The Tiffen solution to red contamination in the blacks on the Ex-1 is finally available. I just got my complimentary gift in the mail for helping them figure out the problem.
I got my 77mm filter with threads on both sides so it can be coupled inside a Letus type adapter. I haven't checked to see if that fits inside the EX-1 hood but I think a single filter usually does. The default sale could be for a slimline filter with only threads on one side so ask before you purchase.

If my camera ever comes back from repair I'll be able to test it. But the prototype worked so I'm sure this does.

Its light green so you will need to color balance through it.

I don't see it on the B&H site yet but I do at Able Cine- only $69


Tiffen 77mm T1 IR Filter :: Camera Accessories :: New Arrivals :: Equipment Sales :: Abel Cine Tech (http://www.abelcine.com/store/product.php?productid=1001754&cat=323&page=1)

Is there any benefit from using the Tiffen over the B+W 486 other than the B+W costs about 2.5 times more?

Major advantage to the Tiffen ,
Because its a simple dye based absorption filter it doesn't vignette and treats light from all angles equally.
The 486 is expensive because it relies on a special reflective coating that doesn't deal with light evenly that enters from the sides. Hence you get a green vignette when using even a slightly wide angle lens. This is a huge limitation. Also you can't stack it behind another filter because of reflection problems.


IMHO the Tiffen filter is a perfect solution to the Far Red contamination issue on the EX-1 and should be purchased by everyone who owns the camera. Thank god its cheap.

(Caveat that I haven't actually tried my own yet - but the prototype was perfect.)

Abel Cinetech are useless for us overseas buyers. They are afraid of Jonny Foriegner and won't sell outside the USA. Talk about losing sales!

Anyone know where the rest of the world can pick one up? I need this urgently as I run into this problem on an almost daily basis and have been waiting patiently for this to come out.

B&H don't yet have it.

I've seen the filter, i had one in my hand at the IOV show, i saw it on the tiffen stand, they weren't on display, i asked about it and the guy went behind the stand and got it.
The model number on the packet is
77mm TI IR filter W77IR, the price was £97 plus vat.
The filter was very very thin.

I also found out some news about the EX1R, but that thread's closed !!

Paul.

Hi Paul, I was at the IOV show on Wednesday all day and spent some time at the Tiffen stand. It never crossed my mind they would have one there. But $69 compared to £97+VAT= ripoff!

I could order one from B&H, pay duty and still be cheaper than that.

Try TopTeks.

Just rang them they are getting back to me after calling Tiffen.

EDIT. OK Top Teks have just got back to me. they spoke to Tiffen and they will be in available from next week. I have ordered one in and the price is £60 + VAT. So not bad.

Mentioned your name Alistair to them so they owe you a drink! Hopfully mentioning them is not against forum rules, as I don't think there is a UK seller advertising on DVI at the moment.

£60 + vat ! nice one chaps, i'll be getting a couple soon then.

Cheers, Paul.

I also found out some news about the EX1R, but that thread's closed !!

Paul.

Paul - how about starting your own thread about EX1R - I know the other thread was closed because B&H said they had a beaurocractic snafu and "that was that" BUT in gathering more information about the topic there was the top exec from Abel Cine who had contacted the Sony rep and it was indicated that changes were coming - perhaps in January. Also EC Junior found out some info but couldn't post it.

Perhaps you could enlighten us as to what you found out unless speculation of that nature is frowned upon - ? keeping Sony's proprietary secrets

Tiffen gave me two other references

Filmtools in LA - Aaron or Jim Martin - 818-845-8066

or E.C. Professional in NY (212) 333-5570

I just started a thread in the Area 51 forum for the EX1R. I figure that's the place we should discuss until there's something official.

I ordered one as soon as I seen the first post, it just shipped...

My daughter picked one up for me at AbleCine late yesterday. She was quite impressed with the place. Said they were very helpful. In fact they wanted to close a half hour early when she called, but they waited for her to get there before they closed. Can't beat that.

John

I can't overstate how essential this filter is. I now have a 77mm screw on and will be on the camera for everything I shoot with an EX3.

Still waiting on B&H to make it available for us international customers. No sign of them offering it as of yet???

sent a heads-up to adorama as well as they ship international.

I received my filter today and did a quick test.
I did a white balance on the scene and took a frame, then attached the filter and took a frame, finally I did a white balance with the filter attached for the final frame. I used tungsten lights and locked the iris based on the bare setup. There is a black fabric background about 12" behind the hat and sweater.

The blacks look very close to the way they look to the eye. It may not be a perfect solution but for the price I'm quite happy with it.

Why is this not a perfect solution? Only because you need to white balance ?

Maybe I should have used a different word. I think Sony should have caught this problem before releasing the camera. I would love to hear Sony's explanation for this, who knows, maybe there is a good reason for it.

I've only had it a short time but it seems to have a slight effect on the other colors.
I guess this could be tweaked by using the adjustments in the camera, haven't try this yet.

I always prefer to white balance before shooting that's not the problem for me. I just wanted to see how the filter colored the scene - that was the only purpose for the shot with no white balance.

Don't get me wrong, I would recommend this filter and I certainly can't complain about the price!

Looking at those three pics, it seems to do what it is meant to. Excellent.

Looks great. I had someone wearing a cheap black synthetic fleece a few weeks back and the zip remained jet black while the fleece was brown! So to see that fleece black is great!

I emailed Creative Video in the UK to see if they would have these in stock on Friday but am yet to get a reply. Anyone know of a UK supplier who actually has them?

Marcus, I spoke to them yesterday and like a lot of UK dealers they won't get it in stock unless they have to. They will get one in for you when you order one.

Using Vegas with a mask I isolated just the red swatch on the clapper from the screenshots posted above. The RGB parades attached give an extremely crude idea of what this filter is doing. The red swatch is no doubt not an extremely deep red, if it was then at a guess I'd say the amount of red sensitivity being lost would be more dramatic.

The results are also probably skewed by the gloss finish on the red swatch reflecting white light.

Marcus, I spoke to them yesterday and like a lot of UK dealers they won't get it in stock unless they have to. They will get one in for you when you order one.

Sadly this seems to be quite common with most slightly out of the ordinary products from UK dealers these days. I'm finding it remarkably common of late that I order a product only to find that the supplier then has to order it in from their own supplier meaning lead times of 2 weeks +.

Shows how all these dealers are struggling in the recession. They have battened down the hatches and have had a very rough time as we hang on to our gear. they won't spend a penny they don't have to.

Just spoke to Creative video in the UK. They don't have them in yet and they say Tiffen UK aren't supplying them. They'll give me a bell as soon as they have news.

They also said that in the past they've found the lead time with Tiffen filters tends to be about a month from US release.

I heard from Adorama that they can't help on getting the tiffen T1 IR filter. Heard back from B&H they don't have it. Seems strange ... these kinds of responses. Are people getting this filter from Abel Cine delivered? Their site just says call. Still they don't deliver outside the country so I have to rely on B&H and Adorama for my gear ... bitch that.

Andy from AbelCineTech here. If you are trying to get the filter from us and live overseas then drop me a line. There has been a great deal of fraud in the past and we had to raise additional security. I hate to hear that people are frustrated with our service, and I hope you can understand our stance.

BTW I've heard that the EX1R and PMW350 do not have issues with far red. I'll be testing the T1 filter and comparing as soon as I can.

Andy from AbelCineTech here. If you are trying to get the filter from us and live overseas then drop me a line. There has been a great deal of fraud in the past and we had to raise additional security. I hate to hear that people are frustrated with our service, and I hope you can understand our stance.

BTW I've heard that the EX1R and PMW350 do not have issues with far red. I'll be testing the T1 filter and comparing as soon as I can.

I've sent you an email with the details of how AbelCine's concerns can be laid to rest. Most of us out in the hinterlands buy in the US (in my case, sometimes goods made in Japan) because the equipment comes available quickly and is competitively priced. If a person/company is PayPal verified and has a good payment record ... you can assume they will follow through as they have done in the past. Up front PayPal payment can be secured by AbelCine sending a payment invoice first and have the buyer pay before delivery of an item. This payment system works very well.
Another N.Y.C. competitor of yours requires the front and back of a credit card sent via email or fax and checks to see if that card is legitimate. That works quite well and I've been doing things with that company (which shall remain un-named) for many years without a hitch. Hope this helps.

I received my filter today and did a quick test.
I did a white balance on the scene and took a frame, then attached the filter and took a frame, finally I did a white balance with the filter attached for the final frame. I used tungsten lights and locked the iris based on the bare setup. There is a black fabric background about 12" behind the hat and sweater.

The blacks look very close to the way they look to the eye. It may not be a perfect solution but for the price I'm quite happy with it.

Thanks for the pictures. It'd be nice to see some frames of fleshtones if anybody feels the urge to post them. I'm seeing more green than I'd like in the midtones (the grey chips) after white balance.

Cheers

Andy from AbelCineTech here. If you are trying to get the filter from us and live overseas then drop me a line. There has been a great deal of fraud in the past and we had to raise additional security. I hate to hear that people are frustrated with our service, and I hope you can understand our stance.

BTW I've heard that the EX1R and PMW350 do not have issues with far red. I'll be testing the T1 filter and comparing as soon as I can.

I've sent off 3 emails in the last 3 days on the matter of buying through Abel Cine tech and have not received a response from you to any of these emails. I know you are out of stock (that's the impression I get) as a result of demand. Let me know if Abel Cine is going to afford us out of country buyers an opportunity of doing business with you.
all the best

Hello All,
Just received my Tiffen T1 IR Filter and I have tested it and bugger me it actually works good bye to the IR contamination. I could not use my EX3 in the past for stage production work under QI lighting now it’s great.
I got my filter from “Greg Smith’s Photo and Video Accessories” TiffenFilters.com.au (http://www.tiffenfilters.com.au) in Australia.

Hope other companies get stock in soon. I have the same problem with IR when shooting jazz performances.

Using Vegas with a mask I isolated just the red swatch on the clapper from the screenshots posted above. The RGB parades attached give an extremely crude idea of what this filter is doing. The red swatch is no doubt not an extremely deep red, if it was then at a guess I'd say the amount of red sensitivity being lost would be more dramatic.

The results are also probably skewed by the gloss finish on the red swatch reflecting white light.

Bob,

Thanks for posting the pictures. Looking at the RGB parade, we can see how the filter has a bias for passing green light, less for blue and much less (relatively speaking) for red. Besides skewing the color balance a little, it also loses about a half a stop or more overall.

That said, it cerainly makes the synthetic black look much better.

Just got my filter from Abel Cine in New York. Burbank didn't have one.

Did some tests. Quite effective. Happy with it.

I've sent off 3 emails in the last 3 days on the matter of buying through Abel Cine tech and have not received a response from you to any of these emails. I know you are out of stock (that's the impression I get) as a result of demand. Let me know if Abel Cine is going to afford us out of country buyers an opportunity of doing business with you.
all the best

Hey Dean

I've assigned a sales person to respond to all of these requests. I'm sorry that she has not reached out to you. I'll look in to what happened.

Andy

Hey Dean

I've assigned a sales person to respond to all of these requests. I'm sorry that she has not reached out to you. I'll look in to what happened.

Andy
Got in touch ... thanks

I've assigned a sales person to respond to all of these requests.

Andy

Andy,
Thanks for the e-mail :)

Piotr

Hey Dean

I've assigned a sales person to respond to all of these requests. I'm sorry that she has not reached out to you. I'll look in to what happened.

Andy

Andy,

Living in Canada, I phoned and left a message on your voicemail mid-this past week about ordering a TIFFEN T1 IR and have not received a response. Have you assigned this to a sales rep as well or should I phone again?

-Andrew Stone

Hello All,
Just received my Tiffen T1 IR Filter and I have tested it and bugger me it actually works good bye to the IR contamination. I could not use my EX3 in the past for stage production work under QI lighting now it’s great.
I got my filter from “Greg Smith’s Photo and Video Accessories” TiffenFilters.com.au (http://www.tiffenfilters.com.au) in Australia.


for how much?

Andy,

Living in Canada, I phoned and left a message on your voicemail mid-this past week about ordering a TIFFEN T1 IR and have not received a response. Have you assigned this to a sales rep as well or should I phone again?

-Andrew Stone

I wonder if there is anywhere in Canada to get these?

Hey Dean

I've assigned a sales person to respond to all of these requests. I'm sorry that she has not reached out to you. I'll look in to what happened.

Andy

So I do really hope, that I get a reply to my request. Thank you,

Eva

Hello David,
The cost in Australia was $310 INC GST which is not bad but I would prefer Sony pay the bill. This was a special order and not an off the shelf item and that stage they still had not gone into manufacture in Germany. Now that they have gone into production the lead time should not be that bad. Please remember that Australia is so far away from the rest of the world that everything takes longer and Australian companies usually only keep fast moving items.

I wonder if there is anywhere in Canada to get these?

Yeah there are two places at least in Vancouver that rep TIFFEN filters but neither of them carry Sony products (any longer). I know that Abel Cine Tech in NYC is very close to the TIFFEN factory so they can get grosses of filters at the drop of a hat. Figure I would give them my business as they had/have stock and it's always good to try out different suppliers so you don't become beholden to the particular gouging prowess of some outlets.

Also Andy Shipsides has been dispensing a lot of good info so I thought funneling some business their way is a good thing.

I may very well go local if I don't get a response in a couple of business days.

Glad to see Vancouver Island has become a Republic. About time!

Andrew & Eva

I will make sure to talk to Nichelle, our sales admin, regarding your orders. I'm behind on my voicemail. You will here from us on Monday.

Andy

Hello David,
The cost in Australia was $310 INC GST which is not bad but I would prefer Sony pay the bill. This was a special order and not an off the shelf item and that stage they still had not gone into manufacture in Germany. Now that they have gone into production the lead time should not be that bad. Please remember that Australia is so far away from the rest of the world that everything takes longer and Australian companies usually only keep fast moving items.

Thanks for the reply, I've called them today, they said that it will be here in 3 weeks , however, they quoted me for $89 +$ 10 for shipping. So it's AUD$99 inc GST not $310

Thanks Andy for posting up these pics of the Tiffen filter and comparison with the EX1R and the 350. I think I like the 350 best!

Tiffen T1 Far Red Filter and the Sony EX Cameras | CineTechnica (http://blog.abelcine.com/2009/10/29/tiffen-t1-ir-filter-and-the-ex-cameras/#more-3076)

Look forward to receiving the filter
Steve

Hi David Large format 4x4 filters a expensive but the one filter will fit all my lens. Did you check if the filter you looking at to is the thin type other wise you may have issues putting the lens hood on the EX1/Ex3.

I have been trying to buy this filter for weeks now and although I have finally received an answer from Abel, including apologetic emails from Andy and follow up emails from the sales person telling me they still don't have stock, I think I will be waiting for some other place to get stock.

My first attempt to purchase went nowhere with there being no way for a Canadian to buy online. Two emails went unanswered from the web site form. I finally called and was told I could have the one filter left in stock and that I would get a call with the total and I could give my credit card over the phone to buy. Four days later when I got nothing and my shoot had come and gone I emailed Andy through this forum. He got back to me after a couple of days and ensured me I would be taken care of.

I have provided my shipping address and shipping instructions, but keep getting a price quoted that does not include any shipping.

I just got another email from Abel advising that filters might be in stock sometime in the next two weeks and what size did I want again? A credit card form for authorization was sent for me to fill and and sign for a quote I don't have for filters that aren't in stock, but might be.......

This form is also a bad news item. Abel is requiring that I include an image of my drivers license and an image of my credit card. Providing these images is way beyond normal security cautions and puts me at high risk of ID theft. It is not something I am willing to do.

My dealings with Abel have been frustrating, insulting that I have to prove I am not a criminal, and a waste of time.

Andy, you really need to stop treating customers like this. I have been trying to buy these filters from you since October 14th, and have had to force a response. Do you really want to sell things to people?