BetterPhoto Q&A
Category: Camera Filters

Two Part Question: Filters, Reflection on glass

2) I noticed that when I tried taking a picture of something that in a glass enclosure my reflection appeared in the images. How can I eliminate it?

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January 10, 2004

The clear one is probably a UV filter, for cutting UltraViolet light. UV is invisible to human sight, but the chemical photographic film process reacts to it and will make pictures too blue, especially at altitude or seashores. I'm not sure it's really necessary for digital cameras. Many people use a UV filter on the lens full time to help protect it from scratches, fingerprints, damage in dropping, etc. The filter is relatively inexpensive/expendable compared to the lens.

The polarizer is the one to use to cut reflections in glass or on water. It is directional, you have to rotate it to get the amount of effect you want. It will also deepen the blue of skies. Works best at about 90 degrees to the sun.

The orange filter is used for black and white photography. Other common B&W filters are Red, Green, Yellow and are used to create contrast where two different colors produce the same shade of gray in B&W.

The clear with the hole in the center is used to isolate a subject. The hole allows the center subject to be clear and sharp, the surrounding glass will create blur in the rest of the scene.

see http://www.tiffen.com/Filter_&_Lens_Brochure/BFILT_cover2.htm
or
http://www.thkphoto.com/products/hoya/index.html
or find the book, The Kodak Workshop Series - Using Filters
for more information.

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January 11, 2004

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January 11, 2004