5/06/2013

Incredible Things You Can Achieve With A Polarizing Filter

By Luke Walker


A polarizing filter is a brilliantly diverse and useful piece of equipment that you can put in front of your lens. It gets rid of reflections, glare and colour from things.

Imagine you have a nice colourful shot that you're thinking of taking. It may be of some cars or bicycles for example. Let's take a look at how you would use a polarizing filter in this situation.

A lot of people don't fully understand exactly when they should be using polarizers. If the sun is behind you. In this situation the polarizer won't have any effect at all. Also, if you're shooting into the sun, the polarizer will have no effect at all. The sunlight has to be coming from the side, ideally at a right angle to your subject.

With a polarizer you twist it to see the effect. You can see it start to roll around the picture, darkening the sky behind it. It will make a blue sky seem a deeper tone as well as removing the reflections off the objects you are shooting, giving you a beautiful, strong, saturated colour. This makes a truly amazing shot.

It is important to note that the stronger the sun is, the stronger the effect will be, and it could also turn out a little bit too intense, so it is best to spend tim on this and find the right amount of polarization as you twist the filter.

Another thing worth mentioning is that if you're shooting at high altitudes such as on a skiing vacation or a mountain climbing holiday, the effect will be too strong. You may even find that it could even turn the sky black a lot of the time. Depending on your environment you may want to dial the polarizer back slightly or don't use one at all.

Another instance is if you don't have much light, say for example you are shooting a garden and it's raining. The rain has covered all of the vegetation with a beautiful glistening water. Imagine if you want to get rid of those reflections so that you just see the strong, saturated colour. This is a great time to use a polarizer.

Another important thing to mention about a polarizing filter is that it is rather dark, and removes a couple of stops of light. So it is recommended to use it with a tripod.

Also, don't assume that using this gadget will make all of your pictures look superbly colourful and vivid. It may not actually produce such an effect. Instead, it may cause you to get fuzzy pictures because it is reducing light, so your shutter speed will need to be slower. In conclusion, polarizing filters are very versatile and useful, and can be used in all kinds of photography. They can make a big difference when used properly.




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