Chinese CPL

paleblue

paleblue

Messages
705
Name
Rick
Edit My Images
No
I was thinking of buying a 77mm CPL from China, because it is under a tenner. Is this the worst idea ever?

I cannot justify buying a Hoya or B+W for 70+quid. I could get a lower grade hoya, but I'd imagine essentially it'd be the same as the one from China, just with hoya printed, and i'd be paying extra for the name hoya. I know a lot of people rave about multicoating, but in practice does it actually make MUCH difference? I have a 52mm HMC CPL from hoya but wondering if there will be a lot of difference?

p.s. If anyone has a 77 cpl for sale could you set up a for sale thread? I'm still not allowed to posted a wanted thread :gag:
 
What filter to use is a matter really of use versus quality. Many people buy an expensive lens for the IQ and then stick a £10 UV filter on it to protect it.

If you have just bought for example a Canon 85mm L f1.2 II @ circa £2000 for its IQ are you going to want to put a £10 filter on the front and negate some of its IQ?

So if you are buying a filter for occasional use on a lens and do not require the absolute in quality then a cheap filter will do the job, but if you are relying on the filter to give you optimum quality perhaps for selling images to libraries and the like whilst using high resolution bodies and top class glass then the higher end of the filter spectrum would probably be more suited to your use regardless of cost.

In most cases (but not all) you do get what you pay for!
 
;)
paleblue said:
I was thinking of buying a 77mm CPL from China, because it is under a tenner. Is this the worst idea ever?
Click to expand...

I assume that as it's a 77mm CPL then the lens you intend to use it on is quite decent.

No, buying it is not the worst idea ever.....but using it just might be ;)

Bob
 
I use the multi coated UV filters from hoya for all my lenses, just to avoid scratching the front element and keep dust out. A CPL i'd use only occasionally for landscape shots, that's why it's hard for me to spend a lot on one.

I may buy one just to see how it compares to the Hoya 52mm HMC, and hopefully it won't be a total waste of money. I'll report the findings for anyone who's interested
 
Go for it. A £10 polariser is better than no polariser when you want to play with one. It's not like any loss of quality experienced is going to destroy your images. If the filter IS that bad, it's only £10 down the drain and a lesson learnt.
 
mustanir said:
Go for it. A £10 polariser is better than no polariser when you want to play with one. It's not like any loss of quality experienced is going to destroy your images. If the filter IS that bad, it's only £10 down the drain and a lesson learnt.
Click to expand...

Oh so true, one of my filters, from 7dayshop, was a Tiffen with a case for 4 filters as well so can't be all bad
 
fabs said:
I've just ordered a 77mm Hoya CP from Amazon (although it's via cameraking) for under £27.95. It's not the pro1 version, but they are way too expensive and it's only for taking on holiday with the Sigma 10-20. Even 7 day shop want £45 for it and it is £80 from Warehouse Express!
Click to expand...
I was thinking what lens you was going to use it on with 77mm (I have the same lens) You have to watch out as the angel of view is so great you will find it will not work on all of the photo To get it to work for colours in the sky you need the sun to be at an angel of 90Deg to the lens. So you will get it good in about half of the frame be it in the middle or to one side.
Just to let you know and to bear this in mind.
One thing about such a big filter is you can hold it in front of most of your other lens as well.
 
Chaz Photos said:
I was thinking what lens you was going to use it on with 77mm (I have the same lens) You have to watch out as the angel of view is so great you will find it will not work on all of the photo To get it to work for colours in the sky you need the sun to be at an angel of 90Deg to the lens. So you will get it good in about half of the frame be it in the middle or to one side.
Just to let you know and to bear this in mind.
One thing about such a big filter is you can hold it in front of most of your other lens as well.
Click to expand...

Thanks. Yeah, I had read about that but didn't know about the 90 degree bit so thanks for the tip. Thing is, the 10-20 is the smallest filter thread I regularly use as my 24-70 is 82mm! :lol:
 
Get a Marumi 77mm, go for a DHG. These are as good as B&W Slim MRCs.

Much easier to clean than Hoya, and also cheaper.

B&W and Marumi DHG C-Pols are generally considered the best (UK magazine review + Polish comparision of about 20 brands).
 
puddleduck said:
Get a Marumi 77mm, go for a DHG. These are as good as B&W Slim MRCs.

Much easier to clean than Hoya, and also cheaper.

B&W and Marumi DHG C-Pols are generally considered the best (UK magazine review + Polish comparision of about 20 brands).
Click to expand...

They look good, if the chinese one doesn't work out i'll fork out for the marumi
 
Update, i got the filter today from China. ebay member link-delight. cost £6.50 with free shipping. The build quality isn't amazing; the rotating element feels a tad loose. First I checked it against my laptop LCD screen just to be sure it is ACTUALLY a CPL.

cpl.jpg


I took it out to the field by my house, and I have to say, it does its job. It wasn't a very conclusive test, just a couple of snaps. No PP just levels adjusted slightly and resized....
with effect:
img3964j.jpg

without effect
img3966h.jpg


There doesn't appear to be any detrimental affect on image quality. I will compare it against my 52mm hoya another time.
For £6.50 I don't think it's bad, compared to the £30-£120+ you have to pay for other brands :naughty:
 
i ordered a cheap one off ebay for my 10-20 as well
it cost about £6-7 as well

ive never used a good one before so couldnt really compare
but it did what i wanted it to
but i did notice as mentioned that it doesnt work on all of the photo
still though, not bad for the price
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top