Polarizing Filter

[Cheuwi]

Hi all,
Good morning. I am a brand new member to this wonderful forum and have been learning a lot from all of you already (through reading all the posts and articles as a non-member).
I have been shooting SLR for over 20 years now and have decided to get back into RF lately. My first camera was a Olympus 35RC, I still have it and shoot with it once in a while. Since then, I have been using Nikon SLR and DSLR products.
I recently bought a Bronica 645 RF for travelling as my Mamiya 645 is getting a little bulky and heavy for me to carry. One immediate question I have is how do I use my polarizing filter on the RF? With SLR, I can always see the effect of my polarizer... with the RF??? I have read some articles on positioning it through seeing it and then mount it on the lens by keeping the position. However, my filter does not have marking in the ring for this purpose. Is there a specific brand that has the marking on the filter for this purpose that RF users preferred?
Thanks,
Cheuwi

 

[charjohncarter]

I do exactly that with my RF and TLR cameras. My Toshiba polarizing filter from 1970 has an arrow on the movable ring. I look though it and remember the arrow position. Put it on the camera and move the ring to that position. Frankly, I like the PF over yellow to red filters because you can get darkened sky without losing shadows.

 

[Ken Smith]

I found the commercial options mentioned above rather expensive, especially for what amounts to a step-up ring that has been slotted to see through. I purchased my own 55mm-77mm step-up ring for a nominal price ($8) and slotted it myself with a Dremel motor tool.

 

[Bruin]

I use the Kenko system, but it's a tradeoff: do you want a huge 77mm polarizer in front of your lens or a viewfinder in your hotshoe? The Kenko is slower to use also since you have to adjust two dials.

A clever way to make your own indexed polarizer is to only buy the Kenko VF and use it to mark indices on a polarizer you already own. Just don't forget the 90 deg. offset!

 

[jackportd]

Choosing a polarizing filter


On SLR cameras, the usual polarizing filter has to be screwed onto the lens. Of course, you need to pay attention to the diameter of the ring. It is generally mentioned on the lens itself.
The wider the lens, the more expensive the polarizer. I never purchased one for my 82mm wide Sigma 20 because of its price.
Cokin and Singh Ray both proposer filters that fit the Cokin filter mounts.

Autofocus SLR cameras need circular polarizers.

For wide angle lenses (24mm or less), you will probably need to pay attention to the filter you will purchase or you might get vignetting (darker corners on your pictures). On slower lenses, such as my 17-40L, this is not much of a problem, but I was told it would be different with the faster 16-35L.

The solutions are the more expensive slim filters or the more affordable wide angle polarizers, the latter being what I use on my 17-40L. Both generally do not have an outer ring, so you will generally not be able to use another screw-in filter on top of them or even use your regular lens cap.

 

[gotium]

There are a few options;

- Leica's own "Universal Polarizer M"
- Kenko's "Rangefinder Polariser System"
- Leicagoodies.com "Steps"

I went with the Leica setup - picked it up used as it's rather expensive. Very much like the setup for the Mamiya 7/7II (which I also have). Quite easy to use and you can peep through the VF or over the top of the camera to see the effect, and depending on your camera, allows for easy metering.

Thank you thank you thank you for posting these links way back when. I've been scratching my head about this for a few weeks now.

 

[gotium]

There are a few options;

- Leica's own "Universal Polarizer M"
- Kenko's "Rangefinder Polariser System"
- Leicagoodies.com "Steps"

I went with the Leica setup - picked it up used as it's rather expensive. Very much like the setup for the Mamiya 7/7II (which I also have). Quite easy to use and you can peep through the VF or over the top of the camera to see the effect, and depending on your camera, allows for easy metering.

Updated question here -

Can you use the Leica universal polarizer with a lens with a 43 mm filter size - for example the 35/2 Biogon? I can't figure it out from the descriptions on their website.

 

[payasam]

Welcome, Cheuwi. You could use white or yellow ink or paint to place a mark on the rim. Look through the filter while rotating it and note the position of the mark when you have the effect desired.