Stretch Creative Filter

SPECIAL OFFER: Buy any 2 items from Rigu's prism photography range and save £4. Order 3 and save £8, 4 items gets you £12 off!*

Create stunning images with this stretch filter. With a flat central line and curved edges, the sides of your image will be beautifully blurred and stretched. The filter can be rotated to suit your subject and also to catch the light in different ways.

• Available in 58mm, 67mm, 77mm & 82mm filter thread sizes.
• Get a step up/down ring if you have a different sized front-thread on your lens. See below for advice on using a step up ring with this filter.
• Take the filter off the lens and go handheld with a 77mm filter adapter.
• Rotatable when fitted.
• Glass protrudes beyond the front ring of the filter, and it has no front screw thread. It is not possible to stack in front of this filter, but you can stack behind it.
• Also available with the glass on one half of the filter.

Tips for using the filter

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to a filter like this. The photos you'll capture will be unique, and that's because you'll use it in your own way. That said, personally, I recommend using this at wider apertures (f2.8 and below) and usually with a typical portrait focal length (35mm-70mm), especially when you're starting out so you can get used to working with an unusual filter like this, and then branch out when you're comfortable to more experimental looks with wide-angle lenses and narrow apertures.

Filters like this can occasionally trip up AF systems on some cameras.. Manually setting your AF point to the middle of your frame should reduce this from happening. If you're using a tripod and your subject is still, it might be best to use manual focus so that you can be sure it's as sharp as possible. 

Using a step ring with the stretch filter

This filter comes in a 77mm filter thread, which is great if that's the same as your lens, but a lot of lenses have a different sized thread. A step ring gets over this problem, allowing the filter to be used with almost any lens, but how will this effect the image?

When your lens is smaller than the filter, you will start to lose the edge effect of the filter, and the larger the difference in size, the more you will lose.  Fortunately, the effect from this filter is pretty strong from the centre outward, so you'll get the effect on any step up ring, but it is possible it may not be the same as in the sample photos.

With a step down ring the usual caveats apply. Expect vignetting and to need to crop any images shot when the lens is larger than the filter.

Can I use this with the magnetic filter adapter?

Yes and no. I have used this with the magnetic filter adapter and it hasn't fallen off on me, but this is a thick chunk of glass that weighs quite a lot, so it would be easier to knock it off than a thin, lightweight filter. If you're in a controlled environment where you feel comfortable I think it's fine to use, but I personally would not risk taking it into a busy crowded place like a gig or event where there's a chance of someone catching your camera and pulling it off.

Be sure to tag @riguphoto on Instagram with your kaleidoscopic images!

*Order two items from the prism photography range and instantly save £4 on your order (discount applied automatically to your shopping basket. Order 3 and save £8, 4 and save £12, 5 items will save £16.