Hoya vs B&W Circular Polarizer Filter

[batmura]

I am thinking of buying a CP filter to avoid reflections while shooting aquarium fish and maybe increase colour saturation for landscape photography. Can those of you who have used either filter share their opinions on these? The B&W costs more than twice as much as the Hoya, and I'd like to know if it's worth it. If you think, the Hoya would do the job, I might go for that one. Also, finally, if I decide to get a CP filter, should I leave it on the camera at all times or are there instances when it should be removed?

Thanks!

 

[Buckster]

I can't speak for the Hoya, as I've never had/used one. I have a couple of the B+W CP filters and couldn't be happier with them.

I only put mine on when I need it to do it's job. You'll sacrifice a stop to a stop and a half with the CP on the lens.

 

[unpopular]

I had a Heliopan polarizer as well as some B+W b/w filters. They're well built and the multicoating I think is a bit more robust than less expensive filters. There's an overall solidness to them.

But that heliopan, if bought new, would have been like $139, verses like less than $50. You get what you pay for, but how "well built" does a filter really need to be?

 

[tirediron]

Yes, it's worth it! B+W, Lee, Singh-Ray, and Heliopan are pretty much the top end of the filter market. There is a significant difference in both optical quality and mechanical quality between high and low end filters. Granted the difference between a multi-coated Hoya and a B+W is less than the difference between a Hoya and a $10 eBay no-name, off-shore POS filter, but there is still a difference. The most notable differences will be in colour-cast (or lack thereof) and in any softening of the image caused by the filter. Even the cheapest kit lens has thousands of hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of R&D in it; does it really make sense to hinder it with a crappy filter made out of recycled 7up bottles?

...but how "well built" does a filter really need to be?

Says the Donkey who has never tried to remove a cheap, POS aluminum-bodied filter with stamped threads from the end of a lens!

 

[KmH]

You may have noticed, it's B+W, and not B&W.

There are filters even better than what B+W has to offer.

Some Hoya filters are good enough and some aren't. Basically, stick to Hoya's multi-coated filters.

 

[batmura]

Any idea if this one is a multi-coated Hoya filter? It is half the price of the B+W and I understand Hoya is not as good, but it would be great to hear some opinion from those who have used them.

Hoya 67mm CPL Circular Polarize Filtre, Hoya, 67mm, CPL, Circular, Polarize, Filtre, fiyat, zellikleri, incelenmesi, yorumlar

I have several B+W ND filters and they're indeed the best I've ever used. Thanks for all the replies!

 

[tirediron]

Can't get that page to open, but typically if it doesn't say 'Multi-coated' on the package, it's not.

 

[KmH]

Hoya calls multi-coated MC or HMC.

Hoya 67mm HMC Circular Polarizer Filter

Better still is a weather sealed CPL
B+W 67mm Kaesemann Circular Polarizer with Multi-Resistant Coating

The bottom line is, get the best you can afford.

 

[unpopular]

...but how "well built" does a filter really need to be?

Says the Donkey who has never tried to remove a cheap, POS aluminum-bodied filter with stamped threads from the end of a lens!

This is true. I never have really used a cheap filter since I was a teenager - back then, Tiffen filters RULED! lol

Remember the whole Tiffen filter craze of the 1990s?

 

[bratkinson]

disclaimer: I do not now, never have, nor contemplate ever working for Hoya or any of their subsidiaries, agencies, distributers, etc.

40+ years ago, when I 'discovered' I needed special filters to color correct film type/lighting type issues, my local camera store put me into Hoya filters. I've never used anything but Hoyas ever since. I've never found any recognizable image degradation because of a Hoya filter, either.

Hoya today makes several 'grades' of their filters, from 'good quality' to 'outstanding quality', most easily identified by their price. Using the search for Hoya 67mm polarizer at B&H Photo, I came up with the following:
hoya 67mm polarizer| B&H Photo Video
with prices varying from $38 to $160 for their HD2 line.

B+W has a similar line of filters, priced from $48 to $210 at B&H:
b+w 67mm polarizer| B&H Photo Video

While I consider Hoya filters to be on par with B+W, many consider B+W as the 'creme de la creme'. Hey, it's their right to have an opinion, too.

As has been repeated and 'discovered' time after time here and elsewhere, you get what you pay for. This seems to be most true when it comes to lenses & filters in the world of photography.

And to see the potential effects of less-than-good-quality filters, here's an interesting read from www.lensrentals.com blog:
LensRentals.com - Good Times with Bad Filters

 

[Vautrin]

So the key question to ask is, what did you spend on your lens?

Image quality is DIRECTLY related to the quality of ALL glass elements in / on your lens.

That includes filters.

If you're shooting with a kit lens on a entry level body, you probably won't notice the difference if you have a high end, or low end filter.

If you're shooting with a $1500 prime lens, don't be cheap, as that would mean a downgrade in quality of your photos.

 

[batmura]

Thanks for the detailed reply, bratkinson. I was getting worried about so many user reviews stating the Hoya filters fell apart really quickly.

 

[unpopular]

For the record, I got a cheap Sunpak circular polarizer for xmas, while I know that this is WAY cheaper than the Hoya (at typical Sunpak inflated prices), I thought I'd point out that when I got it I noticed that it didn't cut reflections as well as I'd expect.

Last night I held it up to my monitor, and noticed that it didn't really cut all the light like I'd expect it to, but instead kind of made it dark blue, but I could clearly read everything on the screen. That's interesting for landscape photographers who'd normally encounter non-polarized light in the sky and over water - places where bumping blue could be useful - but as a CPF, it's kind of weird.

A true CPF should darken an LCD screen to black without any color at all.