Zeiss Distagon 15mm Filter holder
Zeiss Distagon 15mm Filter holder
3D
Published 2018-04-03T17:41:26+00:00
2018-3-31
Hello Community,
Here is the first object I have taken from concept through drawing and then 3D printed…I finally got my Snapmaker and thought I would put it to use.
It’s a gel filter holder for a Zeiss Distagon 15mm Lens. I have a 2ndhand Canon mount lens, but I would imagine that this object with work on the Nikon mount as well.
I like to take long exposure pictures in the middle of the day. It blurs out anything that moves and can be a great way to get landscape or architecture shots without people in them. (Buildings stay still, and the people move, hence are blurred out)
I had looked into getting a filter system for the lens, but it was at least $US800 for all of the parts. This was in either Lee or in Nisi brands. More than a 3D printer…
Please note I am just going for a full ND effect, not a graduated ND. If you want the ND Grad you could use this, but it’s not something I have tried to do.
I’d previously used my 8mm Sigma lens with its built in postage stamp sized filter holder and it worked really well. It mounts in a slot in the rear of the lens. It uses cheap gel that costs only about £8 for a 1200mm x 600mm piece. As I had a lot left over, I thought it might be worth a try to use this on the Zeiss. I just needed a way to mount it.
The Canon camera I have is an older digital one and it’s a crop sensor. I have not tried this using a full frame sensor. It’s highly likely that there will be vignetting.
I’ve designed it to be used with M4 bolts/screws. I found some online, they are a common size for putting PC computer cases together. The knurled ones are a nice look. In practise you really only need 2 to hold the gel in. The ones that hold the filter to the lens are not really required. Take your time when you first screw them in. You will have to cut the thread a little, but after a few times, they go in and out really nicely.
The objects in the pictures uploaded were printed in a Black PLA Plus from Rigid ink. The wooden filament is from Sunlu.
I’ve only used it once, but it works well. It’s more convenient than the Sigma version, as you can compose the shot, then slip the gel on and the set your exposure. With other systems it’s hard to compose because you are effectively looking through welding goggles.
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Link to Gel. You can stack multiple sheets of it to get a longer exposure time.
eBay link to Gel
I found that I clamped the gel in between the holder and the front part. Then cut around it with scissors. Then pierced the gel with a fine point like an awl. Then screw the M4 bolts to hold the gel in place.
Please let me know if this helps you. I’m keen to see what happens on a full frame sensor camera. I find it useful to have more than one of them with different grades of ND filter. it's so cheap to make them, I might as well!
Gav
0.2mm or 0.1mm It's not that critical
I printed at 40%, but you could go less.
Details below are for the larger piece. The front clip is 122mmx122mmx5mm And uses 3.25m / 26g of filament.
| Date published | 03/04/2018 |
| Time to do | 10 - 600 minutes |
| Material Quantity | 12.77m, 101g |
| Dimensions | 122x122x37 |
| Technology | FDM |
| Complexity | Easy |
| Support Free | YES |