Reflecting on Some Polarizing Filter Pranks

Every photographer knows the benefits of using a screw-in polarizing filter for minimizing glare from water and windows. There are a couple of other lesser known tricks and pranks, however, that you can easily perform with a simple polarizing filter threaded onto the front of your fave camera and lens.

First of all, recognition must be paid to Dr. Edwin Land for discovering and commercializing the polarizing filter. Edwin H. Land, the founding father of Polaroid Corporation, the birthplace of instant photography, made his landmark discovery of developing a synthetic product for polarizing light vibrations in 1928. In 1929, Dr. Land patented his polarizing material.

The basic operation of a polarizer is very simple to explain but proved cantankerous to build. In a simplified description, light vibrates in two planes, vertical and horizontal. You can easily “see” these vibrations as the glare that is reflected off water and glass. Dr. Land was able to coat a synthetic sheet with crystals which dried into a material that was able to tame these vibrations. This was dubbed a light polarizing effect which he could increase as two of these synthetic sheets were rotated into a 90-degree orientation to each other. And that is the “A-Ha” moment, folks. Or, as he titled another one of his patents, in 1933, “Polarizing Refracting Bodies.”

From sunglasses to camera lens filters, Dr. Land’s ‘polarizing refracting bodies’ synthetic sheets became the de facto standard for reducing/eliminating glare. But there’s more to these polarizing sheets than meets the eye. A clever photographer can adapt an ordinary polarizing filter to a number of different subjects with a visually pleasing effect.

A Light Wave Doesn’t Mean Goodbye

Before you can begin your discovery of polarizing light vibrations, you’ll need to equip your camera lens with a polarizer. A great example filter is the Tiffen Circular Polarizer Screw-In Filter. Simply match the Tiffen filter size with the diameter of your camera lens front filter thread size and you’ll soon be eliminating glare, reducing reflections, and deepening the blue of a cloud-filled sky. Compare these samples and judge for yourself:

If you’d like to reflect on the creation of the polarizing filter, you can learn more about Dr. Land’s discovery in this article: The Invention of the Polarizer.

Enjoy.

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