Should i use polarizing filter

For example, if you're photographing the moon, having a polarizer will only force your camera to use a longer shutter speed or a higher ISO. Instead, remove the polarizer and speed up the shutter to avoid star trails or extend the shutter to get star trails and minimize the ISO to minimize digital noise in the shot. When there is a lot of color going on, such as at sunset, removing the polarizer from your lens can actually help your shot. So, if you're shooting a sunset at a beach, going without a polarizer will allow you to incorporate the gorgeous, color-filled reflected light off of any rocks protruding from the water.

What's more, near sunset when the light is a nice golden color as seen above, going without a polarizer helps you highlight that color. Even though a rainbow isn't just reflected light it's also due to refraction and dispersion of light , a polarizer will still minimize its appearance in your photos. That means that if you're shooting a scene with a rainbow, remove your polarizer and shoot without.

Even though you shouldn't use a polarizer all the time, it's still an incredibly valuable tool to have at your disposal, especially for landscape photography. Of course, like most photography gear, you don't want to outfit yourself with something cheap.

Instead, you want a high-quality polarizer filter that helps you produce excellent images while offering you years of durable service as well. That sort of quality is found in the circular polarizing filter by Formatt-Hitech pictured above. With a Firecrest anti-reflective multicoating, these polarizing filters ensure that your photos have the highest level of contrast and color fidelity. Better still, these polarizers come in a SuperSlim or UltraSlim rotating polarizer ring, so they don't get in the way of the shot or cause vignetting.

For instance, if the sky is red in the evening, this can create a vibrant effect that would be best off kept. We tend to think of reflected light as negative in photography, attempting to eliminate it as much as possible with a circular polarizing filter. But there are some instances where reflected light can actually add drama and visual appeal to a photo, such as a brightly colored sunset, in which case it would be best not to use a CPL filter.

In particular, if the reflected color takes on a different or unusual hue, this can make an image interesting and unique. Water is transparent and, as such, not always easy to capture through a lens.

It can be difficult to tell the difference between a wet rock and a dry one, but allowing light to shine off the droplets can overcome this issue. If you want to keep the reflections but lose the nuisance glare while ensuring color saturation is boosted, you can still enjoy the best of both worlds. With the help of some post-production trickery, you can blend the two exposures, taking the best bits from each photo. You can also experiment with blending multiple long exposures to see some fantastic results!

Taking a photo of a colored ball might make it look like a flat disk. Adding a slight reflection off the curved surface gives it a realistic, three-dimensional effect. CPL filters also tend to work best during daylight, particularly on bright days. Any filter that blocks out light in this case would do more damage than good, as explained in our guide to compensating exposure when using filters. Leave your CPL filter off your lens in this scenario.

Another scenario dictating when not to use a circular polarizing filter is if you shoot rainbows. A rainbow is actually just reflected light, so if you stick a polarizer on your lens, the rainbow will vanish. Simply take your CPL filter off, and it will reappear. And with reason: colors will be enhanced, reflections in water and on the leaves can be removed, and skies can turn deep blue.

But it is not advisable to use a polarizer as a standard filter, because there are situations when it can turn against you. A long time ago, when I was photographing landscapes with my analog Minolta X camera and film slides, I used a polarizer a lot. But when I switched to digital photography, I ignored these filters. And I never really missed them. When I found the sky not deep blue enough, I corrected this in Photoshop.

But reflections in water, leaves, on amphibians, and mushrooms were never removed. I used the reflections to my advantage as much as possible. But when Lee introduced the mm Landscape Polarizer, I emptied my bank account to buy this wonderful filter. It worked of course. Colors became much deeper and saturated, and on the whole, the photos became much warmer, which partly is credit to the warm color of this filter itself.

One side effect I did not expect was a reduced dynamic range when using the filter. Because the sky got a bit darker due to the polarizing effect, it matched the foreground much better, so the need for a ND gradient filter was on occasion unnecessary. One thing to keep in mind is the uneven polarization of the sky. Change the angle and the effect is reduced. This is not a problem when using focal lengths of 35mm and longer, but when you use wide angle lenses, the uneven polarization becomes very distracting.

I found 24mm still acceptable, but wider is tricky. The most obvious use of the filter is the removal of reflections in water streams and the reflections on wet rocks. For that, the polarizer works perfectly. Too perfect, as a matter of fact. In some occasions, the reflection was part of the composition, and by removing it, the image became dull.

When photographing tide pools at the beach, the water became completely invisible, removing the tide pools completely. Reflections can be necessary to make the photo more interesting. So, do not remove reflections with the polarizer just because it is possible. Use it when it is necessary for the image. Remember, it is also possible to use just a little bit of polarization.

Just by rotating the filter you can influence the amount of reflection. The examples below show the effect with polarization and without. Of course, the one you prefer is a matter of taste. I discovered one unwanted use of a polarizer filter during my stay in the European Alps. The filter is placed in front of the lens and tightened onto the filter thread. It will still be possible to rotate the outer part of a CPL after mounting it to the lens. This is how you adjust how the filter affects the image and where its impact is strongest.

I recommend that you spend a few minutes pointing the camera towards the sky or a shiny subject and rotate the filter to see how it affects the image. Remember to re-adjust the filter when you switch between horizontal and vertical orientations! Certain filters require up to a 1.

This is a good reason to take a test shot or two after mounting a filter. A tripod might be necessary when using a Circular Polarizer during sunrise or sunset sessions. The alternative is to increase the ISO or use a wider aperture. If you have read my other articles on how to use filters in landscape photography , you might remember that there are two main types of filter systems: screw-in circular and drop-in square.

This makes you more flexible when adjusting the polarization in order to work best for a particular scene. Remember, rotating the filter makes the effect take place in different places throughout an image.

Filters do have an impact on the image sharpness and low-quality glass tend to be rather harmful. There are many brands and models out there and I urge you to spend some time reading up on the pros and cons of the different ones. If you plan to use the filter on different lenses you should purchase one that fits your biggest lens and also get a few step-down rings. These rings are mounted onto the lens and make it possible to use bigger filters on smaller lenses.

The filter has many advantages and can be used in many settings.