Help making a filter.

[MaxE]

I need to make a filter for a canon point and shoot housing. Looking to make a red filter and if possible another one for greenish water. I am confident I can source lighting gels and was wondering if anyone knows what colors to use. I had seen a suggestion in the past but can’t find it.
Many thanks.

 

[Kharon]

Use red for salt water ("blue water") and magenta for fresh water lakes ("brown water" or "green water"). Note: the "blue", "brown" and "green" are just what I've seen them called.

 

[MaxE]

Use red for salt water ("blue water") and magenta for fresh water lakes ("brown water" or "green water"). Note: the "blue", "brown" and "green" are just what I've seen them called.

Yes, that is pretty much my plan. Red is not very specific unfortunately. I’m looking to use lighting gels and there are probably over a hundred versions of red. Some allow more diffusion, some more light to pass through... well as there are so many options I am hoping someone has already experimented with this and has some of this figured out.

 

[bvanant]

Roscolux 4690 for blue water, but for the pain, why not just buy some magic filters?
Bill

 

[MaxE]

Roscolux 4690 for blue water, but for the pain, why not just buy some magic filters?
Bill

Thank you sorry much.

I was looking at the magic filters but what I could find were shipping from the UK and $47 without shipping. I’m certain I can get the gel for much less than that.
I’m all ears to another source

 

[bvanant]

Gels are cheap, but I would look at glass filters first, plastic scratches easily if you don;'t take great care.
It is pretty cheap to buy filters that are close, and maybe that is good enough.
Bill

 

[MaxE]

Gels are cheap, but I would look at glass filters first, plastic scratches easily if you don;'t take great care.
It is pretty cheap to buy filters that are close, and maybe that is good enough.
Bill

It’s not much that I’m trying to be cheap (I do thing the magic filters are overpriced) it more that I have a cheap point and shoot with a canon case for it. No way to add a glass filter, or any filter designed for it. My thinking is use the gel it’s cheap if it does not work little lost, if it does work a 24”x20” sheet will make a ton of filters, I can replace as needed.

 

[Kharon]

Also, if you cut the gel to fit inside the case it's not going to get scratched.

BTW, I just bought an inexpensive gel set on Amazon. They seem to work fine both near the surface and deep. When I need a little more color correction it's easy to get it with free software (IrfanView for photos and VSDC Free Video Editor for video). One click color correction.

 

[diversteve]

How big does it need to be?

Both Lee Filters and Roscolux sell swatch books for under $5.

Lee Filters Swatch Book Designers Edition | eBay

Rosco Roscolux Swatchbook 950SBLUX0103 B&H Photo Video

Rosco Roscolux Swatch Book,Small Sampler of Filter

 

[Rred]

I would argue that no one needs a filter for this. All that a filter can do, is block some specific color(s) from being recorded. It doesn't ADD anything to the image.

And, you lucky devils who never spent long nights in a darkroom working with CHEMICALS and such? You can now "make a filter" in PhotoShop or any of the other many software packages. Just take the photos, save the original files, and then run a batch processing filter in Photoshop or something else to do your conversions. You'll probably be setting custom color and contrast levels anyway, to get the best out of every image, and to compensate for the time of day, the water clarity, the depth, all of which will be affecting color balance all the time.

Roscoe is pretty much the standard in theatrical lighting, and a great way to get materials. But as long as there's going to be a computer manipulating the photo....you don't need physical filters.