Circular Polarisers

Tulipone · 2 Dec 2012

Okay, spent on a new lens and now thinking of a CPL.

With a car, the fact is that you can get to point b from point a in any car that functions. The stereo may not be as good, or the ride quite so smooth, but you'll get to point b.

What is the difference between a cheap CPL and a good branded CPL? Obviously money, but what else will I notice? I se eon ebay that China seems to be the main vendor of Hoya. Are Hoya more prone to copies?

Grateful for advice.

faddius · 2 Dec 2012

Tulipone said:
With a car, the fact is that you can get to point b from point a in any car that functions. The stereo may not be as good, or the ride quite so smooth, but you'll get to point b.

Not necessarily, I wouldn't hold my breath if the car was a £50 "special" off gumtree.

Hoya are prone to copies because they're a big name when it comes to filters. They just want to put a decent, recognised name on their counterfeits. Same way as why would a counterfeiter brand a shirt as "FF, by tesco" instead of Armani?

The more expensive you go with filters, the less the filter impacts on image quality. If you're using expensive lenses, it makes no sense to chuck on an awful filter due to the image degradation.

seriousrikk · 2 Dec 2012

If you buy Hoya, buy from a recognised UK dealer. Chances of receiving a legit copy from china are slim...

And also, a cheap CPL will impact image contrast and sharpness much more than one that cost a few quid.

Pookeyhead · 2 Dec 2012

I rarely use filters of any kind, but when I need to, I use B+W filters. Very high quality Schott glass, with excellent coatings. They're the only ones I'd trust.

HoppyUK · 2 Dec 2012

Common difference is more expensive filters have better coatings. Some are tougher too, like Hoya HD, B+W MRC, and Marumi Super-DHG, and won't suffer permanent marking from dried rain drops for example. Quality control should be tighter, so it's most unlikely the glass could be flawed, which sometimes shows up as a loss of sharpness with longer lenses that mangify imperfections.

There are two types of CPL. The most common type reduces overall exposure by 1.7-1.9 stops, then there is a lighter toned variety that's about half a stop less, ie 1.2 stops like the Hoya HD. Always handy, particularly useful for action photography such as if you use a polariser to cut reflections off windscreens in motorsport.

The only way to guarantee a genuine filter is to buy from a retailer supplied by the official importer.

Digitalize · 2 Dec 2012

I use Hoya Pro1Digital CPLs, they're very good, but make sure it comes from somewhere reputable, they seem fairly cheap on Amazon, but make sure it comes from Amazon, or a retailer you trust. Not 'filters4less' or something.

Keebsuk · 2 Dec 2012

I use Marumi Super DHG and they are excellent.

Andy

Prize78 · 7 Dec 2012

Digitalize said:
I use Hoya Pro1Digital CPLs, they're very good, but make sure it comes from somewhere reputable, they seem fairly cheap on Amazon, but make sure it comes from Amazon, or a retailer you trust. Not 'filters4less' or something.

I've just received a Cpl from Amazon for a decent price. Is there any way of checking if it's legit or not??