Polarizer for eye detail?

eswebster

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I'd like to take some close up portraits and get some extra detail in the eye for a bit more intimacy.... has anyone used a polarizer for this?
 
Depending on how 'intimate' you want to get, perhaps a macro lens might be more appropriate... With the appropriate lens, I'd guess you could get close to the same retinal view an optometrist gets.
 
I asked what lighting you will be using, because not all light is polarized.

When using a polarizing filter, the angle of the light source relative to the filter has a lot to do with determining how much effect the filter can have on polarized light.

The inexpensive book Light Science and Magic: An Introduction to Photographic Lighting discusses the various aspects of polarized light and how it affects photographs.
 
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i'll be using a yonguno strobe behind an umbrella for the lighting. I dont want super super close up, aka macro. but something where you can see more of the soul and emotion of the person... via the eyes. It's for my baby boy and i am trying to capture his stare into the lens. The other trick i am going to try to get him to look into the lens is flash a little LED through the eyepiece to make the center of the lens draw his attention.
KEH i was wondering if a strobes reflection would be effected by a polarizer. I know 90 degrees to the source is the strongest.

After taking a few pics i think it will come down to increasing the power of the strobe and moving the strobe away from his face to make the reflection smaller in the first place.
 
i'll be using a yonguno strobe behind an umbrella for the lighting. I dont want super super close up, aka macro. but something where you can see more of the soul and emotion of the person... via the eyes. It's for my baby boy and i am trying to capture his stare into the lens. The other trick i am going to try to get him to look into the lens is flash a little LED through the eyepiece to make the center of the lens draw his attention.
KEH i was wondering if a strobes reflection would be effected by a polarizer. I know 90 degrees to the source is the strongest.

After taking a few pics i think it will come down to increasing the power of the strobe and moving the strobe away from his face to make the reflection smaller in the first place.

Not sure if this applies hopefully you'll find it of some use:

Making Eyes Pop and Sparkle and Finding the Light: Part One | Photoshop Actions for Photographers by Paint the Moon
 
Moving the light and umbrella away makes the light source apparently smaller, making the light harsher and shadow edges less diffuse.

http://tv.adobe.com/ has some nice tutorials about how to edit eyes.
 
The other trick i am going to try to get him to look into the lens is flash a little LED through the eyepiece to make the center of the lens draw his attention.
That probably won't be visible to the subject. And if you do it during exposure it could possibly have a negative impact on the photos.

Who is "he"? A baby? I only say that because you're resorting to 'tricks' to get him to look at the camera.
 
yeah he is only a few months old. The led shows through the lens well enough to get him to look, and i'm not coordinated enough to shine the light and hit the shutter at the same time so i shouldnt impact the exposure with the light there.

Thanks everyone for the comments and great links, very valuable resources you've pointed me to.
 
Yeah, I don't know why I said that before, lol. The mirror will block it off during exposure too.

It could cause some metering errors though, but you probably wouldn't be looking at the meter and shining a light in the viewfinder at the same time...
 
Baby Development Colors | eHow

. . . During the baby's first week, what he sees is blurred. . .

. . . Heiting cites that a baby can see red, orange, yellow and green after one week of birth. Blue and violet take longer due to shorter color wavelengths for blue light. Also, the human retina has fewer receptors for blue light.
. .

 
i'll be using a yonguno strobe behind an umbrella for the lighting. I dont want super super close up, aka macro. but something where you can see more of the soul and emotion of the person... via the eyes. It's for my baby boy and i am trying to capture his stare into the lens. The other trick i am going to try to get him to look into the lens is flash a little LED through the eyepiece to make the center of the lens draw his attention.
KEH i was wondering if a strobes reflection would be effected by a polarizer. I know 90 degrees to the source is the strongest.

After taking a few pics i think it will come down to increasing the power of the strobe and moving the strobe away from his face to make the reflection smaller in the first place.

You don't *need* the polorizer, but the umbrella will make great catchlights:


Pookie in B&W by The Braineack, on Flickr

I shot this while I was taking pictures of clothing to sell on ebay for my wife.
 

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