Circular polarising filters - talk to me!
Discussion
Hi all,
Most of my landscape shots are now taken using my Tokina 11-16mm 2.8 lens, which is great but I thought I should invest in a CPL filter for it as I do like the reduced water reflections and darker/bluer sky that they tend to give.
But I'm not sure what to buy, for my 18-200mm lens I bought a Hoya CPL, but as the Tokina has a 77mm thread I will need a new one. The chap in my local Jessops just told me that the Jessops own brand filters including the circular polarising ones are actually made for them by Hoya and are 'just as good' as the more slightly more expensive offerings. He went on to say that himself and another staff member from the shop who was a really keen amateur with a Nikon D300 had 'tried a few outside one day' and thought they were all much the same, regardless of make.
Can anyone comment on the quality of the Jessops filters and indeed the alleged 'produced by Hoya' suggestion?
If I can save money by getting a Jessops then obviously I will, but not at the expense of a noticeable difference in image quality!
Also, I'm off skiing soon and am wondering if a CPL should be used in very bright snowy conditions? Will it help me?
Thanks
Most of my landscape shots are now taken using my Tokina 11-16mm 2.8 lens, which is great but I thought I should invest in a CPL filter for it as I do like the reduced water reflections and darker/bluer sky that they tend to give.
But I'm not sure what to buy, for my 18-200mm lens I bought a Hoya CPL, but as the Tokina has a 77mm thread I will need a new one. The chap in my local Jessops just told me that the Jessops own brand filters including the circular polarising ones are actually made for them by Hoya and are 'just as good' as the more slightly more expensive offerings. He went on to say that himself and another staff member from the shop who was a really keen amateur with a Nikon D300 had 'tried a few outside one day' and thought they were all much the same, regardless of make.
Can anyone comment on the quality of the Jessops filters and indeed the alleged 'produced by Hoya' suggestion?
If I can save money by getting a Jessops then obviously I will, but not at the expense of a noticeable difference in image quality!
Also, I'm off skiing soon and am wondering if a CPL should be used in very bright snowy conditions? Will it help me?
Thanks
Most importantly with your 11-16 you may find banding in the skies using a CPL due to the wide angle of view.
In terms of quality I strongly believe that there is no point in having top quality glass and putting crap filters in front, buy the best you can afford. Even within the Hoya range there are varying levels.
Finally you ask about skiing, in high altitudes you might find that the skies are naturally very blue due to the clean air and you don't actually need a CPL other than to cut down reflections. Also don't forget that CPLs work best at 90 degrees to the sun, the effect will be minimal shooting into the sun (where a you might also suffer from flare with a cheaper filter) or with the sun behind you.
In terms of quality I strongly believe that there is no point in having top quality glass and putting crap filters in front, buy the best you can afford. Even within the Hoya range there are varying levels.
Finally you ask about skiing, in high altitudes you might find that the skies are naturally very blue due to the clean air and you don't actually need a CPL other than to cut down reflections. Also don't forget that CPLs work best at 90 degrees to the sun, the effect will be minimal shooting into the sun (where a you might also suffer from flare with a cheaper filter) or with the sun behind you.
markmullen said:
Most importantly with your 11-16 you may find banding in the skies using a CPL due to the wide angle of view.
In terms of quality I strongly believe that there is no point in having top quality glass and putting crap filters in front, buy the best you can afford. Even within the Hoya range there are varying levels.
Finally you ask about skiing, in high altitudes you might find that the skies are naturally very blue due to the clean air and you don't actually need a CPL other than to cut down reflections. Also don't forget that CPLs work best at 90 degrees to the sun, the effect will be minimal shooting into the sun (where a you might also suffer from flare with a cheaper filter) or with the sun behind you.
Thanks Mark, always helpful In terms of quality I strongly believe that there is no point in having top quality glass and putting crap filters in front, buy the best you can afford. Even within the Hoya range there are varying levels.
Finally you ask about skiing, in high altitudes you might find that the skies are naturally very blue due to the clean air and you don't actually need a CPL other than to cut down reflections. Also don't forget that CPLs work best at 90 degrees to the sun, the effect will be minimal shooting into the sun (where a you might also suffer from flare with a cheaper filter) or with the sun behind you.
I completely agree about putting a crap filter in front of a decent lens, but I was just chancing it that it might be one of these "won't make a difference things"... Clearly not
I read that many of the cheap CPL filters on eBay/amazon aren't actually circular polarisers when tested!
hence why I thought buying from a reputable shop was the way forward.I will have a look and see how much the higher end Hoya etc are.
I've always noticed when skiing, that at the high altitudes (alps etc) that the sky is very blue and clear, but then read quite a bit from people saying never take photos in the snow without a CPL but couldn't really figure out what difference it would make.
NinjaPower said:
... aren't actually circular polarisers....
Interesting point. The idea behind circular polarisers is that autofocus and exposure systems might be fooled by linear polarisers. I stress might. I managed to acquire a linear polariser (Hoya) that seemed to be quite happy on a 180mm lens on a D70 and focussed and exposed correctly.But you're right to be suspicious of anything "cheap" or relying on a linear design.
There is, of course, the possibility that one manufacturer produces for another distributor. But in that case it is quite likely to be done to a price - otherwise they'd just insist upon selling their named brand. So it is also possible that the filters produced for a retailer to own brand might not be made to such high tolerances or won't include the very latest and best coatings, but rather the technology available ten years ago or something. Not saying it is always the case, but generally you get what you pay for.
Watch in case you need especially thin filters to avoid vignetting, but also - as already observed - you will get uneven skies, regardless of the filter quality, because that's the property of sunlight!!
YorkshirePudding said:
I've a Jessops CPL that I bought to use on a Tokina 11-16, not toot bad, right up to the point you use it at 12mm and it vignettes. 
Buggery!Never thought of that... I'm going to have that same problem aren't I?.... Unless I buy an extremely expensive and ultra thin CPL...
Craikeybaby said:
I've got a Kood CPL on my 17-40mm (full frame) and find it OK, but as I'm getting more lenses I've realised that the way to go is to get one bigger filter, say 105mm and step down rings for lenses.
The advantage of the 105mm filters is that you can get an adaptor ring for Lee holders to fit a CPL over the top of a grad, or a Big Stopper, or whatever.Gassing Station | Photography & Video | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff