If there’s a filter that I recommend to a photographer who has none, it’s the circular polarizer, or CPL, the filter that controls reflections. But as fantastic as CPLs are, they reduce the amount of light coming through the lens. PolarPro, however, has just introduced a new CPL that lets in half a stop more light than the typical polarizer.
The PolarPro Arctic CP Filter is a polarizing filter that’s designed specifically for the harshest arctic environments, including letting in more light. The company says the new filter is a high-transmission polarizer that’s half a stop brighter than standard polarizers, a feature that I think even photographers who never step foot in Arctic conditions may appreciate, along with the Chroma glass design that helps prevent color shifts.
PolarPro designed the filter in collaboration with photographer Benjamin Hardman, who also tested the filter in Greenland. And one of the challenges of shooting in extreme cold is that gloves are required, but adjusting settings while wearing sub-zero gloves isn’t the easiest task.
PolarPro says that the Arctic CP is made to be able to adjust while wearing gloves. CPL filters have a ring that rotates to control the reflections. The Arctic CP uses a shorter 110 rotation and a grip designed for gloves in order to make the filter easier to adjust in the cold.
Despite having a grip made for gloves, the filter ring is still narrow enough to use with lens hoods, PolarPro says.
The PolarPro Artic CP is available in 49mm, 67mm, 77mm, 82mm, 86C mm, and 95C mm, as well as the brand’s magnetic Helix MagLock system. The filter's list price starts at $120 (about £91.31 / AU$183.51 / CA$168.65) for the 49mm and goes up from there.
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