Hitech vs. Singh-Ray

[doublme]

My Cokin GND filters are now pretty much scratched and they really degrade the quality of my photos and therefore I will have to buy new ones. But I wasn't very satisfied with them, especially because of the purple/magenta colour cast. So I am looking for alternatives to them. I have decided to stick with my Cokin P holder, because the larger holders (Lee, Singh-Ray, Cokin Z etc.) are priced ridiculously high. However I am ready to pay more for the filters themselves. Too bad Lee doesn't make filters for the P holder, otherwise I would probably go for them. Then there are the Singh-Rays, which seem to be exactly what I am looking for. BUT, I also came across the Hitech/Formatt filters, which seem to be pretty good as well and are very cheap at the same time.

So, my question is whether I should prefer the Singh-Rays to the much cheaper Hitechs (the fact that the Singh-Rays are longer isn't important to me).
I would be very interested to hear opinions who have owned both of them as well as the opinions of people who have upgraded from Cokins.
AND I would also very much appreciate if anyone had sample photos with Hitechs compared to Cokin/Lee/Singh-Rays from the same place, under the same circumstances.

Mart.

[jcothron]

Lee does make filters for the P holder.

http://www.2filter.com/prices/products/leefiltersp.html

[doublme]

Lee does make filters for the P holder.

http://www.2filter.com/prices/products/leefiltersp.html

Wow, thanks, that's new to me. I wonder why Lee doesn't say anything about having them on their homepage (or can't I just find them there?).
Although I would rather prefer to order from inside the European Union, I will definitely take 2filter as an option now.

However, it would still be nice to hear experiences (and see samples) about the Hitechs.

[argyle]

I doubt very much that anyone will be able to post the same image taken with three different GND filter brands...that's pretty much an unrealistic expectation. Lee, SR, and Hitech are all made from optical quality resin. With the exception of physical dimensions, they are pretty much the same. You can spend a bunch of money on SR or spend a little on Hitechs and get the same results (except that you'll have some extra money left over to spend on something else).

[doublme]

I doubt very much that anyone will be able to post the same image taken with three different GND filter brands...that's pretty much an unrealistic expectation. Lee, SR, and Hitech are all made from optical quality resin. With the exception of physical dimensions, they are pretty much the same. You can spend a bunch of money on SR or spend a little on Hitechs and get the same results (except that you'll have some extra money left over to spend on something else).
I wasn't hoping for three different GND brands, just two :p.

The Singh-Rays still seem quite tempting, but I can't find neither them nor P holder Lee filters in European webshops. :confused: Can anybody name some?

[jsinon]

I couldn't be happier with my Hitech GND's, both from a quality standpoint and the money saved over the way too pricey SR. And I got them from these guys,
http://www.teamworkphoto.com/ since you are looking for someone on your side of the Atlantic.

Better price than I could find stateside.

[doublme]

Thanks everybody :) I finally ordered the Hitechs (namely the 3 GND hard edge kit). The price was so low that they really are worth at least trying. I'll let you know how I feel about them, when I receive them.

[Pommekitty]

I have the sof edge equilavalent of the kit you just ordered. I've been very happy with it. No color cast that I can see. Enjoy!