Smooth turns

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This review is for the B+W 58mm Circular Polarizer (MRC) This is the worst piece of junk I have ever bought. After a month some sort of oil or grease started leaking from the filter, which contaminated the glass. I got the filter exchanged. The second one was in very poor shape on arrival. The coating was very uneven and I even saw small holes where it looked like the coating was missing. In fact I could see the uneven coating through the matte box the filter came in. Fingerprints seem to be hard to remove from this filter as well. So much for $93.50. Perhaps I was unlucky to get two defective filters, however I think B+W needs a better quality control. I will not recommend B+W’s polarizers to anyone. I have the B+W UV filter (MRC) as well. This filter does not have any of the above problems.

Schott glass brass ring smooth rotation comes with storage box and lense cap

Not cheap for 77mm

This review is for B+W''''s 77 mm slim circular polarizer. It is not the MRC (multicoated scratch-resistant) one, however, I believe it is mono coated on each side. I ordered this and a heliopan slim polarizer (mono-coated) and shot a roll of film using both to see which one was better. My initial observations were that the B+W is about a mm thinner. The heliopan felt sturdier and more solid in my hand, although both are very well crafted and rotate smoothly. I really prefer the brass rings on these compared to the aluminum ones found on Hoya fliters. The B+W comes with a plastic filter cover, which is a big plus. The heliopan has numbered markings around the rotating ring to measure/guide the amount of polarization. I didn''''t have a problem removing fingerprints from either filter. On print film, both polarizers noticably sharpened my photos. The heliopan seemed to have a little warmer tint, and the B+W a cooler one, with slightly truer colors. Both had the same amount of glare when shot directly into the sun. The B+W vignetted around 20mm and the heliopan around 21-22. The B+W has just a hair lighter and more neutral gray. In the end, I kept the B+W just because of the very slight edge in truer color. I don''''t think you can go wrong with either of these quality polarizers. Both are made with Schott glass and solid brass rings, and will improve the crispness of your photos dramatically.

Similar Products Used:

Hoya Thin UV

excellent polarization high quality glass brass mount (non-slim filter) and overall build. note: I once dropped a heavy macro lens from waste high on to pavement. The glass cracked, but this filter saved my expensive marco lens from any damage.

slim filter. Avoid the slim! quite expensive-- is the price justified?

This is a top-notch polarizer, although I can''t detect any differences between the B+W and Tiffen models I own. The Tiffen is more reasonaly priced. It''s also seems to be better than the HOYA, which I''ve also tried. A plus for the B+W is the solid construction (non-slim version only), especially the Kaesemann version. Used properly, this filter on a regular consumer zoom lens can create great-looking, saturated prints. I haven''t noticed any discoloration with this filter. Beware the "slim" version of th B+W polarizer! I owned one, briefly. The glass fell out of the brass mount within days of using it. Boy, that was money down the drain. To the reviewer who found cleaning this filter a hassle, try a chemical pen (the one with the felt tip). This works for the tough-to-clean spots. I then use a lens cloth to remove the residue left behind by the pen (looks like black dust)

Customer Service

n/a

Similar Products Used:

Tiffen

Good name, optical quality seems to be o.k., nothing else :O((

Heavy Vignetting up to 40 mm on Canon 8-105, ultra scratch sensitive coating, ruggish rotating, loose ring, expensive.

I have the B+W Circpol 58mm ES coated. It is build not very well, rotating scratches but the ring is even too loose. I scratched the lens by a very smooth cleaning with blowing any dust away before using cloth. Vignetting is very heavy on my Canon EF 28-105. It''s noticeable up to 40 mm !!! I can only warn to buy the normal version for use on a zoom like 28-... I''m going to sell it and try to get a slimline version. I''ve read on www.schneiderkreuznach.com that they have a brand new design since September 01. There is no more E or ES type, just one design for one diameter. Maybe better !

Similar Products Used:

None

Brass ring spins onto any lens. I had a problem with Tiffens binding in my 24-120 (which has polycarbonate threads), and the B+W solves that problem! Of course, it created another one (see "weaknesses").

Nice, neutral color. (Many cheapo pols introduce a color cast - for example, I've seen some Tiffens that didn't seem too neutral to my eye,)

Thick ring. I've never seen thicker, even on two-element apochromatic diopers. The result was vignetting for sure on my 24-120 at the wider focal lengths - which is not a problem in real life because if you polarize 24mm, you'll get uneven polarization because of the wide field of view.

It weighs a ton too.

OK, it's the Rolls-Royce of filters. So, it's made of top-notch materials, everything works with a silky smoothness, it'll last forever, and it's outrageously expensive. Is a B+W worth 4x the price of a Tiffen? Is a Rolls-Royce worth 8x the price of a Toyota? It depends on what you value. I suspect that some of the difference lies in intangibles.

Customer Service

Not needed.

Similar Products Used:

Nikon, some Heliopan, Hoya, Tiffen.

Incredibly high optical and built quality. Brass mount means that the filter does not stick dead to a lens barrel, so you don't need rubber gloves to take it off. Filter name and type is written on the front ring, so filters are very easily identifiable in filter holder pockets.

outrageously expensive, frather thick (I have never seen one in a slim mount so forget about mounting one on a 17mm lens.

Buy it if you can justify the price or if you can afford it without justification :-) This stuff is expensive, but worth every penny. Build quality speaks for itself. Optical quality is a different matter, though, because one can see a real difference only with high quality lenses ie Carl Zeiss or Canon L. So, the bottom line is: you won't benefit from it with consumer grade glass.

Customer Service

did not need

Similar Products Used:

Hoya, Tiffen

Very high thread/ring quality. UV filter very durable. Polarizer coating not.

First one I got from B&H (77mm for Tokina ATX235Pro & Canon 70-200F/2.8L) had several scratches in the coating (appeared to have been used). They replaced it with a new one, and then I scratched the coating with a very careful cleaning. This is the first time I've ever scratched any lens/filter by cleaning. I use all the right cleaner and tissue and a light pressure. So I've concluded that the coating on these CircPol filters is unusually fragile. I also bought their 77mm UV filter and have had no problems whatsoever. The coating on that has withstood my same cleaning methods ... Still use the polarizer with no noticable effect from the scratches.

Nice filter, but due to the fragility of the coating, I'd head for another Hoya or Canon polarizer first. Pretty expensive ($150 for 77mm circpol)

Customer Service

Didn't try.

Similar Products Used:

Hoya, Vivitar, Canon Polarizers.

Optically and mechanically very high quality

Not cheap

These are the best filters I have ever seen. I am using the normal an the Slim line Käsemann and they are excellent. I never had any problems with scratches or so like some of the other reviewers.
Not cheap but the best equipment is never cheap.

Customer Service

Not yet needed

Similar Products Used:

Hoya, Tiffen, Hama, Kodak, Rodenstock

I bought a full line up of circ.polar. and uv multicoats to replace hoyas (77,82,86mm) excellent build quality, smooth rotations, quality glass

price. i also touched the surface of the 77mm polarizer while rotating it. i has been almost impossible to remove my fingerprint! the oil only smears and when it looks clean, i see fog when viewed at an angle.

Top of the line performance and build. But, I just can't get over the difficulty in cleaning. It took me 6 hours to remove simple finger oil, and even then they are not spotless. It makes me hesitant and overly paranoid about touching the surface accidents again. But, the optical performance is perfectly matched to Sigma EX lenses.

Customer Service

ok. i deal with germany so automatically the customer service expectation should be lowered. they admitted that the multicoats are "very difficult" to clean and suggested that the filters be sent to them for cleaning?!

Similar Products Used:

hoya multicoats, sigma uv multis

doesn't stick

used it in winter, turned all the snow blue.
vignettes under 35mm
glass falls out
heavy

I bought the 72 mm circular. By the time I got home the glass had come loose and didn't turn with the frame. I took it back and got another one. I took it out one day to the country and used it on most of two films, it turned everything blue, snow was almost as blue as the sky. i have not had this problem with any of my three Hoya polarizers. vignettes under 35mm which makes it useless with almost any normal zoom. after two days the glass fell out. i was gentle with it and this has not happened with any of my other filters.

worthless, really.

Customer Service

not in russia

Similar Products Used:

hoya