Polarizing filter -tips from moose
TIP: The last thing I want when using a polarizer is a “dark blue” sky. Why? Not only do I not want the stigma of folks looking at my image and saying to themselves, “he used a polarizer” but I don’t want the viewer to even notice a polarizer is in use. So to avoid this, when I shoot with a polarizer, I dial in +1/3 (conventional) or +1/2 (digital) exposure compensation. This prevents the polarizer “dark” look from coming into my image while capturing the “saturated” look properly using a polarizer brings to color photography.
Using a polarizer correctly takes talent just like using any other tool in photography! All you have to do is rotate the filter, right? That is correct, but when you’re rotating the polarizer you need to look through the viewfinder and look for the blue to disappear (this means you don’t use the polarizer unless you have a bright blue sky overhead). You don’t look at the sky, but you look at the ground. You rotate the polarizer looking at dirt if possible until the ground appears a nice, warm, rich chocolate moose brown (get it, chocolate moose, Moose’s technique?). Normally, the ground will have a cold, bluish, dead brown color when not viewing through a polarizer properly rotated. You want that ground warmed up to that rich chocolate moose brown because then you know you’ve removed the blue from the scene.
TIP: I can’t encourage you enough to take before and after photos when working with any new tool or technique in photography. Using a polarizer is a great example! Take an image polarized and not polarized so you cannot only see for yourself the effect, but you can learn what works and doesn’t work for YOUR photography!
What if the ground is not your subject, does this technique work? Polarizing light is another one of those physic things photography is so wrapped around. Technically, only objects approximately 90 degrees to the film plane are effected by a polarizer, that’s the full effect of the polarizer (and if the sky is in the photo, it turns dark blue at 90 degrees from the sun). In practice, you can see the effect of a polarizer even though the object might not be a true 90 degrees. That’s why you rotate the polarizer and look. I recommend first looking at the ground because dirt is pretty much dirt and a lot easier for folks to understand the polarizing effect than looking at a critter or tree bark. That’s because polarizers are not a cure all, but just another tool.
They don’t always help! If you’re shooting in overcast light for example, a polarizer will do nothing for you. If you’re shooting a backlit subject, the polarizer will do nothing for you. Shooting a backlit subject means you’re shooting with the lens pointed towards the sun and at that angle, the physics are all against you.
In the same vain, polarizers are not just for photographing scenics! I use a polarizer quite often when photographing critters, especially big game. The incredible impact a properly used polarizer can make on an animals pelt is mind boggling! But this is a time when you have to think through the pros and cons of using that polarizer.
Polarizers have one major drawback! Polarizers suck up two stops of light. Their very nature excludes two stops of light from reaching the film. When shooting in low light situations or when you need lots of DoF so you’re at a slow shutter speed, you might not be able to afford the loss of two stops. As a very general rule of thumb (which I’m the first to break), I try to never photograph any action with a shutter speed less than 1/30. A good example of this is Grizzly Bears eating grass (a common thing). When grizzly bears or any other critter is chewing their jaw mussels affect the eye and at slower shutter speeds, the eye might be out of focus when a critter is chewing. This is a time I don’t want to be below 1/30 and won’t attach a polarizer. I don’t want to sacrifice sharpness for better color.
TIP: If you shoot digital, you can “neutralize” the two stop loss of the polarizer by simply cranking up the ISO by two stops. If you’re already at a low ISO, this isn’t a problem but if you’re shooting at a higher ISO like 800 to start with, this might not work for you.
So what’s with this Moose Filter? As one emailer asked, the Moose Filter does not put antlers on a cow moose. The Moose filter is the combination of an 81a filter and a circular polarizer in one mount. The reason is simple for this combination. You’ve read how I always use an 81a filter. You’ve read how useful a polarizer can be. The combination of the two filters is lethal!
When shooting with ultra wides though, you cannot stack a polarizer on a 81a because the two stacked filters are seen by the film causing vignetting. Vignetting is the darkening of the corners of a photo. This is not desired. By having an 81a filter combined into one filter mount with a polarizer, you don’t have vignetting. So you can have the benefits of the two filters when using your ultra wides. When I attach the Moose filter, I do remove the 81a filter already attached to the lens. This is because the combining of two 81a filters produces an effect that’s not really desired. The result is an over warming of the image.
The Moose Filter is available in all the typical sizes and yes, you can buy it from us direct. The prices are: 52mm $59, 62mm $69, 67mm $75, 72mm $85, 77mm $99 and 82mm $119 (+$5.95 S&H, sales tax where applicable). You can order it direct from us! Please note: Moose Filters are currently on back-order.
NOTE: When using the Moose Filter or other polarizers, you generally don’t stack filters because this causes vignetting. Many ask if they should remove their skylight filter when using the Moose Filter, or if I remove the 81a filters on my lenses when using the Moose Filter. The answer seems obvious to us since the Moose Filter is two filters in one to avoid stacking and vignetting. The answer is YES, remove filters when attaching a polarizer such as the Moose Filter.