Customer Reviews

Hoya 72mm Circular Polarizing PL-CIR HMC Multi-Coated Filter

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Good to excellent color and light interplay (when used properly), capable of obtaining really desirable clarity and removing unlovely glare, shine and reflections. Unfortunately, the surface coating scratches very easily rendering the glass unusable. While walking around on a shoot, the camera twisted and brushed against my vest buttons. It might as well have been rocks as the accident scraped off some of the coating in the center of the glass. Granted, it could have scratched the lens (except I use a UV to prevent that) so it could have been worse. (Use your lens caps and hoods!)
I will be ordering the Heliopan Heliopan 77mm Circular Polarizer Lens Filter or the Heliopan 77mm Circular Polarizer Filter - SH-PMC (16 Layer Super Hard Multi-Coated) because Heliopan glass is "dyed in the mass" and as such it is far less prone to destruction from a simple act of carelessness. This route may be expensive, but so is replacing circular polarizers.
Another option, but not what I want to deal with is the Lee Foundation Kit LEE Filters Foundation Kit - Filter holder, an interesting way of building a flexible filter arsenal.
BTW, these filters are going to be thicker than others since that is the nature of the beast. I would recommend getting a 77mm (or greater) for a 72mm lens, then using a step-up ring to avoid (or reduce vignetting). Thinner rings are better, but cost more.

Hoya is the best when it comes to combining quality and reasonable price. It is used by professionals and amateurs alike. If you are using a film or digital SLR camera (with thru-the-lens metering), you must use a circular polarizer instead of a conventional one, or the metering will be way off. This unconventionally-sized 72mm filter is the one to use for those who have the Nikon 18-200mm VR lens.

The Hoya filter arrived on time and has so far done a fine job for me. I am an amateur photographer, so I'm sure there are other filters out there that pro's would prefer, but this does what I wanted it to do. It is multi-coated, and so far I haven't had any lens flare problems. I am using it primarily on a Nikon 18-200mm lens. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a mid-priced, good polarizing filter.

I have had this filter for over a year. It works as advertised. I have taken beautiful photos with that classic polarized sky and lush green vegetation. But, and it's a big BUT, it is nearly impossible to remove from my Canon 28-135 lens. There is no knurling that allows your fingers to grip the threaded frame that screws into the lens barrel. In fact, it fell apart while taking it out. I had to put it back together (an adventure in itself). The lubricant that is used for the rotating mechanism ended up on the glass and now it is unusable. I would recommend against this filter for that reason alone.

Does a wonderful job filtering haze and glare. Make sure you learn how to use a circular polarizer before you try it (sun should be at a 90 degree angle, never directly above you).

Also, make sure you adjust this filter by turning it counter clockwise. Otherwise you run the chance of accidentally unscrewing the filter during use and dropping it. That happened to me the first day of use. It fell on the cool deck by my pool, but nothing happened. Still looks like new. Whew!

This filter is the most important piece of equipment in any SLR photographers gadget bag! I finally got one at a great deal thru Amazon. You won't believe what you're missing out on. I read the reviews and thought it was a lot for a filter but oh boy what a difference it makes! Deep blue skies is just the beginning. As long as you shoot at an angle to the sun you'll see the difference right in your view finder.
ps Don't forget to remove when shooting back in low light conditions,you lose about two f-stops with the filter on.

After two years of limited use... never in harsh conditions and always stored in the case indoors... the filter fogged up between the lenses and that is over $100 out the window... what I didn't know when I bought it was the number of complaints about shoddy products from Hoya... The usual problem is that the CPL falls apart.. I guess I got lucky in that mine only became useless but stayed in one piece. btw, try to find out their warranty period... no information on the web site at all. It is one year but check out their supplier in the US for warranty terms-- if you accept those you get what you deserve.

We got this polariser more than a year ago,and I still can't believe the difference it has made to our photography. Absolutely an essential, especially if you're going to an area with water surfaces/reflection. We took it on our cruise in the Galapagos - with high suns and the reflecting ocean surface all around. Was the perfect asset to give our pictures deeper colour.

Hoya HMC Filter for my 18-200 lens is an excellent item as it helps to make a beautiful picture. I'm an beginner with a Digital camera and have a huge learning curve it's a lot of fun and hope to be a better photographer.

Bought this in October 2009 because it was recommended in my Professional Photography magazine. It does a beautiful job of making blue skies, etc. Unfortunately, since it's made of two parts with one that swivels, trying to remove it from my lens caused the ring that holds the two pieces together to snap and break. It was almost impossible to turn ONLY the ring attached to the lens and not the outer one! Needless to say, I'm very disappointed that I can no longer use this filter since it was quite expensive. Now the outer part falls off all the time. Next time I will buy a less expensive filter.