ok so i bought a set of ND filters like 6 months ago and they've been sitting in my bag unopened because every time i go to use them i end up just... not. partly because i never know which one to grab and partly because i feel like my footage looks fine without them and i dont want to mess it up.

i got the tiffen set that came with ND4, ND8, ND16 and ND32. i know the 180 degree shutter rule thing in theory but applying it on the fly while im also thinking about flight path and airspace and everything else just feels like too much. do you guys actually use these regularly or are they more of a nice to have situation. genuinely asking because they were not cheap and id feel better using them

you're definitely overthinking it a bit but thats totally normal when youre starting out with them. the way i simplified it for myself was just picking one filter for bright days and sticking with it until it felt automatic. sunny day, i grab the ND16 almost every time and move to ND32 if im shooting in direct sun around noon. overcast or golden hour i drop to ND8 or even nothing. once it clicked it took like 5 seconds to decide instead of 5 minutes.

the footage difference is real though, especially if you ever do any kind of smooth pan or flyover. without a filter on a bright day you get this kinda stuttery look because the shutter is too fast and each frame is super sharp with no motion blur. with the right filter it just looks more cinematic, less like video game footage if that makes sense.

yeah same thing happend to me for the first few months. just pick a bright day, slap on the ND16 and compare it to a clip without it. youll see it immediately and then it starts making sense. also check if your tiffen set has a polarizer, those are underrated for shooting over water or anywhere with a lot of glare