Photography » Polarizing Filter

Value of a Polarizing Filter

Introduction

Filters are redundant with a digital camera, right? Any filter effect can be reproduced afterwards with Photoshop.

For colour effects, this is doubtless true. It's not true, of course, for a polarizing filter. I think that the two shots below, taken from the same vantage point [harbour, Nanaimo, Vancouver Island, Canada], first without and then with a polarizing filter, show the value of a polarizing filter for sky/water scenes in bright sunlight.

image with no polarizing filterimage with polarizing filter

Filters with the Canon PowerShot A700 series cameras

camera with mounted filter

The Canon PowerShot A700, A710IS and A720IS have a bayonet mounting ring, intended for accessory wide angle and telephoto lens. I bought a non-Canon adapter tube (much cheaper!), which allows me to use a 58mm polarizing filter. Sadly, the so-called 'replacements' for the A700 series don't have this feature. I agree with the reviewer who wrote "If this represents a new direction for the A-series then there will be some disappointed customers".