Please help with CPL filter info

[andreap]

Apologies if this topic has been done to death, but have spent all morning reading reviews/posts/etc and feel like I'm going round in circles.

Am wanting to purchase circ polarised filter for Canon 10-22mm. Have been playing with Cokin P series nd & ndg filters for waterfalls & seem ok so far (am just novice to the filter world)
From what I'm reading, I should probably stay away from Cokin P series CPL due to vignetting - correct?
Can also see advantage of Hoya screw-on CPL rather that Cokin drop-in filter when I'm moving from place to place - correct? (should also mention that other lenses are 77mm so use on them is not an issue)
Am I better to go with the thinner Hoya Pro1 when using wide angle as opposed to basic Hoya CPL? (again to avoid vignetting?)

If I go Hoya Pro1, should/could I stack onto UV filter (which i'm using mainly for lens protection) or remove UV?

Any help and advice gratefully received.

[junqbox]

Hi Andrea, For a WA lens like the 10-22, you'll need the Pro version (especially if you want to put the GND on the front of that, without too much vignetting). I tend to leave it on for the same reason you use the UV, in which case you can ditch the UV (I don't want to kick the hornets nest on that debate). In regards to the ND/GNDs, you can use a Cokin P, but you'll need to remove the front two slots in order for it not to vignette when the lens is at its widest, ie- 10mm. On mine, I had to file away a little from the corners also, but I use a Nikon and you may not have this issue with the slightly smaller Canon sensor (assuming APS-C, not FF). Of course, this restricts your stacking capability, but you may want to have a think about how often you might actually stack and if so keep an 'unmodified' one handy. You can pick up one of the cheap China ones off eBay for the mod version. I happened to be in Japan earlier this year and bought a genuine Cokin P holder for stupidly cheap money compared to here, which I've left intact for my other lenses and if I need to stack at some time. I can use the P holder at 12mm with no vignetting.

[arthurking83]

I would recommend against the Cokin P CPL, only because it'd be a pain to set up if it's only the CPL that you want.

If you have the Cokin P series multi filter holder then there woudl be an advantage as the holder wouldn't have to be attached to the screw on type CPL and thus cause even more vignetting! The Cokin CPL will fit into one of the holder slots, so technically it's easier to then use a CPL and the other filters at the same time.

As for whether to go with the slim or the standard CPL for screw mount types, I'll just add my experiences with my two versions of both.

I have a standard Hoya polariser from many years ago(something like 15 or so) and I also purchased a Hoya Pro1 super slim version about 2-3years ago as well both at 77mm.
I have the Sigma 10-20mm lens mounted to my Nikon cameras and have never seen vignetting with the standard version, nor have I ever seen any more vignetting with the std version compared directly with the Pro1.
I could count on one finger the number of times I've ended up using the Pro1 in preference to the std version.

I see no point in them. They are slightly easier to clean, but that doesn't mean that the std filter is harder to clean! No! sometimes what happens is that the cheaper build quality of the older and or cheaper CPL filters means that they can actually come apart in your hands if you're too vigorous in handling them... where the rotating bezel has come off the main body of the filter.
They can be hard to put together without appropriate tools, there is a wave washer spring type clip that has to be carefully positioned and best done witha small amount of force with a screwdriver.

I can't over state the importance of being very careful with a screwdriver against a piece of filter glass! :D

So the Pro 1 is actually better than the cheapo filters, but not in terms of IQ(that I've ever seen), and only with respect to a much higher build quality.

Considering my infrequent use of the Pro1, I should really sell it off, as I really never use it.. but I can't be bothered most days.
If you'd like to visually inspect the differences between both types, then at the next AP meetup that I can attend, you're more than welcome to see them for yourself.

Member Etherial(Mic) may also be able to shed some light on the topic too, as the last time we caught up he used both of my polariser types on his Canon+10-22 lens and made a decision based on the same gear specs.

NOTE: my main grief with the super slim filter is that it has no front filter threads so you can't attach the lens cap back onto the lens when not in use. This is 99.99% of the reason I don't use mine. I leave my CPL on one of my easy to get too lenses, in my bag or on the lens I'm using most(10-20 Siggy), and it basically stays there.
I've found that possibility of missing a shot due to a filter of this type not being present, is more likely to happen than if the filter was not attached.... so I prefer to leave them on.

[andreap]

Thanks for the suggestions guys....... didn't realise the Hoya pro1 didn't have a front thread. Like the idea of lens cap going back on. - Andrea

[arthurking83]

There are a few ultra slim types with front thread filters... but I don't know what model??

[junqbox]

Thanks for the suggestions guys....... didn't realise the Hoya pro1 didn't have a front thread. Like the idea of lens cap going back on. - Andrea

My pro1 does, although the cap just hangs on, easy to knock off. Not sure what the BW ones are like.