Another question about circular polarizers

[meesh]

Hi! I have another quick question about using a circular polarizer. Could I use it to photograph people? Well obviously yes...but If they're standing outside in the hot sun, I understand that it makes the sky darker and so I expect it to make them darker also. But would is it something that you wouldn't recommend? sorry if it sounds like a silly question...

 

[xfloggingkylex]

Hi! I have another quick question about using a circular polarizer. Could I use it to photograph people? Well obviously yes...but If they're standing outside in the hot sun, I understand that it makes the sky darker and so I expect it to make them darker also. But would is it something that you wouldn't recommend? sorry if it sounds like a silly question...

It works fine, as long as you have the light to do so. It doesn't so much as darken the sky as it does filter the light out of it. You do need more exposure when using a polarizer, but as long as you have the light it will work fine. The advantage is the added contrast and color saturation from the filter enhances the skins tone. If you are truely worried, I will take an outdoor picture of one of my family memebers with and without the polarizer on so you can compare and see if you like the effect.

 

[Torus34]

Polarizers, whether linear or circular, do two things to the light passing through them.

First, because the filters are not colorless but greyish, they reduce the amount of light [all colors about equally] passing through them.

Second, if any of the light is polarized [reflections from glass or water surfaces or the light from a blue sky], they will block some or most of the polarized light from that source.

The light reflected from people, excluding the possibility of a reflection from a piece of jewelery, is not polarized. It will simply be reduced along with all the other non-polarized light passing through the filter.

The normal filter factor for polarizers is 2. This translates to a 1 stop reduction.