need advice about circular polarizers

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eal1

Senior Member
Posted this in the D610 section, probably belongs here. So, here is what i posted:
Thinking of purchasing circular polarizers for use with my D610 and nikon lenses. Anyone have advice which ones i should purchase:
Nikon? B & W? Hoya? I use the following lenses, all Nikons, with their filter sizes: 24-85 f/3.5-4.5 - 72mm filter; 85/f.1.8, 67mm filter;
50mm/ f1.4, 58mm filter; 105mm f/2.8, 62mm filter.

Is there one brand circular polarizing filter that is superior to others?
Is it best to purchase the largest filter - in this case, 72mm- and use step-up adapters for the other sizes?


What do you recommend?

Read more: http://nikonites.com/d600-d610/24888-circular-polarizers-nikon-lenses-d610.html#ixzz3AhtORmAh
 
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yauman

Senior Member
Buy the largest diameter and buy lots of step-up rings is my recommendation.

As for what brands - well, when it comes to polarizers, they either work or don't work as the polarization of light depends on the light waves being "twisted" by the polymer film when passing thru the filter. So, there's no such thing as "working better" - it either works (the light wave got twisted) or not (it didn't).

Now having said that, there are a couple of considerations when it comes to Circular Polarization Lens (CPL) filters.

1. You'll find that the CPL effect is a lot less dramatic than the old Linear Polarizers (LP) so if you are use to the LP days of film photography, you may be disappointed -whether you spend $200 on a Heliopan or $70 for a Hoya/Tiffen/BW or $40 for Vivitar/ProMaster or $15 on a Bower (aka Kmart special) I forgot who makes it for Nikon but I think i's the Hoya/Tiffen grade. But modern digital cameras cannot use LP because it screws up the autofocusing sensor, matrix metering and some anti-aliasing filters - so almost all polarizers sold today are CPLs. But I've played with some old LP on new digital cameras and some seems to work fine (like on the Nikon Coolpix!)

2. The reason to buy a good brand for CPL is that unlike old LP which is just one sheet of polymer. CPL requires two pieces of polymer sandwiched between two pieces of glass. In the case of one piece LP, it can just be laid on top of a piece of thin glass and that's done - simple. But for CPL, there are two pieces and optically glued between two pieces of glass - see the complication - thus more expensive and thus more problems possible with inferior quality product.

So, the Heliopan's have thinner and more "optically perfect" glass and more durable glue and the cheaper brands may after a while get "moldy" or hazy inside the sandwich.

One more thing - how to tell if you have a CPL or LP (if the rim of the filter don't say.)
Hold up the filter with the male thread (the part the screws into the lens) towards you and look at a LCD TV or your iPhone thru it. Now rotate - the screen should darken to black. Now, fiip the filter around (male thread away from you) and rotate - you won't see any change - you have a CPL. If you have a LP, the screen will darken when you rotate and doesn't matter which way you hold up the filter.

Hope that helps.
 
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Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
I'm a huge fan of the CPL myself and I really like the Hoya HD CPL's. The glass is a whole lot harder and they're so easy to clean it's crazy. After having struggled to clean other types of multcoated filters - and about going nuts in the process - I found the Hoya HD series. They literally clean up with a wipe of a microfiber cloth; it's like they're Teflon coated or something. The HD's also transmit more light than traditional CPL's so instead of the usual 2-stop loss you'd get with another polarizer, you're only losing about 1-1 1/4 stops with the Hoya HD. That didn't sound like a lot to me, but in practice it's nice to have.

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eal1

Senior Member
thanks again for your responses. I am looking into the Hoya HD. What is the difference between that and Hoyas other pro line? Is the Hoya HD a more recent innovation?
 
Horoscope Fish

Horoscope Fish

Senior Member
eal1 said:
thanks again for your responses. I am looking into the Hoya HD. What is the difference between that and Hoyas other pro line? Is the Hoya HD a more recent innovation?
Click to expand...
You get at least one full-stop of additional stop of light transmission with the Hoya HD (vs. the Pro1).

Based on my experience, I'd say it's between one, and one-and-a-half stops. I forget if Hoya actually states how much additional transmission you get in terms of "stops"; I think they advertise something like "25% better transmission" or something to that effect.

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SkvLTD

SkvLTD

Senior Member
Lord, reminds me that I need to get me a new one and some more step-ups. And I'll have to drop the bucks since mid-grade seems silly now that I have pro glass for when I'd even use a CPL.
 
Michael J.

Michael J.

Senior Member
Horoscope Fish said:
I'm a huge fan of the CPL myself and I really like the Hoya HD CPL's. The glass is a whole lot harder and they're so easy to clean it's crazy. After having struggled to clean other types of multcoated filters - and about going nuts in the process - I found the Hoya HD series. They literally clean up with a wipe of a microfiber cloth; it's like they're Teflon coated or something. The HD's also transmit more light than traditional CPL's so instead of the usual 2-stop loss you'd get with another polarizer, you're only losing about 1-1 1/4 stops with the Hoya HD. That didn't sound like a lot to me, but in practice it's nice to have.

....
Click to expand...

This Statement was the reason why I choosed this: http://nikonites.com/off-topic/12528-post-your-latest-purchases.html#post134546
 
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Squaredoch

Senior Member
Hello all, has anybody any experience of Camdiox polarising filters? I am looking just now for a filter and have come across this make.
 
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Elliot87

Senior Member
I'm going away to Aus and New Zealand later this year and I want to make the most of the opportunity photography wise. I have zero filters and almost as little knowledge about them.
From what I've read a circular polarising filter would be a good to start to get better landscapes. 4 out of my 5 lenses have a 52mm thread size, with only my 70-300 differing with a 62mm thread. Would it still be advisable to buy the largest filter available and step up rings? Or should I just get a 52mm one?
I can't imagine using it much on the 70-300 as the last thing I need with that is less light getting in.

So far the advice on this thread has led me to this. Hoya 52mm HD Digital Circular Polarizing Screw-in: Amazon.co.uk: Camera & Photo Should I look no further or are there better affordable options out there?
 
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gqtuazon

Gear Head
Elliot87 said:
I'm going away to Aus and New Zealand later this year and I want to make the most of the opportunity photography wise. I have zero filters and almost as little knowledge about them.
From what I've read a circular polarising filter would be a good to start to get better landscapes. 4 out of my 5 lenses have a 52mm thread size, with only my 70-300 differing with a 62mm thread. Would it still be advisable to buy the largest filter available and step up rings? Or should I just get a 52mm one?
I can't imagine using it much on the 70-300 as the last thing I need with that is less light getting in.

So far the advice on this thread has led me to this. Hoya 52mm HD Digital Circular Polarizing Screw-in: Amazon.co.uk: Camera & Photo Should I look no further or are there better affordable options out there?
Click to expand...

Staying with the corresponding filter size is best so that each lens can use their own lens cover.

I don't have first hand experience with the Hoya filters but they might be worth trying which meets your budget since 52 and 62mm filters are not that expensive.




Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
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Squaredoch

Senior Member
Hello, For what it's worth, I would buy to fit my biggest lens and buy rings to allow fitting to other lenses. Maybe you can't imagine using a filter on your 70-300 just now but you never know. Re the choice of filter, I recently bought a Camdiox filter from SRBGriturn in UK. Performs perfectly well and I am happy with the results. Also very happy with their service and particularly their advice. I bought after doing much research and eventually decided to give Camdiox a try. I seem to remember reading that they use german glass glass, the same as is used in other more expensive filters. Good luck navigating the "Filter jungle".
Just read about being able to use the lens cap... good point but a filter for each lens is expensive and in my case I just use the filter when I need it.
 
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