Circular Polarizers - Help

[metalstorm]

I have the sunpaks and they "seem" to be okay but I rarely use mine. There probably is some difference between the expensive ones and the less expensive ones. Another, alternative is to buy a nice filter that fits your biggest lens and then use adapters to fit it to your smaller lenses. Save you some money that way and you still get the good quality filter rather than spreading the cash between all the lenses.

[FocusingOnFlorida]

I did a quick search and found this: the first references the Sunpak and the second gices some good advice. I have a B&W for my wide angle and a cheaper maodel for my zoom because they come in more useful in landscape photography (wide-angle).

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-...id=0094OD&tag=

and this:

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-...Sm&unified_p=1

[Mr. Pickles]

I think most of it is the coating or coating quality. Some lenses are not "coated", so they scratch very easily. Other shave multiple coats of coating. Of course, some are built better tolerance wise too. Also, some have really thin ones, whcih adds to the cost (according to them).

[Mr. Pickles]

What diameter?

[FocusingOnFlorida]

Originally Posted by bauerman

Does 15.99 just seem ridiculously low for a circular polarizer?

Here is a listing from one of my favorite online shopping sites. I've never tried Sunpak, so I can't help much their.

http://fatwallet.pricegrabber.com/se.../sortby=priceA

[Mr. Pickles]

I usually check 2Filters or the FilterHouse. Fliter House has a 58mm cheapie (Kenko I think) for $21 or so, while 2filters is $27 or so. Here are the sites, in case your looking elsewhere:

http://www.filterhouse.com
http://www.2filter.com/prices/specials.html

[ohenry]

Originally Posted by bauerman

Does 15.99 just seem ridiculously low for a circular polarizer?

Jared

If you have cheap lenses, then I guess cheap filters won't be an issue. But if you spent the money to buy good glass, does it make sense to place optically inferior filters in front of it?

[dc2]

Fair point Carl I never bought a cheap polarizer but once bought a cheap sky light filter and ended up throwing it in the bin

[Jose]

Recent experience taugh me that even polarizers from the same brand and grade are not born the same. Bought famous brand Japanese 72mm ultra slim and the filter showed spotty coloration throughout; returned and got another from the same brand and grade but instead of having a threaded retainer ring; it had a spring retainer that was out of the holding groove out of the box. Finally spend 30% more money and got a B&W polarizer; it is perfect. I should have known better since most of my filters are B&W anyway. And then there are Kaesmann polarizers, warming polarizers, etc, etc, etc...

[mikej]

The only problem with the cheap polorizers is you have to rotate the camera rather than the filter. It makes it hard to shoot sometimes.




Mike

[ohenry]

Originally Posted by Mike Jordan

The only problem with the cheap polorizers is you have to rotate the camera rather than the filter. It makes it hard to shoot sometimes.




Mike

ROFLMFAO! now THAT's funny...I don't care who you are!

[Mr. Pickles]

I saw a cheap polarizer once. I'm not sure, but it looked like a glass filter and came with a big graduated blue marks-a-lot pen.

[ohenry]

Originally Posted by bauerman

I'm not a huge fan of the cheap vs. expensive glass debate - I have lenses that pro photographers would probably turn their noses up to that perform very well for me and generate photos that elicit the same response from their viewers than if they were taken with "white" lenses.......

Jared

That wasn't the intent of my comment, but rereading it I can understand that it did come across as such. Consumer lenses will suffer from using cheap glass/plastic filters, just as much as professional lenses. The point is that a $15 filter probably isn't the most optically correct piece of glass and I don't suggest skimping on filters to save a few dollars. While one doesn't have to purchase the most expensive filters, I'd steer clear of the low end stuff.

[Mr. Pickles]

Better be a DVD of an old Super Bowl, because Da Bears won't be in dis one