Polarizer filter

IceQueen

IceQueen

Well-Known Member
15+ year member
Hey all,

I saw in the thread about what you have in your camerabag some people posting Polarizer filter.

I have been thinking about buying one for photographing marine mammals out at sea, but I guess it can also be put to good use in a zoo?

So my question to polarizer users:
Do you really benefit from it in a zoo?
Do you put it on the lens at all times or do you just put it on when you need it?
Can you use it on a UVfilter? Or do you have to take that off first?

Thnx in advance for the help :)
 
I have never used a polariser. I know that they can be useful in certain circumstances, but they cut out so much light that I feel they would cause me more problems than they would solve.
Has anyone here found a polariser useful?

Alan
 
Never used a polariser either, just a UV. But then, most of my water or snow photos are either landscapes from a distance or taken underwater. If I was photographing marine mammals from a boat, I might be inclined to think about using one (but only if I thought about it and bought a polariser first).

I'd never bother with one in a zoo.

:p

Hix
 
I have used polarising filters but never when photographing zoo animals.

I've used mine for aviation photography and marine photography, like Gentle Lemur says they do cut out a lot of light so it needs to be a very bright day for you to get the most out of it.

For marine photography I was taking images of dolphins in the Moray Firth and the polariser helps to give better definition between the sea and the sky as well as really highlighting the blue (when you have it).
It can help reduce a certain amount of reflection from the surface of the water too, but a UV or Haze filter can also do that for you.
 
adrian1963 said:
I do carry one but very rarely use them because as Gentle Lemur as said they block to much light out
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That depends on the filter. I use a Hoya HD CIR-PL, which only reduces available light by the equivalent of 1.1EV and doesn't introduce any vignetting, even on a wide lens. I believe they're discontinued now, so can be purchased from reputable outlets for bargain prices (somewhere in the region of £70-80). Just watch out for counterfeits from the likes of flea bay.

Mine is more on than off, so I use it all the time. It can help greatly with barrier reflections, but by how much will depend on the angle of the sun, subject and the barrier material itself. A polariser is also really useful if you're taking landscape shots.

And to answer the original question; depending on their quality you can stack filters, I have a UV attached at all times to protect the front element.
 
Thnx all for the input! I'll be brooding on it some more before making a decision...
 
Since I am a photo instructor (among other duties) at a professional photo lab, this is a topic I feel I can help with. There is one very important use for polarizing filters at zoos that no one has mentioned yet.

They reduce or eliminate reflections on glass! All you have to do is turn the filter and you can see right in the viewfinder the reflections disappear (or at least diminish if they are especially bad). I have taken several zoo photos over the years that would be impossible with this filter.

Do you need to take off your UV filter first? You do not absolutely have to, but you should. The real question is why does anyone put a UV filter on their lens in the first place? I do not use them, most professionals do not use them, it is just an unnecessary expense that camera store clerks have learned is an easy add-on sale to a camera.

One final note - polarizers come in two types: linear polarizers (often just called polarizers) and circular polarizers. The name has nothing to do with the shape - both are circular in appearance. It has to do with how they polarize the light - linear ones are less expensive, but only work with manual focus lenses. Any autofocus lens requires a more expensive circular polarizer. Make sure you know what you are buying!
 
After my posts above I thought about the glass scenario. I usually just angle my camera to the glass and use a flash, so have never thought about using a polarizer.

I have a UV on all my lenses. When I first got into photography sometime in the last millenia, my father always said to have a UV on to protect the lens. It's cheaper to replace a scratched UV than a scratched lens.

:p

Hix
 
Hix said:
It's cheaper to replace a scratched UV than a scratched lens.
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That is what everyone says, which of course is true. But here is the thing. I have worked in the photo industry for over two decades, I deal with photographers on a daily basis, and I have NOT ONCE in my life ever met someone where this actually happened. (Where their lens was saved due to a "protective" filter). What has actually happened to me was some night shots were ruined by reflections bouncing off the UV filter that I used to have on my lenses. The days of UV filters are long gone for me, but I am also careful with my equipment. If anyone reading this tends to be clumsy, then perhaps the filter may be a good idea for them.
 
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You have now...

@Arizona Docent,

Actually, I've been in two circumstances (so far) where my lenses were saved by the presence of a UV/SKY-1 filter.

The first was about ten years back, when I was still shooting with a film camera (Canon A1). I was at the now-defunct Marine World park in Vallejo, watching a whale show, and I misjudged where the 'splash zone' was in the interest of getting a head-on close-up of a leap.

I'm sure you can imagine the results. Fortunately, I saw what was coming and turned in time to take the brunt of the splash, but the camera still took a good hit of salt water right on the front. Had it not been for the UV filter, the splash would have infiltrated the inner mechanism of a fairly expensive zoom lens before I could get everything dried off.

The second was in 2009, during a visit to the Santa Ana Zoo. I was taking some close-ups of a most photogenic (and friendly, and curious) rhea, when the bird spotted its reflection in the filter's surface and decided to take a peck or two at it. Granted, a rhea's beak is blunt, and they don't have anywhere near the strength to threaten tempered glass, but I found some sand sticking to the filter afterwards.

I hate to think what that sand would have done to the coating on my lens if it had been driven onto it under any kind of force.

I have been, and will continue to be, a firm advocate of protective camera filters. ;-)

Happy travels.
 
Arizona Docent said:
Since I am a photo instructor (among other duties) at a professional photo lab, this is a topic I feel I can help with. There is one very important use for polarizing filters at zoos that no one has mentioned yet. They reduce or eliminate reflections on glass!
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I mentioned that a couple of posts before yours. ;)

A UV has saved me too when some type of horribly acidic sap got onto the front of my lens. I wasn't able to remove the watermark from the filter, I dread to think what it would have done to the front element and coating.

If you use a lens with a huge hood then it can add protection, otherwise a UV filter can be invaluable.
 
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