Polarizing with View Camera

[Darryl Roberts]

Hi,

Will it be more difficult to visualize the effect of a polarizing filter on a view camera than a smaller format?

Thank you

 

[ic-racer]

My 'fast' 8x10 lenses are f5.6 and my 'fast' 35mm lenses are 1.4. The image I see with my 35mm cameras when composing is much brighter. How about you, what do you see with your equipment?

 

[Darryl Roberts]

My 'fast' 8x10 lenses are f5.6 and my 'fast' 35mm lenses are 1.4. The image I see with my 35mm cameras when composing is much brighter. How about you, what do you see with your equipment?

My view camera with a 5.6 lens yields a bright view. I'm wondering if a polarizing filter will be visible with rotating it.

Thank you.

 

[AgX]

You can see the effect by just looking through the filter and then the only thing you have to do us directing the camera the same way and to mount the filter at same rotational orientation. I do not see a difficulty in this, unless one establishes extreme movements where the angular position of the front standard is not really visible.

People using a plain finder or rangefinder camera have as only means to look through the filter directly.

 

[Darryl Roberts]

You can see the effect by just looking through the filter and then the only thing you have to do us directing the camera the same way and to mount the filter at same angular orientation. I do see a difficultiy in this, unless one establishes extreme movement where the angular position of the front standard is not really obvious.

People using a plain finder or rangefinder camera have as only means to look through the filter directly.

Alright, thank you.

 

[AgX]

I think for finder cameras there was a special swinging filter holder that let one look through the filter in exact same orientation as if placed in front of the lens, by swinging the filter after control laterally exactly by 180°.

 

[Vaughn]

Alright, thank you.

I'll second AgX's advice. Exposure compensation will involve a little guess work that will be worked out with experience, if not already.

 

[Paul Howell]

When using my fixed lens rangefinder I look through the filter, find the best orientation, then mark the two components of the polarizer with a grease pencil then use that mark to line up the lens on the camera. My view camera lens are all 5.6 and 6.3, I use figure out the amount of polarizing from the ground glass.

 

[Darryl Roberts]

When using my fixed lens rangefinder I look through the filter, find the best orientation, then mark the two components of the polarizer with a grease pencil then use that mark to line up the lens on the camera. My view camera lens are all 5.6 and 6.3, I use figure out the amount of polarizing from the ground glass.

Wow, thank you.

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

If the groundglass is bright and even enough, you can usually figure it out by looking at the groundglass. With a wide lens, it helps to have a fresnel. Also be sure it’s dark under the darkcloth without too much light leakage, and let your eyes adjust, and you can see what’s happening even with the lens stopped down.

 

[Alan Edward Klein]

Most polarizer I think have a little white line ion them. You can look through them, adjust where you want it then note where the line is. So when you put it on the lens, just put the line back where it was.

Curious how others handle ND, polarizers and grads with LF. Do you set up the picture and focus and set the tilts first?Then add the filters?

 

[Darryl Roberts]

If the groundglass is bright and even enough, you can usually figure it out by looking at the groundglass. With a wide lens, it helps to have a fresnel. Also be sure it’s dark under the darkcloth without too much light leakage, and let your eyes adjust, and you can see what’s happening even with the lens stopped down.

 

[Darryl Roberts]

Thank you I use the BLACKJACKET from quietworks it completely eliminates light leakage. http://quietworks.com/FRAMES_FILES/WELCOME_BJ_FOCUSINGCLOTH.html

 

[David A. Goldfarb]

Thank you I use the BLACKJACKET from quietworks it completely eliminates light leakage. http://quietworks.com/FRAMES_FILES/WELCOME_BJ_FOCUSINGCLOTH.html

I have one, too, for 8x10” and larger. Great choice.

 

[Darryl Roberts]

Seems linear polarizing is the way to go when needed.

 

[Nokton48]

4x5 Norma Polarizer and Sinarsix by Nokton48, on Flickr

Darryl,
The Sinar Norma Polarizer rotates 180 degrees away from the lens, you can set the rotation directly. then swing it into the lens path. Also takes Norma front accessories. The Norma Sinarsix reads directly TTL accurately through the camera and eliminates spurious exposure errors. The Norma bag bellows and monocular allow good direct viewing.

You like modern embellishments but maybe this will give you ideas

The effect of the polarizer can be seen directly on the ground glass.

 

[AgX]

Seems linear polarizing is the way to go when needed.

It does not matter.
Contrary it would be with most modern SLR's.

 

[138S]

Hi,
Will it be more difficult to visualize the effect of a polarizing filter on a view camera than a smaller format?
Thank you

IMO it's more difficult to see it, it's always more difficult to see anything in the view camera GG than in a convenient viewfinder of a SLR

But but you can always adjust well the cross-polarization in the GG, just look at the glares in the scene from sunlight to rotate the filter. As always Pol do nothing if illumination is not polarized, in an overcast sky Pol acts mostly as a Neutral Density filter taking 30% of the light. Direct sunlight is Polarized by the Earth's magnetic field, but an overcast sky destroys the light polarization.

Personally, sometimes I did something to adjust the polarization degree (angle to the top cross polarizarion), as I use a DSLR to meter I find the angle and I use the same in the view camera. Anyway you simply can compare what happens in the SLR/DSLR view finder (as you rotate filter) to see how the same looks in the GG, to learn better the effect.

Seems linear polarizing is the way to go when needed.

With Velvia it darkens sky, preventing local overexposure. In general Velvia is saturated enough, but...

 

[Darryl Roberts]

IMO it's more difficult to see it, it's always more difficult to see anything in the view camera GG than in a convenient viewfinder of a SLR

But but you can always adjust well the cross-polarization in the GG, just look at the glares in the scene from sunlight to rotate the filter. As always Pol do nothing if illumination is not polarized, in an overcast sky Pol acts mostly as a Neutral Density filter taking 30% of the light. Direct sunlight is Polarized by the Earth's magnetic field, but an overcast sky destroys the light polarization.

Personally, sometimes I did something to adjust the polarization degree (angle to the top cross polarizarion), as I use a DSLR to meter I find the angle and I use the same in the view camera. Anyway you simply can compare what happens in the SLR/DSLR view finder (as you rotate filter) to see how the same looks in the GG, to learn better the effect.




With Velvia it darkens sky, preventing local overexposure. In general Velvia is saturated enough, but...

Thank you

 

[ic-racer]

My view camera with a 5.6 lens yields a bright view. I'm wondering if a polarizing filter will be visible with rotating it.

Thank you.

If you can't see the effect on the ground glass, the light you are trying to eliminate may be scattered. The ground glass of a veiw camera, of course, allows for much more detailed analysis of a scene than, for example, a SLR viewfinder. Those are usually suitable for snapshot type images.