What are the best 4x4" glass filters for overall picture imrovement?



Thanks,

C. Cook

Corey, you indeed Have Spoken...Vaguely!

What kind of overall picture improvement are you looking for? Better contrast, latitude, color, more film-like? It depends on the shooting situation. Best to start off with a Polarizer for exteriors. Searching the archives here under "filters" may unearth some gems.

Good luck!

I've looked at circular polarizers.

What do they mean by 'circular?' Is the filter NOT a 4x4" square glass, but a circular filter?


Thanks,

C. Cook

Corey,

Much discussion has occurred here over circular vs linear polarizers. Try doing a search. I'm personally of the school that circular polarizers are not necessary for DV.

Corey,
I think you are confused by the term "circular" with respect to a polarizer. It has no relation to the physical shape of the filter. It refers to the manner in which light is polarized in the filter. There are circular polarizers and linear polarizers.

For what it's worth, I use a linear polarizer in a 4"x 4" matte box and it works just fine with both my XL1s and my DVX100.

Corey,

You would want to use a circular polarizer to reduce glare from
water, windshields, fish tanks, etc. These work by filtering the
reflected light, which comes in at a different angle than light
that isn't reflected. (Very simplistic terms there, but this is how
I understand it.)

Also, as with a regular polarizer, they are used to get that blue
saturated sky look.

The main difference is that circular polarizers can be turned to
adjust the glare filtering.

,Frank

I'm afraid I can't agree with Frank on this. Linear polarizers are designed to be turned to increase or decrease glare of reflected light. Despite the name, both are made in square and round shapes. Information and definition of the two types and what they are used for can be found at the various filter manufacturer's sites such as Tiffen and Schneider.

Charles: Thanks for that clarification. I always took it that
circular polarizers were simply adjustable, as opposed to
linear polarizers.

I found this explanation on one page:


"A circular polarizer is a linear polarizer with a 1/4 wave plate attached at a 45° angle"

Thanks!


,Frank