave, waterfall, leopard or a street scene. They are available in many different densities, ranging from 2 to 20 stops, but the most popular are 3-, 6- and 10-stops. Please read the bullet points below to understand the purpose of each. 

• 3-Stop | 0.9 - This filter is used to add a slight blur to water before the sun has set or after it has risen. At f/16 and ISO100, it is impossible to achieve a slow enough shutter speed to get the ideal amount of blur in the waves while the sun is up. Three stops of darkening will normally allow a shutter speed of 1/10s to 1/2s during this golden sunlight phase, producing soft lines in the waves. 
• 6-Stop | 1.8 - This filter serves the same purpose as the 10-stop, but it is better suited for sunset and sunrise. When the sun is close to setting or rising, a 10-stop ND will require a very long shutter speed at f/11-16 and ISO100 to produce the correct exposure - often as much as 5-10 minutes. A 6-stop ND is thus much more suited for capturing long exposures of 30-60s around sunset and sunrise. 
• 10-Stop | 3.0 - This filter is used primarily for blurring the sea to a flat mist and for blurring clouds into abstract lines. It can also be used to remove traffic and people from urban scenes by blurring the moving elements. At f/11-16 and ISO100, it usually produces a shutter speed of 20-30s in the early morning or late afternoon with strong sunlight.

IR Blocking - This filter blocks out unwanted Infra-red light that can cause strange colours in undesired areas and rob images of critical shadow-contrast.

Nano Coating - This filter features a super tough scratch-resistant and hydrophobic nano-coating that ensures that it lasts for years. It also ensures that any rain or spray from the ocean beads properly and is easy to wipe off so you can continue shooting the sunset.

The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Solid neutral density filters lengthen exposure by cutting out a specific amount of light. This is very useful for creative purposes, whether you want to blur a wave, waterfall, leopard or a street scene. They are available in many different densities, ranging from 2 to 20 stops, but the most popular are 3-, 6- and 10-stops. Please read the bullet points below to understand the purpose of each. 

• 3-Stop | 0.9 - This filter is used to add a slight blur to water before the sun has set or after it has risen. At f/16 and ISO100, it is impossible to achieve a slow enough shutter speed to get the ideal amount of blur in the waves while the sun is up. Three stops of darkening will normally allow a shutter speed of 1/10s to 1/2s during this golden sunlight phase, producing soft lines in the waves. 
• 6-Stop | 1.8 - This filter serves the same purpose as the 10-stop, but it is better suited for sunset and sunrise. When the sun is close to setting or rising, a 10-stop ND will require a very long shutter speed at f/11-16 and ISO100 to produce the correct exposure - often as much as 5-10 minutes. A 6-stop ND is thus much more suited for capturing long exposures of 30-60s around sunset and sunrise. 
• 10-Stop | 3.0 - This filter is used primarily for blurring the sea to a flat mist and for blurring clouds into abstract lines. It can also be used to remove traffic and people from urban scenes by blurring the moving elements. At f/11-16 and ISO100, it usually produces a shutter speed of 20-30s in the early morning or late afternoon with strong sunlight.

IR Blocking - This filter blocks out unwanted Infra-red light that can cause strange colours in undesired areas and rob images of critical shadow-contrast.

Nano Coating - This filter features a super tough scratch-resistant and hydrophobic nano-coating that ensures that it lasts for years. It also ensures that any rain or spray from the ocean beads properly and is easy to wipe off so you can continue shooting the sunset.

The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Landscape photographers use graduated neutral density filters because the sky is usually brighter than the land – especially in dramatic sunset light. Graduated ND filters are dark on the top half and transparent on the bottom half. When the dark part is positioned over the sky of an image, it ‘reduces’ the amount of light allowed through that part of the frame and this results in a darkened exposure of the sky. On the left side of the image, it shows the result without any filter and on the right, it shows the result with the filter.

Graduated ND filters are available in soft, medium and hard and this determines the distance of the transition between the dark part and the transparent part. The softer the graduation, the more even the transition between the darkened area and the normal area. There are also reverse and horizon grads, which are a slight alteration. Read below to find out more or browse the product images to see classic examples of ideal situations for each grad type. 

• Soft Grad –These filters are typically for scenes with a very dynamic horizon, like landscapes with trees or high mountains. Soft grads are the most forgiving and easiest for beginners to use.

• Hard Grad - These filters are typically for scenes with a straight and uniform horizon, like the sea. If a hard grad is not positioned perfectly, it will be clearly noticeable in the image as a dark line below the horizon or a bright line above it. We advise that beginners stick to soft and medium grads. 

• Medium Grad – Medium grads are a newer product that most manufacturers only released in 2016/2017. Many photographers often found hard grads too hard and soft grads too soft and thus it was obvious that something in between was necessary. It is also the perfect solution for photographers that don’t want to commit to a hard or soft grad. Not everyone can afford to buy the full range of these filters and the medium grads are an excellent new compromise.

• Reverse Grad – These filters serve a very niche, but useful purpose. When shooting into a bright sunset/sunrise, the brightest area is right on the horizon and then the sky darkens towards the top. When using a normal graduated ND, it will result in a correctly exposed horizon, but the top part of the sky will be far too dark. A Reverse Grad also has a clear lower half, but it is darkest in the middle and then gets lighter towards the top. This allows one to more accurately balance those exposures that are brightest on the horizon. 

All the different types of grads are available in different densities because light is dynamic and different scenes require a different amount of ‘darkening’ of the sky. We stock a variety of 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 and 1.2 (0.3 = 1 stop) in NiSi's various size ranges. The most popular densities are 0.6 and 0.9, but 1.2 is becoming increasingly popular. 

If you’re unsure about which density is right for you, read below or check out product image #2.

• 0.3 (1-stop) is for experienced shooters, usually to be combined with a 0.6 or 0.9.
• 0.6 (2-stop) is the most popular filter as a 2-stop difference between land and sky is most common. If you shoot a sunset/sunrise the 0.6 will be the all-rounder that best balances exposure between land and sky in most directions.
•  0.9 (3-stop) is the ideal if you like shooting into the sunset as the 0.6 isn’t always dark enough for into-the-sun shots. The issue with the 0.9 is that it will be too dark if shooting 90-degrees from the sun or with the sun at your back.
• 1.2 (4-stop) is for shooting directly into a very bright sunset/sunrise.

The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Landscape photographers use graduated neutral density filters because the sky is usually brighter than the land – especially in dramatic sunset light. Graduated ND filters are dark on the top half and transparent on the bottom half. When the dark part is positioned over the sky of an image, it ‘reduces’ the amount of light allowed through that part of the frame and this results in a darkened exposure of the sky. On the left side of the image, it shows the result without any filter and on the right, it shows the result with the filter.

Graduated ND filters are available in soft, medium and hard and this determines the distance of the transition between the dark part and the transparent part. The softer the graduation, the more even the transition between the darkened area and the normal area. There are also reverse and horizon grads, which are a slight alteration. Read below to find out more or browse the product images to see classic examples of ideal situations for each grad type. 

• Soft Grad –These filters are typically for scenes with a very dynamic horizon, like landscapes with trees or high mountains. Soft grads are the most forgiving and easiest for beginners to use.

• Hard Grad - These filters are typically for scenes with a straight and uniform horizon, like the sea. If a hard grad is not positioned perfectly, it will be clearly noticeable in the image as a dark line below the horizon or a bright line above it. We advise that beginners stick to soft and medium grads. 

• Medium Grad – Medium grads are a newer product that most manufacturers only released in 2016/2017. Many photographers often found hard grads too hard and soft grads too soft and thus it was obvious that something in between was necessary. It is also the perfect solution for photographers that don’t want to commit to a hard or soft grad. Not everyone can afford to buy the full range of these filters and the medium grads are an excellent new compromise.

• Reverse Grad – These filters serve a very niche, but useful purpose. When shooting into a bright sunset/sunrise, the brightest area is right on the horizon and then the sky darkens towards the top. When using a normal graduated ND, it will result in a correctly exposed horizon, but the top part of the sky will be far too dark. A Reverse Grad also has a clear lower half, but it is darkest in the middle and then gets lighter towards the top. This allows one to more accurately balance those exposures that are brightest on the horizon. 

All the different types of grads are available in different densities because light is dynamic and different scenes require a different amount of ‘darkening’ of the sky. We stock a variety of 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 and 1.2 (0.3 = 1 stop) in NiSi's various size ranges. The most popular densities are 0.6 and 0.9, but 1.2 is becoming increasingly popular. 

If you’re unsure about which density is right for you, read below or check out product image #2.

• 0.3 (1-stop) is for experienced shooters, usually to be combined with a 0.6 or 0.9.
• 0.6 (2-stop) is the most popular filter as a 2-stop difference between land and sky is most common. If you shoot a sunset/sunrise the 0.6 will be the all-rounder that best balances exposure between land and sky in most directions.
•  0.9 (3-stop) is the ideal if you like shooting into the sunset as the 0.6 isn’t always dark enough for into-the-sun shots. The issue with the 0.9 is that it will be too dark if shooting 90-degrees from the sun or with the sun at your back.
• 1.2 (4-stop) is for shooting directly into a very bright sunset/sunrise.

The NiSi Explorer Collection is made for adventure. The filters feature a special glass hardening process that makes them double the strength of typical glass filter. The Explorer series are much less prone to accidental breakage and perfect for active photographers. The NiSi Explorer Collection is made from B270 tempered glass and features the same Nano coating process as NiSi's optical glass filters.

The following filters are available in the Explorer Range:

• Nano IRND 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Nano IRND 1.8 | 6-Stop | ND64
• Nano IRND 3.0 | 10-Stop | ND1000
• Soft Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Medium Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8
• Reverse Graduated Nano IR ND Filter 0.9 | 3-Stop | ND8

Want to know more about the difference between NiSi's optical and Explorer filters? Emil von Maltitz does a side by side comparison here.

Landscape photographers use graduated neutral density filters because the sky is usually brighter than the land – especially in dramatic sunset light. Graduated ND filters are dark on the top half and transparent on the bottom half. When the dark part is positioned over the sky of an image, it ‘reduces’ the amount of light allowed through that part of the frame and this results in a darkened exposure of the sky. On the left side of the image, it shows the result without any filter and on the right, it shows the result with the filter.

Graduated ND filters are available in soft, medium and hard and this determines the distance of the transition between the dark part and the transparent part. The softer the graduation, the more even the transition between the darkened area and the normal area. There are also reverse and horizon grads, which are a slight alteration. Read below to find out more or browse the product images to see classic examples of ideal situations for each grad type. 

• Soft Grad –These filters are typically for scenes with a very dynamic horizon, like landscapes with trees or high mountains. Soft grads are the most forgiving and easiest for beginners to use.

• Hard Grad - These filters are typically for scenes with a straight and uniform horizon, like the sea. If a hard grad is not positioned perfectly, it will be clearly noticeable in the image as a dark line below the horizon or a bright line above it. We advise that beginners stick to soft and medium grads. 

• Medium Grad – Medium grads are a newer product that most manufacturers only released in 2016/2017. Many photographers often found hard grads too hard and soft grads too soft and thus it was obvious that something in between was necessary. It is also the perfect solution for photographers that don’t want to commit to a hard or soft grad. Not everyone can afford to buy the full range of these filters and the medium grads are an excellent new compromise.

• Reverse Grad – These filters serve a very niche, but useful purpose. When shooting into a bright sunset/sunrise, the brightest area is right on the horizon and then the sky darkens towards the top. When using a normal graduated ND, it will result in a correctly exposed horizon, but the top part of the sky will be far too dark. A Reverse Grad also has a clear lower half, but it is darkest in the middle and then gets lighter towards the top. This allows one to more accurately balance those exposures that are brightest on the horizon. 

All the different types of grads are available in different densities because light is dynamic and different scenes require a different amount of ‘darkening’ of the sky. We stock a variety of 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 and 1.2 (0.3 = 1 stop) in NiSi's various size ranges. The most popular densities are 0.6 and 0.9, but 1.2 is becoming increasingly popular. 

If you’re unsure about which density is right for you, read below or check out product image #2.

• 0.3 (1-stop) is for experienced shooters, usually to be combined with a 0.6 or 0.9.
• 0.6 (2-stop) is the most popular filter as a 2-stop difference between land and sky is most common. If you shoot a sunset/sunrise the 0.6 will be the all-rounder that best balances exposure between land and sky in most directions.
•  0.9 (3-stop) is the ideal if you like shooting into the sunset as the 0.6 isn’t always dark enough for into-the-sun shots. The issue with the 0.9 is that it will be too dark if shooting 90-degrees from the sun or with the sun at your back.
• 1.2 (4-stop) is for shooting directly into a very bright sunset/sunrise.

Ranger Tripods

The Ranger series tripods offer a strong, rigid camera support system in a package that is lightweight, compact and easy to use and maintain. Read the detailed description below to find out more about this tripod range. 

The Leofoto Ranger series is at the forefront of modern tripod design. Following the success of larger systematic style column-less tripods, more and more photographers are waking up to the fact that a center-column is a major compromise in tripod functionality. Sadly, most manufacturers have been slow to adopt this change. Leofoto is one of the first brands to bring out a column-less design as their core tripod range.

When you take away the center-column, the legs can be stowed flush against each other, which trims the folded diameter of tripods by as much as 40%. Removing the center-column also makes it lighter and cheaper, while improving rigidity as there are less interconnecting parts between the legs and the camera. The only major compromise is the lack of extra height that a center-column affords. Until recently, this has posed a major issue, but the latest precision carbon tubing and joint technology means that today’s 5-section tripods are as rigid as yesterday’s 4-section tripods. Manufacturers can thus increase the extended height of tripods while keeping the folded length travel-friendly.

Apex – All ranger series tripods feature a compact apex machined from aircraft-grade aluminium. The apex is hollowed out to save weight and hard anodized for durability. On the side, you will find a UNC ¼” mounting hole for Leofoto’s AM range of magic arms for attaching accessories like smartphone holders, gopros or speedlights. Below the apex is another UNC ¼” mounting hole for attaching a weight hook – such a hook and carabiner are included with all Ranger tripods. The legs attach via stainless steel hinge shafts and brass bushings to a machined aluminium hinge chassis – premium materials you won’t see on many tripods in the market today.

Premium Japanese Carbon Fiber - Leofoto uses 10x layer cross-weave carbon fiber tubes made by Toray Inc – one of the world’s top carbon fiber manufacturers. This ensures strength and rigidity while ensuring class-leading weight specifications. The hinges feature self-returning angle-selectors, a small feature that speeds up operation. All Ranger tripods offer leg angles of 23, 55 and 85 degrees.

Joints – All tripod ranges feature fat joints with prominent ribbing to provide great grip and torque for easy loosening and tightening of the joints. One of Leofoto’s proprietary features is a single-piece joint-shim (the shim helps legs to lock together more firmly and prevents the legs from being able to rotate within each other); those who have opened up a twist-joint tripod and seen parts fly will know the frustration of disassembling and reassembling those delicate internal components. All Leofoto tripods feature a one-piece shim, which makes maintenance and cleaning of the joints much easier.

Bevelled Aluminium Core Feet – A tripod foot is just a piece of rubber, right? Think again! Most manufacturer’s tripod feet are just a steel spike encased in rubber – this makes it heavy and allows a lot of flex/vibration in the malleable rubber. Leofoto’s engineers have gone to great lengths to make the ultimate tripod foot and the result is an internal aluminium frame that minimizes the amount of flexible rubber in the construction. While this is a tiny detail, it adds to the rigidity of the tripod. All Leofoto ranges’ feet feature a multi-angled bevel, which helps it to grip on uneven terrain. All Leofoto tripods also include a set of spiked feet for shooting on ice or slippery rocks.

What is the culmination of all these features? One of the world’s best tripod ranges at a fraction of the price of the competition. As they say, the proof is in the pudding, well here is the pudding. Thecentercolumn.com is the DXO labs of tripods – they do a lot of controlled rigidity and other testing and combine it with a ton of other metrics like price, weight and extras to give tripods an overall score. On the travel tripod rankings, the Leofoto Rangers hold 3 of the top 10 spots alongside Gitzo and RRS, but if you look at the price of the competition, your jaw will drop. The Leofoto options cost between 25-50% of the other tripods on the top 10 list. 

Included

• Padded Storage and Travel Bag
• 75mm Bowl Adapter
• 3x Spiked Feet
• Multi-Tool
• Carabiner and Attachment Screw

Specifications

• Material - Carbon Fibre
• Leg Sections - 4
• Maximum Height - 154,5cm
• Maximum Height (Column Down) - 123cm
• Minimum Height - 14.5cm
• Closed Length -50cm
• Weight - 1400g
• Load Capacity - 10kg
• Column Tilt range: 180°
• Column Panning: 360°