Is a circular polariser filter something you keep on a lens constantly?

miurasv

miurasv

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Got a Hoya Circular Polarizer with my Nikon 50mm f1.4 G AF S. It's tinted and would like to know if this is something you are supposed to keep on the lens all the time or only use in certain circumstances? Thanks in advance.
 
it's something you're only meant to use occasionally.

A UV (or skylight) filter is however a good idea to keep on your lens all the time.
 
Personally, I hardly ever remove my polarisers from any of my lenses. They're perfect for all sort of shots, and cannot be mimicked in Photoshop. The only time they come off is if I need the extra 1 ~ 2 stops.
 
So when would you need to use this cir-polarising filter that I have then? As it's tinted I can understand why it couldn't be used all the time.
 
It will cut reflections from non-metallic surfaces, eg water, glass, etc.

To see the effect simply hold the filter in front of your eye. Find a window with some reflections in it, and rotate the filter in your hand. You will see the reflections fade in and out.

Now try the same looking at the sky. (The effect will be strongest at 90° to the sun).

It will allow you to see through water better, and is also useful for killing unwanted reflections on artwork, etc.

EDIT: They also cut about 2 stops of light, so can be handy if you want a slightly longer exposure.
 
Jayst84 said:
It will cut reflections from non-metallic surfaces, eg water, glass, etc.

To see the effect simply hold the filter in front of your eye. Find a window with some reflections in it, and rotate the filter in your hand. You will see the reflections fade in and out.

Now try the same looking at the sky. (The effect will be strongest at 90° to the sun).

It will allow you to see through water better, and is also useful for killing unwanted reflections on artwork, etc.

EDIT: They also cut about 2 stops of light, so can be handy if you want a slightly longer exposure.
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Thanks very much for your excellent explanation which has clarified its use. I think it will come in handy for taking pics of watches, removing the reflections from the crystal/glass, that I do quite a bit of.
 
miurasv said:
Thanks very much for your excellent explanation which has clarified its use. I think it will come in handy for taking pics of watches, removing the reflections from the crystal/glass, that I do quite a bit of.
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No worries, and yes is should help for that.

If you want to get serious though, you should get polarising material for your light sources. (Plastic sheets you stick over the light) This, combined with a polariser on your lens, allows you to completely remove reflections, or alter them as much as you like.

Try it on your laptop screen as well, quite a strange thing polarisation.
 
Jayst84 said:
No worries, and yes is should help for that.

If you want to get serious though, you should get polarising material for your light sources. (Plastic sheets you stick over the light) This, combined with a polariser on your lens, allows you to completely remove reflections, or alter them as much as you like.

Try it on your laptop screen as well, quite a strange thing polarisation.
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Thanks again. After I've learned how to use my camera properly I'll look into this as I've had problems in the past with either too much light (plastic sheets would help here) or not enough.
 
CPLs darken blue skies, increasing the contrast with white clouds for a more dramatic shot (we used yellow and orange filters for B & W in the film days). They also darken green foliage and cut reflections from water/metal/glass dramatically. I have one, but only use it occaisonally, and I wouldn't keep it on the lens unless I was always shooting the type of subjects that would benefit, in the right conditions.

Keeping a UV/clear filter on your lenses for protection is controversial. UV filters are a hangover from film, but digital cameras don't need them. Some people do like to keep a UV, skylight or clear filter on for physical protection of the front element, but others maintain that adding another, usually inferior, layer of glass just impacts the image quality. You can probably minimise this by using the best filter you can find, but these are very expensive, and cost more than most people are normally willing to pay.

There's really no consensus on this, and there are plenty of debates on photography forums and the internet. FWIW I'm pretty much in the "no filter" camp, and rely on a lens hood for protection, unless I'm shooting in a very hostile environment (blowing sand, spray etc) when a filter over the lens is probably a good idea.
 
I've just picked up one of the new Hoya HD polarisers for my 17-40mm.. it's meant to let through more light compared to a normal polariser. I don't plan to take it off, unless I'm shooting in low light conditions.

A.
 
Even if I believed that a filter was a requirement for "lens protection", I wouldn't recommend a CPL!

CPL's do a good job of being a CPL of when you actually need one (funnily enough) but can also cause some really strange unexpected effects at other times (for example plastic windscreens on racing cars or plastics on MX bikes).

Also, I don't know about you, but I wouldn't want to be loosing 1.5 stops of light all the time - we all struggle hard enough to get enough light to avoid having to use noisy high ISO's (well, unless you have a D3 or D700 anyway!) and to force yourself into this situation for no reason is really silly.

Use the UV filter if you want "protection" and stick the others (CPL, ND, grads etc) on when you need the effect and learn when the effect is actually detrimental to your photos...
 
My polarisers are on most of the time. I take them off when needed. Eg contre-jour, sunsets ... its a conscious decision and all down to experience.

Sometimes you want the reflections which the filter would remove.

I ruined an expensive one recently though with a horrible gouge in the glass. At least it wasn't the lens!
 
jerry12953 said:
I ruined an expensive one recently though with a horrible gouge in the glass. At least it wasn't the lens!
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Actually it depends on the lens/polarizer - some of the expensive polarizers can be more than a bloody repair bill for a cheap lens!
 
I'm using my polariser less that I used to. There is a definite 'polariser' look to images taken with the filter. Not just the bits you want changed like the reflections and sky darkening etc but the whole image. So I still use it at the times of day and directions it works best but it goes on for the shots and then comes off again.
 
Exactly Robert... it would be like using say a grad on everything or a star burst or a red filter - great for a specific shot, but an effect that would get over used and boring all the time.
 
Hi everybody, I am just wondering if anybody can help me, I have currently taken up photography as a hobby and as part of that i am going to kenya next year to see what pics i can get out there. I am currently using the Nikon D60 with a 200mm lens, i have found a decent sigma lens that will auto focus with the nikon d60 but could do with some advice is anyone can help please. this is the lens I have found.


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-Motorised...lters_JN?hash=item4ceaa661be&_trksid=p3286.c0.
 
I used my Pro 1 D CPL for the very first time yesterday because the sky was very nice not a cloud to be seen and it really brought the blue out
 
Liam Hodgson said:
Hi everybody, I am just wondering if anybody can help me, I have currently taken up photography as a hobby and as part of that i am going to kenya next year to see what pics i can get out there. I am currently using the Nikon D60 with a 200mm lens, i have found a decent sigma lens that will auto focus with the nikon d60 but could do with some advice is anyone can help please. this is the lens I have found.


http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-Motorised...lters_JN?hash=item4ceaa661be&_trksid=p3286.c0.
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Go the the index page for this forum here and click the new thread button near the top of the page to start your own topic - then it will not be lost in a thread about something else :)

Welcome to the forums
 
Mine stay on the camera all the time - if I don't need them I turn them 90 degrees.
 
FWIW, I have a polariser on my 10-22 pretty much permanently. In fact I bought a new one recently for exactly this purpose - a Hoya HD which only reduces exposure by 1.1 stops so that I can pretty much leave it on for everything. It only comes off for special occasions :D
 
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