Polarising filters

jo30

jo30

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Jo
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Looking at buying a polarising filter.

First search on jessops has thrown up these two:

http://www.jessops.com/accessories/...ffacet=filter_thread_size&fh_refpath=facet_29

I know you get what you pay for but is there really a massive difference between the two for the price difference of £50?

Has anybody used either of these and would you recommend them? If not do you have any other suggestions of other brands?

Thanks
Jo
 
Hoya HD is reckoned to be one of the best BUT I've had one for about 3 years and the coating on one of the internal surfaces has become crazed.

Marumi is another very good name and reasonably priced. They have three ranges, standard, super, and the latest top-of-the range polariser is the Exus range. Not sure if its available in UK but you can find it on the internet. I got mine from Gadget Infinity in HK for about £70. (No tax or duty charged)
 
jo30 said:
Looking at buying a polarising filter.

First search on jessops has thrown up these two:

http://www.jessops.com/accessories/lens-accessories/filters/-/circular-polariser?fhl=filter_thread_size=77mm&fh_maxdisplaynrvalues_filter_thread_size=-1&fh_refview=lister&fh_reffacet=filter_thread_size&fh_refpath=facet_29

I know you get what you pay for but is there really a massive difference between the two for the price difference of £50?

Has anybody used either of these and would you recommend them? If not do you have any other suggestions of other brands?

Thanks
Jo
Click to expand...
Hi Jo,

The Hoya ones are pretty good because they have a coating on to reduce glare. I use the Hoya HD filters for one main reason... They are much easier to clean. I found other filters, including Hoya's other types smear a lot when you try to clean them. However the Hoya HD's clean easily and quickly.

In the end it is up to you how much you invest in filters though. Good brands are Hoya and B&W in my experience.
One thing to perhaps do is buy one really good polarising filter that will fit your biggest lens (the one with the largest filter size) and then just buy step down rings so that it can be used on your other lenses.

I keep my eye on Amazon prices as they can vary quite a bit and you sometimes find a bargain mid-week.
 
Jo. I have a standard Hoya, and a Marumi Super DHG. Yes the standard Hoya is a bit more fussy to clean- but I don't really find it an issue. I'm quite happy with both of them.
As David says buy one big enough for all your lenses (including any lens you're toying with buying) other wise you'll end up wasting money on buying 2 (like me...)
 
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jerry12953 said:
Hoya HD is reckoned to be one of the best BUT I've had one for about 3 years and the coating on one of the internal surfaces has become crazed.

Marumi is another very good name and reasonably priced. They have three ranges, standard, super, and the latest top-of-the range polariser is the Exus range. Not sure if its available in UK but you can find it on the internet. I got mine from Gadget Infinity in HK for about £70. (No tax or duty charged)
Click to expand...
davidfleetphoto said:
Hi Jo,

The Hoya ones are pretty good because they have a coating on to reduce glare. I use the Hoya HD filters for one main reason... They are much easier to clean. I found other filters, including Hoya's other types smear a lot when you try to clean them. However the Hoya HD's clean easily and quickly.

In the end it is up to you how much you invest in filters though. Good brands are Hoya and B&W in my experience.
One thing to perhaps do is buy one really good polarising filter that will fit your biggest lens (the one with the largest filter size) and then just buy step down rings so that it can be used on your other lenses.

I keep my eye on Amazon prices as they can vary quite a bit and you sometimes find a bargain mid-week.
Click to expand...
Coyon said:
Jo. I have a standard Hoya, and a Marumi Super DHG. Yes the standard Hoya is a bit more fussy to clean- but I don't really find it an issue. I'm quite happy with both of them.
As David says buy one big enough for all your lenses (including any lens you're toying with buying) other wise you'll end up wasting money on buying 2 (like me...)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the recommendations everyone... seems like everyone has similar views on the Hoya's, seem to be quite positive. I will have a look at the other brands that have been mentioned too. I was planning on buying one that fits the lens that I'm intending to buy then buy a step down ring for the main lens I use at the moment.

Thanks again everyone!
 
I have a Hoya Pro1 CPL & would highly recommend it.
 
Binned a good Hoya as it was a nightmare to clean replaced it with a Marumi that has been much better!
 
Polarisers with the tougher and easy-clean multi-coatings include Hoya HD, Hoya Revo, Marumi Super DHG, Marumi Exus, B+W MRC. All highly recommended. Hoya HD and Marumi Exus use a slightly different polarising material that reduces overall exposure about half a stop less (helps to keep shutter speeds up). All polarising filters polarise the light just the same, no difference there. The main differences are the quality of the glass and coatings and that's worth paying for, but not night and day. Single coating is significantly better than no coating, multi-coating a bit better than single.

Bear in mind that buying one larger filter and stepping rings will probably mean you can't fit a lens hood. I wouldn't go down this route for that reason alone. Be sure to bone up on how polarisers work for best results - angle to the sun, rotation, optimum angle for reflections etc.
 
HoppyUK said:
Bear in mind that buying one larger filter and stepping rings will probably mean you can't fit a lens hood. I wouldn't go down this route for that reason alone. Be sure to bone up on how polarisers work for best results - angle to the sun, rotation, optimum angle for reflections etc.
Click to expand...

Gotta disagree a little with Richard there. As he rightly says angle to the sun makes a difference to the effectiveness of the polariser- at least in terms of the sky. You get the most effect when shooting at right angles to the sun. If you're shooting toward the sun -yes you might want a lens hood, but you probably wont want the polariser as it won't do anything to your sky.
There are circumstances where you might be shooting towards a light source but also want to use a polariser to control reflections.That's when I use my Universal Variable Lens Hood- also known as my left hand.
Apart from anything else, I shoot mostly with prime lenses and I don't want to have to carry 4 different lens hoods around with me.
 
Have tried various different brands of CPL's in the past n a variety of lenses. , and eventually settled on using Hoya Pro1's. Have found them to be very effective.

In fact, I just change lenses, so I need to get some different size ones - got some for sale in the classified section, you are welcome to come and try if they are the correct size for your lens.
 
Oh and re. the Hoya I should add that I fell forward on some wet rocks at the seaside the other week (I'm getting old). My 5D was round my neck with a tele zoom on. Not the lightest set up, and it was the Polariser that got the good news from the rocks. A bit of paint and metal scraped off the Hoya but that was it- it still works perfectly.
 
Coyon said:
Oh and re. the Hoya I should add that I fell forward on some wet rocks at the seaside the other week (I'm getting old). My 5D was round my neck with a tele zoom on. Not the lightest set up, and it was the Polariser that got the good news from the rocks. A bit of paint and metal scraped off the Hoya but that was it- it still works perfectly.
Click to expand...

Another good reason for using a lens hood...
 
HoppyUK said:
Polarisers with the tougher and easy-clean multi-coatings include Hoya HD, Hoya Revo, Marumi Super DHG, Marumi Exus, B+W MRC. All highly recommended. Hoya HD and Marumi Exus use a slightly different polarising material that reduces overall exposure about half a stop less (helps to keep shutter speeds up). All polarising filters polarise the light just the same, no difference there. The main differences are the quality of the glass and coatings and that's worth paying for, but not night and day. Single coating is significantly better than no coating, multi-coating a bit better than single.

Bear in mind that buying one larger filter and stepping rings will probably mean you can't fit a lens hood. I wouldn't go down this route for that reason alone. Be sure to bone up on how polarisers work for best results - angle to the sun, rotation, optimum angle for reflections etc.
Click to expand...

Just thought you'd like a little feedback on the new Marumi Exus polariser. It exudes quality, but in normal use the outer coating is already showing signs of damage. I've had it about ten days, so not a good sign.....
 
jerry12953 said:
Just thought you'd like a little feedback on the new Marumi Exus polariser. It exudes quality, but in normal use the outer coating is already showing signs of damage. I've had it about ten days, so not a good sign.....
Click to expand...

What do you do with your filters Jerry?! Problems with Hoya HD, now Marumi Exus - filters don't get any better than these! My Hoya HD is older than yours I think, five years or so now, and it's as good as the day I bought it.
 
HoppyUK said:
What do you do with your filters Jerry?!
Click to expand...

I use them! They don't get treated with kid-gloves, I put them in my pocket, and leave them on the lens. An earlier pre-HD (I think) Hoya also had a very fragile outer coating. I can remember moaning about it on here! At least the HD lasted longer than that.

It *could* be argued that they should be kept in their case, but that wouldn't prevent damage to an inner coating, would it?
 
Would you put a bare lens in your pocket?
 
Just pop it in the dishwasher Jerry- they come out lovely.
 
not sure but i think hoya supply jessops with their rebranded filters. hth mike.
 
Sorry it's taken me so long to get back to everyone. Thank you for all of the replies. I went for a HOYA HD one in the end. Very happy with it and got some of the images I wanted.
Thanks again! Jo
 
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