Will a polarizer make up for uncoated folder lenses?

athanasius80 · Dec 24, 2008

Hey guys,
I was out shooting recently with some of my 1930s folding Kodaks and realize that at times I've still got lens flare even with a K2 filter and a lens shade. Would using a polarizer filter reduce lens flare when I'm shooting towards the light source?
Thanks,
Chris

Poisson Du Jour · Dec 24, 2008

athanasius80 said:
Hey guys,
I was out shooting recently with some of my 1930s folding Kodaks and realize that at times I've still got lens flare even with a K2 filter and a lens shade. Would using a polarizer filter reduce lens flare when I'm shooting towards the light source?
Thanks,
Chris

A 1930s folder probably doesn't have a coated lens, which is where flare and low contrast comes in, even with a K2 filter. I imagine the lens is very small? Try a multi-coated filter. I doubt a POL would reduce anything if you are poking the lens toward the light source. A POL cuts out spectrals, saturates colours (needs considered care with, for example, Velvia) and can flatten the light (requiring an +exposure to lift the image). I get flare in strong sidelight when using the best filters on the planet only very slight and not enough to botch an image. The price of many filters relates closely to their quality, with B+W among the priciest, followed by HOYA (made by Tokina).

athanasius80 · Dec 24, 2008

Oh yeah, sorry. Uncoated lens too. Any more recs. on overcoming an uncoated lens?

Q.G. · Dec 24, 2008

There is absolutely no way you can 'make up' for glass surfaces reflecting light.

Adding more surfaces, each reflecting light as well (even when coated - reflections are merely reduced. Polarizers usually are not coated, by the way) will make matters worse.

It cannot, and thus will not, change how light bounces off surfaces that it reaches after passing through the extra surfaces.
Though each filter only adds two extra reflecting surfaces, the number of reflections is increased by a much larger number. (Light will bounce back and forth between all surfaces it encounters).

The only things that can reduce the amount of light that is reflected by glass surfaces are to reduce (! not increase) the number of them, and to give them an anti-reflection coating. Each and everyone of them.

What you could do is use a proper lens hood. Difficult though on an antique folder.

Nitai108 · Dec 24, 2008

I think a lens hood is your better chance to eliminate the flare, or you could ask a specialized lab to coat your lens, but I don't think it's worth it. I doubt you'll find a lens hood, but they are pretty easy to make, just make shure they are black.

bsdunek · Dec 24, 2008

Try this site: http://www.lenshoods.co.uk/
You can make your own! I always use a hood, both to reduce flare and to protect the lens from knocks.

edtbjon · Dec 24, 2008

bsdunek said:
Try this site: http://www.lenshoods.co.uk/
You can make your own! I always use a hood, both to reduce flare and to protect the lens from knocks.

Maybe not so much for the OP, but that site is simply brilliant!
BTW, there is a page where you can custom design your own lens hood, so Chris can design his own lenshood simply by adding a few numbers to a form. (Even more brilliant.)

//Björn

Xmas · Dec 24, 2008

Kodak used to make hoods for old kodak folders, dusty old camera shops frequently have cardboard boxes with everything for 50p or 1£...

Search and yea will find.

Some were holders for series filters.

Noel
P.S. the OP does say a hood was being used, have lens cleaned internally?

Windscale · Dec 24, 2008

A good lens hood is the best you can do. You can try to make one which is LONGEST and NARROWEST but without causing vignetting to push onto your lens. Uncoated lenses can be fun to use as they can reproduce amazing shadow details much better than modern multi-coated ones. But shooting directly into the sun is just not on.

BrianShaw · Dec 24, 2008

This is one of the reasons why "back in the good old days" the reccomendation was to always have the sun at your back when you press the shutter.

Poisson Du Jour · Dec 24, 2008

Q.G. said:
[...] Polarizers usually are not coated, by the way) will make matters worse.

I disagree, based on knowledge. Both HOYA and B+W POLs are coated, with HOYA's top shelf models with 6 coatings and B+Ws to a similar degree. Mind you, either for medium format can be extremely expensive, but for a 1930s folder probably not; how big is that lens??

Will a polarizer make up for uncoated folder lenses?

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