Polarising Filters

[ckuklbac]

Hi Nigel and if you check the B+W are even more expensive than £50, everything depend on the quality of the glass and also on the wide.

About emulating a CPL, I'm using Nik's plugins and I can tell you that you can't definitively reveal details as if you ld be using one.

Hi again folks, you may want to try at the link below for filters- their prices are usually pretty good, and they will only charge 5% tax on top of the quoted price- you may even be able to negotiate tax free for overseas. Good Luck!

http://www.vistek.ca/procentre/CameraFilters.aspx

[Colin Southern]

Yep, BC is Western Canada up against the Pacific, sorry for not explaining further

No worries - I just like to ask because we have people here from all 4 corners of the earth, and what's obvious to some is a mystery to others

[NigelT]

Hi Nigel and if you check the B+W are even more expensive than £50, everything depend on the quality of the glass and also on the wide.

About emulating a CPL, I'm using Nik's plugins and I can tell you that you can't definitively reveal details as if you ld be using one.

Hi Daniel. I guess you mean wide 'angle'?

From your second sentence it seems you agree with a CPL over the use of 'in comp' altering images?

I don't pretend to be anything but an enthusiastic amateur, tho' with City & Guilds, and this departure into digi photography excites me but I can't get past my previous experience in film photography.

I can use Photshop and Illustrator and use both for illustration but seem to have a mental block on using them for manipulating photos beyond minor adustments such as contrast.

In passing I am hoping also to use black and white in camera. Will my filter system still work with digi as it did for film? IE red to enhance blues etc.

[Tareq Alhemrani]

Even if you do say so yourself

I didn't understand ???

[Daniel Salazar]

Hi Daniel. I guess you mean wide 'angle'?

From your second sentence it seems you agree with a CPL over the use of 'in comp' altering images?

I don't pretend to be anything but an enthusiastic amateur, tho' with City & Guilds, and this departure into digi photography excites me but I can't get past my previous experience in film photography.

I can use Photshop and Illustrator and use both for illustration but seem to have a mental block on using them for manipulating photos beyond minor adustments such as contrast.

In passing I am hoping also to use black and white in camera. Will my filter system still work with digi as it did for film? IE red to enhance blues etc.

Hi Nigel, I meant the diameter of the filter.

I don't have so much experience using filters, Colin uses a lot GND and ND so he might help you better(Sing-Ray filters to be precisely), however I'm positive sure that the effect produced by a CPL won't be rendered by post processing, therefore the techniques you used to use should still work

[Dave Humphries]

In passing I am hoping also to use black and white in camera. Will my filter system still work with digi as it did for film? IE red to enhance blues etc.

Hi Nigel,

In theory yes, what with the laws of light and physics being as they are.
There is a risk that getting the correct exposure will be tricky and I believe there's a danger of overloading the red channel and blowing highlights.

However, you'll obtain far better creative possibilities shooting colour RAW and converting to monochrome in post processing, have a look at this thread for the reasons.

Cheers,

[Berenice]

Is it safe to use second hand filters? I'm thinking of going down the ebay route to save money. Some are new and much cheaper than shops so I'm thinking copies.

Berenice

[Dave Humphries]

Hi Berenice,

The big risk with these "cheapies" is they will almost certainly lack multi-coating which means they will be more susceptible to reflections. This will avail itself in two ways; an overall contrast reduction especially if you don't use a lens hood and/or, if you take shots into the sun or looking at lights in night shots, you may see more spot type flares in your pictures.

The other risk, if secondhand, is they may be scratched from over zealous cleaning, and that will definitely degrade image quality.

If you get a chance, could you nip across to the Introduce Yourself & Welcome Other Members (2) thread please and post an introduction to tell us a little about yourself. It hlps us to advise you better if we know what sort of pictures interest you, what camera you use, etc. - thanks.

I personally use Hoya HMC range, they're not too expensive new, but are coated.

It only remains for me to welcome you to CiC,

[Colin Southern]

Is it safe to use second hand filters? I'm thinking of going down the ebay route to save money. Some are new and much cheaper than shops so I'm thinking copies.

Hi Berenice,

I'd just like to echo Dave's welcome and 2nd his comments regarding cheap filters. I had an "interesting" experience with some of these that culminated in a two-step process to rectify ...

... I took two steps and dropped then in the rubbish bin.

So be aware that in many cases, cheap filters are actually the most expensive - you pay for them once when you get them and then you pay again when you replace them with quality items!

Thats been my experience anyway.

[NigelT]

I too have tried cheap filters in the past (tho' the recent Hoya polarising filter is fine) mostly instead of cokin filters, and they have proved o.k. to a limit.

As has been said they mostly lack anti scratch coating at least on one of the sides thus making them vulnerable and can cause flair etc.

If you want to get filters tho' on a budget it is still best I think to get them new rather than second hand. You MAY even be able to send them back then if they dont come up to expectations.

[Dalebore]

I can't get past my previous experience in film photography.

Me too! I have a love - hate relationship with digital photography. I love the things u can do with it but I hate what it is doing ("why take a good photograph when u can make it good in pp").

[Colin Southern]

Me too! I have a love - hate relationship with digital photography. I love the things u can do with it but I hate what it is doing ("why take a good photograph when u can make it good in pp").

I agree. I have a "theory" that I'd be interested to hear others thoughts on ...

"To produce a world-class photograph (from a mediocre capture) using PP, takes a similar degree of skill to getting it right in camera in the first place"

... I think that when "push comes to shove", it's a lot harder to deliver a top-notch result using just PP than people realise. The photographers who's work I admire most have significant skill both behind the camera, and in front of the monitor.

[Bill44]

Very true words Colin, along the lines of "You can't make a silk purse out of a sows ear".

[NigelT]

Me too! I have a love - hate relationship with digital photography. I love the things u can do with it but I hate what it is doing ("why take a good photograph when u can make it good in pp").

Yep that sums it up well.

I spent a while getting City and Guilds and a small fortune in darkroom equipement as I love black and white pics and here we are able to dodge and burn on a computer.
No chemicals, no safe lights, no trying to rack the film onto a spiral cage when it wont go on and you have to put it all in a safe bag and undo it all. No problems getting rid of hypo and developer safely.

Hmm! methinks it's not so bad after all!

Only joking. I still use by Broni' and Canon T90 etc. as I love the images and love just using the cameras plus using my Weston meter and invercone.

Ansel Adams said "taking the picture with the camera was just the first step in making the image" so I guess its not SO different with digi.

I do think however that certain pictures are more problematical with digi than with film. Such as into the sun. I don't seem to get the flare around trees that is so easy with film as an instance, perhaps others have a different view and I'm just not used to the new gear yet.