There’s something that I really love about using Tiffen Glimmerglass and a CPL filter. It more or less allows you to cut down on the effect that it’s in the frame. But how would Glimmerglass work with a variable ND filter? Considering that these filters aren’t something that I use often in place of simply just stopping down a lens or lowering the ISO, I’m quite curious. My hypothesis is that this kind of combination would be best suited to cities or used to provide questionably anecdotal evidence that fairies exist outside of our dreams. Like those dreams, I’m sure it’ll be easy to fall in love with the scene in front of you. Unlike those dreams, I’m starting this review off by saying that this is one of the most curious combos I’ve ever seen.
Here are my thoughts on how I thought this filter was as useful as a white crayon and then how I let my brain take over.
Tiffen sent us a Glimmerglass and Vari-ND filter to use and to keep. In 15 years of reviewing products, that has never affected how we rate this product. We’ve absolutely torn apart some of their filters before. But in this case, I am truly curious to know why someone would go for this over the CPL.
And perhaps more importantly, I’m curious to know how this lens filter works when it’s stacked with others.
First off, know that it’s properly called the Tiffen Fusion Filter – and that this one is a Variable ND filter mixed in with Glimmerglass.
Here’s how Tiffen describes their filters:
- Black Pro-Mist + VND: This filter reduces highlights, lowers contrast, and softens facial lines, giving your images a smooth, cinematic appearance. It also offers up to 8 stops of light control, which is ideal for blurs and special effects.
- Glimmerglass® + VND: This one also provides a soft, radiant glow to highlights while improving the image with a subtle sparkle effect. One can control light up to 8 stops to create creating dreamlike visuals.
- Black Pro-Mist® + CPL: Like the VND, this will control highlights and contrast while increasing image depth and softening facial features. With CPL, one can also remove unwanted reflections, especially on glass and water. Furthermore, photographers can now enhance the sky’s blue color and details of the clouds.
- Glimmerglass® + CPL: Users will get bright highlights with a subtle sparkle, smooth facial lines, reduced reflections, and added contrast to clouds with this one.
This lens filter is massive. And I wish that it had hard stops the way that Syrp filters used to have. But instead, you’re turning the lens filter until you’ve reached the end of its flat earth surface. Except that this is a nightmare for some folks and instead of realizing that the earth is flat, you soon learn that the earth is indeed round and that the big glass dome isn’t really there to protect us. And therefore this filter might make some fall so deeply in love that they’d call it their world. Therefore, their world will be round.
If you’re sad about this then console yourself with pizza. Because pizza is round. But before you do, take a photo with your glimmerglass first. The sparkly glimmer will make the pizza look better. And that’s sort of what you’re going for, right? But it’s too bright then activate the ND filter powers.
Anyway, to be quite frank with you, it’s very difficult to figure out how to use this filter for creativity that’s original and that doesn’t feel like Generative AI could replace me. And so with that in mind, I decided to completely break the rules. I shot at low ISOs, a wide open aperture, and a super slow shutter speed. Then I used specific movements and used the Variable ND filter to control the exposure. Why do this when you’ve got all the other exposure parameters? Well, I figured out that that was the problem: I was applying logic. To be a more original photographer, I have to break logic. And this filter lets me do that with control while also allowing me to have the glimmering look that I love. On top of that, I embraced the idea of shooting Black and white – which most work that we see with Glimmerglass isn’t.
To that end, I made something that isn’t at all algorithmic. And I adore this. But at the same time, I don’t think that I’d spend the money on this. I’d much rather stop my lens down and use standard Glimmerglass Bronze.
The Worst Tiffen Glimmerglass Variant
To that end, I made something that isn’t at all algorithmic. And I adore this. But at the same time, I don’t think that I’d spend the money on this. I’d much rather stop my lens down and use standard Glimmerglass Bronze.
