Do you use polarizers away from water

<p>I know they are generally used to reduce reflections off water and glass but I am shooting in the southwern desert areas so no shortage of light to worry about. Is there anything to gain from using these filters say in Monument Valley or the Utah Canyonlands?</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

<p>Clive-try one on a day with big puffy clouds in an otherwise blue sky and you will have your answer! cb :-)</p>

<p> Yes, polarizers can be quite useful in desert conditions, and precisely where you're at. Try it.</p>

<p>I don't agree with the original premise. I suspect that more polariser usage relates to saturation- especially skies- then to reduce reflections in water and glass, but no matter, fact is you can use them for both. </p>

<p>Just be careful of two things. Whilst you can get an indication in the finder about the extent of darkening of the sky, it tends to underestimate just how dark your sky will appear in the final image. This is particularly so when your blue skies are pretty saturated anyway, which is often the case where you are going. If used carelessly you can easily produce skies that are verging on black. The combination of artificially saturated red rocks and an over-dark sky is not an attractive combination IMO.</p>

<p>Second, if you use polarisers with wide angle lenses, you tend to get differential polarisation across the frame, resulting in a band of darker colour at right angles to the sun.</p>

<p>So the answer for me at least is yes, but-----. Do you have grad ND filters ?</p>

<p>Yep, that's where I find them MOST useful. They can deepen the blue of the sky, and can sometimes also reduce reflected glare off of rocks, deepening the color saturation. (Polaroid sunglasses are popular for reducing reflected glare off of pavement; rocks aren't that much different in principle).</p>

<p>Clive -</p>

<p>Charles and Luis are correct, very nice enhancements of colors can be achieved with use of a polarizer. A small amount of haze in the air can be diminished, the atmosphere will seem more clear. But remember, it's mostly effective at around 90 degrees +/- a few from the sun.</p>

<p>Stand with the sun directly at your side, hold the polarizer to your eye and rotate the bezel until you see the greatest darkening effect. Then turn towards the sun and you'll see when the filter helps, vs. when it doesn't. Great for black and white as well, very dramatic sky/cloud contrast effects.</p>

<p>If you already knew all of this then disregard, I didn't intend to insult your experience level. Have a great trip, share some of your images when you return, I love that area. Best regards.</p>

<p>Patrick</p>

<p>Good advice in a specific application above.</p>

<p>As mentioned above a polarizer will have maximum effect when the sun is 90 degrees to you, it can be over applied. To see this, hold it up to your eye and turn in a circle.</p>

<p>At time you can use a polarizer in place of a colored filter with b+w film. I have used them both in the Negev Desert of Israel and the SW of the US of A.</p>

<p>Not that you see a lot of it in the desert, but polarizers are also extremely useful when shooting foliage.</p>

<p>I think of polarizers as an adjustable contrast control, a fine tuner, right there at the end of your lens. Glare and reflections can occur on all kids of surfaces. You may not need the PL all the time, but sometimes I may not recognize the benefits until I spin the dial. I pretty much keep them on there; they're not good for everything, but I definitely would bring one to the desert, if for no other reason than the modest ND benefit.</p>

<p>I use them more for reflections then blue sky myself but it is a very useful tool for both of these areas. It's also useful as a 2 stop filter to allow some flexibility in shutter speeds or f/stop control. I find the polarizer gives unpleasant patchy skys with a lens wider the 28mm so I do not use it for blue skys on my 12-24 lens. The Nikon polarizer is my favorite one as it's very thin and multicoated. It also allows replacing the lens cap which the other thin models do not.</p>

<p><em><strong>All</strong></em> Polarizers are also 1.5 up to 2 stop <strong><em>ND</em></strong> fliters. Two linear Polarizers can be used together for maximum Polarizing effects.</p>

<ul>

<li>For the maximum Polarizing effect with one Polarizer, especially on sun-brightened subjects, hold your forefinger up pointed towards the sun and make an arc with your thumb. Along that 90 degree arc will be the greatest polariizing effect.</li>

</ul>

 

<p>A very effective use for polarizers is in photographing rainbows. You can completely remove the bow or give maximum saturation by varying the angle of polarization.</p>

<blockquote>

<p><em>Whilst you can get an indication in the finder about the extent of darkening of the sky, it tends to underestimate just how dark your sky will appear in the final image. This is particularly so when your blue skies are pretty saturated anyway, which is often the case where you are going. If used carelessly you can easily produce skies that are verging on black.</em></p>

 

</blockquote>

<p>Right ? I've had this happen and the photos looked silly (bad) compared to what I thought I would end up with. Try the same shot both with and without the filter in place. Most 'panaceas' need to be used judiciously, just like in life itself.</p>

<p>Oh yes, and take off those polarised sunglasses when checking the viewfinder !</p>

<p>Bill P.</p>