How To Use Nd Filter On Gopro?

K&f concept 2026-07-16 00:56:51 0 Comments

ND filters: better images in bright sunlight

ND filters have become extremely popular among GoPro users. ND stands for neutral density. You can essentially compare it to sunglasses for your camera.

An ND filter reduces the amount of light entering the sensor. That sounds technical, but the effect is immediately visible in your footage. Without an ND filter, a GoPro in bright sunlight often automatically chooses an extremely short shutter speed. This captures movements very sharply. That sounds good, but videos can then appear somewhat unnatural or jerky.

With an ND filter, more natural motion blur is created. This makes movements appear smoother. This makes a big difference, especially with action shots.

Consider, for example, mountain biking through a forest, skiing down a slope, or riding a motorcycle. Without an ND filter, every detail can be razor-sharp, making the images a bit busy. With an ND filter, the video gets a calmer and more professional look.

ND filters come in different strengths. The higher the number, the more light is blocked.
ND8 is usually used in lightly cloudy weather or during sunrise and sunset.
ND16 is the most versatile choice for many situations and works well on sunny days.
ND32 is often used in extremely bright light, for example on the beach, in the snow, or in the mountains.
ND64 is primarily intended for very bright conditions or experienced videographers who want maximum control.
For most GoPro users, ND16 and ND32 are the most popular choices.

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What ND filters do

Using an ND filter can lead to some really nice, natural and smooth movement. To get the most out of your ND filter and pick the best ND filter for your video, we first need to be thoughtful and careful about how the camera is set up.

It does both of these things by introducing a very small amount of motion blur into your video. Motion blur is a result of the shutter of the camera being open longer while capturing each framebecause it is trying to make up for the fact that the ND filter is blocking some of the light. Because the shutter is open longer, the video is “smeared” a small amount due to movement of the camera while it's open. This "smearing" is what we call motion blur. The faster something is moving in the frame (usually at the edges when moving forwards), the more blur you will see.

An ND 4 filter lets through ¼ of the light
An ND 8 filter lets 1/8th of the light
An ND 16 lets through 1/16th of the light
An ND 32 lets through 1/32nd of the light

All ND filters do is reduce stops of light.

aperture - doubling the size lets in one stop more of light, halving reduces light by one stop
shutter speed - doubling decreases received light by one stop, halving increases received light by one stop
iso - doesn't actually let in any more or less light, but doubling it will make the image appear one stop brighter, and halving will make your image appear one stop darker

An ND32 filter reduces incoming light by 5 stops (because 2 to the power of 5 is equal to 32). So to expose correctly when using one, your camera needs to either increase the size of its aperture, slow down the shutter speed, or increase the ISO. Now since the aperture can't be controlled on a GoPro (it's fixed), and you generally want to keep ISO as low as possible, all that leaves is shutter speed as the only control left for exposure. With the ND32 reducing 5 stops light, the shutter speed must be slowed down (halved 5 times) to expose correctly.

The reason for wanting to lower your shutter speed would be that you want more motion blur in your video.

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The easy way to use ND filters

You can leave your camera in auto mode with very good results. Just put an ND filter (ND4 or ND8 works great for cloudy or overcast days, or an ND16 if it is a sunny day) on your camera, and leave it. You would only need to remove it if you are filming video in low light (e.g. sunset) or dark conditions. This will smooth out your video and reduce jello.

The drawback of this easy way is that the amount of motion blur may change during the flight if the light changes and your camera has to adjust the shutter speed (this happens regardless of having an ND filter or not, it is just less pronounced without).

cloudy/low light: ND4
partially cloudy: ND8
sun: ND16
very bright sun: ND32

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The expert way to use ND filters

The shutter speed is indicated in 1/seconds. A shutter speed of 60 means that the shutter is open for one 60th of a second. A shutter speed of 120 means that the shutter is open of one 120th of a second. So, because 1/60th of a second is twice as long as 1/120th of a second, twice as much light gets in.

Generally, to get a “cinematic feel”, we want to use a shutter speed of one over 2x the frame rate. So, with a frame rate of 30fps, we want a shutter speed of 1/60th of a second. (The shutter is open for exactly half of the time of a frame).

We can’t just set the FPS to 30 and the shutter speed to 1/60 on a sunny day, because the GoPro would let in too much light and the footage will be mush too bright and overexposed. We would use a shutter speed of 1/120 or 1/240 of faster – but that wouldn’t give us the smooth motion blur that we want. Additionally, some GoPros (such as the Session) do not allow us to use shutter speeds that are fast enough to properly expose the image. So, we use an ND filter to block some of the light so we can use that slower shutter speed.

To be able to best control the shutter speed, we need to put the camera into Protune mode. Here are some settings and process to start with, but ultimately you will want to experiment and develop your own method:

Protune: on
Color: doesn’t matter for this, your preference
White balance: doesn’t matter for this, your preference
ISO: 400
ISO mode: max (alternatively, you can set it to “lock” and 100 if you do not want the camera to adjust exposure in your flight or if the light will not be radically changing from going into trees or shade, into buildings, etc.)
Shutter speed: set to whatever exposes the image properly (use your phone app to preview the image). If you are using the right ND filter, then the correct shutter speed should be 60 (assuming you are using 30fps, if you use 60, then set this to 120).

Open up your phone or tablet and connect to your GoPro to preview – does the image look properly exposed? If it’s too bright, you need to use a stronger ND filter. If it’s not bright enough, use a smaller value ND filter. If you don’t want to have to pull off the ND filter and change it, you can always try changing the shutter speed up or down to the next setting (but of course this will also decrease/increase the motion blur - however it is more critical to get the exposure right, though!

Regularly check the exposure with the preview on your phone. If the light level changes (e.g. getting darker at the end of the day), you will need to either change the ND filter or use a slower shutter speed or your footage will be too dark. Eventually, you will get a good feel for the settings and this will become second nature.

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GoPro smart ND filters

Attach one of these premium HB-Series neutral density (ND) filters, and your HERO13 Black automatically detects it and shifts into Auto Cinematic Video mode so you can create motion blur with ease. Advanced users can select the Auto 180° Shutter setting, or manually configure the shutter speed and exposure settings to fine-tune a shot for the lighting conditions. Made from scratch-resistant, high-optical quality glass and waterproof when installed.

Includes ND4, ND8, ND16 and ND32 filters, protective filter cap, protective filter case and microfiber lens cloth
4 filters let you choose the one that works best for your activity and lighting conditions
Auto Cinematic Video mode makes it easy for first-time ND filter users to produce shots with motion blur
Experienced ND filter users can manually configure exposure settings to get their perfect amount of motion blur
HERO13 Black automatically detects each filter when attached and makes filter selection easy by suggesting the best filter for the shot based on lighting conditions
Scratch-resistant and waterproof when mounted on the camera, with hydrophobic lens coatings that repels water
Easy to attach, with no tools needed
Part of the high-performance HB-Series Lens Collection—exclusively for HERO13 Black
Tip: Start with the ND4 filter for low light/late sunset filming, ND8 for golden or blue hour filming, ND16 for afternoon filming, and ND32 for bright and sunny daytime shooting

This 4-pack of neutral density filters includes ND4, ND8, ND16 and ND32 filters, made from high optical quality glass for super easy and precise exposure control. They cover a wide range of conditions—and will even suggest when you need to go up or down a stop depending on your current lighting environment.

The lenses automatically put you in the right mode with the right settings for the shots you want.

First time using ND filters? No worries — with Auto Cinematic mode, the camera automatically adjusts the shutter to capture motion blur with optimized stabilization. You’ll get the dramatic effect you want with maximum ease.

Know what kind of look you want? Select your desired level of motion blur—from an amount that’s optimized for stabilization, to the Auto 180° Shutter setting—or configure the shutter speed and exposure manually.

What should you consider when buying GoPro filters?

Not every filter fits every GoPro. Therefore, always check carefully whether a filter is compatible with your model and any protective housing.

In addition, there is a considerable difference in quality between filters. Cheap filters can cause extra reflections, color deviations, or loss of sharpness. That's why it's smart to pay attention to things like glass quality, coatings, and scratch resistance.

If you film a lot while traveling, doing water sports, or outdoor activities, a sturdy filter is not an unnecessary luxury.