Reducing Glare/Reflections through a Circular Polarizer

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Here's a little technique article for those interested on utilizing a polarizer even in lower lighting conditions like indoor exhibits or (as the example photos in the article) an aquarium.

http://dustinabbott.net/2014/03/circular-polarizer-where/



"...In the perfect world for photographers, it would always be “golden hour”.  The light would be soft and directional, making even mundane things appear rich and interesting.  But in the real world golden hour only comes (at best) twice a day, and often not at all.  Experienced photographers learn to use things like circular polarizers and ND (neutral density) filters to help control the light in less than ideal conditions.  These filters are particularly helpful when the light is more harsh and glaring.  I personally like to have a circular polarizer available for all my lenses.

But this little article isn’t about using a circular polarizer in a conventional way.

It’s about why I screw on a circular polarizer in a very dark place like interior spaces at zoos and, most recently, at an aquarium.  What?!!"...to read more click the link above...

[Click]

Very good information. Thanks for sharing Dustin.

[mackguyver]

Nice article Dustin and it's pretty amazing what the combination of new technologies (high ISO bodies) and old ones (polarizers) can achieve in the right hands.  I liked the photos as well and think the jellyfish one turned out really well. 

[lintoni]

Very good information. Thanks for sharing Dustin.

+1

[Vivid Color]

Dustin,

Great idea and nicely written article. I'll have to try this the next time I'm at the national aquarium in Baltimore.

Would you mind posting the ISO, f-stop, and shutter speeds of some of the photos you took?

Thanks again!

Vivid

[Sanaraken]

Good info. Thanks for sharing.

[verysimplejason]

Thanks for the info Dustin.  I didn't think of using the polarizer before.     I had difficulty shading the incoming light outside just to get this.  Off-topic, the current display from flickr changed and take sometime to getting used to.

[hiZis]

Was planing on doing just the same thing in a month in Beijing and/or Shanghai aquarium. But I have my doubts. CPL is effective in removing reflections when there is a nice angle between the camera and the glass. And even then it would not be a 100% result. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to lean the lens flat to the glass (or at a small angle with hand covering) and discard all reflections whatsoever and gain more than a stop of light?.. I guess I'll have to find out myself.

[verysimplejason]

Was planing on doing just the same thing in a month in Beijing and/or Shanghai aquarium. But I have my doubts. CPL is effective in removing reflections when there is a nice angle between the camera and the glass. And even then it would not be a 100% result. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to lean the lens flat to the glass (or at a small angle with hand covering) and discard all reflections whatsoever and gain more than a stop of light?.. I guess I'll have to find out myself.

I've done those things but a polarizer might (I'll also do some tests) make it easier.  Sometimes, a wide angle causes distortion of the subject which you might not want.  A longer focal length + CPL + high ISO might do the work.

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Very good information. Thanks for sharing Dustin.

My pleasure

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Nice article Dustin and it's pretty amazing what the combination of new technologies (high ISO bodies) and old ones (polarizers) can achieve in the right hands.  I liked the photos as well and think the jellyfish one turned out really well.

The High ISO performance of this current generation is really pretty stunning.  If another stop or so can be gained in the MKIV of the 5D line or the 6DII, it really changes the game.  If you could treat ISO 12800 or even 25600 like you do 6400 now...wow!

The downside for the manufacturers is that photographer's need for primes is dropping.  A two lens kit of a couple f/2.8 zooms (particularly with stabilizers) really covers most every need.  Primes offer more creativity and flexibility with shallow DOF (and I love them), but I'm going out of the country to shoot a wedding next week and am only packing a 24-70 and 70-200 f/2.8 zooms.

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Dustin,

Great idea and nicely written article. I'll have to try this the next time I'm at the national aquarium in Baltimore.

Would you mind posting the ISO, f-stop, and shutter speeds of some of the photos you took?

Thanks again!

Vivid

Most all of the shots are in the ISO 10K-12.8K range.  Shutter speed is typically around 1/100th second, and all of the shots are wide open in terms of aperture.  With the 70-300L, however, that means that at best it was usually f/5 and more typically f/5.6.

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Was planing on doing just the same thing in a month in Beijing and/or Shanghai aquarium. But I have my doubts. CPL is effective in removing reflections when there is a nice angle between the camera and the glass. And even then it would not be a 100% result. Wouldn’t it be more efficient to lean the lens flat to the glass (or at a small angle with hand covering) and discard all reflections whatsoever and gain more than a stop of light?.. I guess I'll have to find out myself.

I've done those things but a polarizer might (I'll also do some tests) make it easier.  Sometimes, a wide angle causes distortion of the subject which you might not want.  A longer focal length + CPL + high ISO might do the work.

If you have opportunity to both have full access to the glass and you can frame your shot effectively that way, your technique should work.  The polarizer approach has the advantage that you don't have to wait for people to get out of the way, you can frame freely, and you can get your shots off faster.  The aquarium I was in was particularly busy, but I didn't really have an issue getting the shots I wanted.  In fact, I shot the lead image in the article of the stingray from a crowd during a "show".  I wasn't even close to being in the front of the crowd (for some crazy reason they don't want the 6+ foot tall guy standing in front of the kids.  Weird )

[TWI by Dustin Abbott]

Thanks for the info Dustin.  I didn't think of using the polarizer before.     I had difficulty shading the incoming light outside just to get this.  Off-topic, the current display from flickr changed and take sometime to getting used to.

These look nice.  I've been toggling back and forth between the two looks on Flickr for months, so I am pretty familiar with the interface already.  I like it for viewing and commenting, but finding some of the other functionality of Flickr is a little clunky.  They are definitely changing their focus.  I'm a little concerned about the death the Getty Images partnership with Flickr, too.  I liked the approach of Getty inviting images through Flickr rather than going through the work of submitting images directly that might not get accepted.

[mackguyver]

Nice article Dustin and it's pretty amazing what the combination of new technologies (high ISO bodies) and old ones (polarizers) can achieve in the right hands.  I liked the photos as well and think the jellyfish one turned out really well.

The High ISO performance of this current generation is really pretty stunning.  If another stop or so can be gained in the MKIV of the 5D line or the 6DII, it really changes the game.  If you could treat ISO 12800 or even 25600 like you do 6400 now...wow!

The downside for the manufacturers is that photographer's need for primes is dropping.  A two lens kit of a couple f/2.8 zooms (particularly with stabilizers) really covers most every need.  Primes offer more creativity and flexibility with shallow DOF (and I love them), but I'm going out of the country to shoot a wedding next week and am only packing a 24-70 and 70-200 f/2.8 zooms.

I know and I hate to see the new lenses coming out with slower apertures because the shallow DOF is what makes [D]SLR photos so unique and different from compact cameras and phones.  I hope the camera companies realize that this is the one trump card that they will always hold over camera phones .