Just because you can, it doesn’t mean you should. In this world of photographic equipment and tools, sometimes, less is more. When it comes to filters and landscape photography, which one do you really need?
I didn’t have my first child until after 40, and in many ways, I’m grateful for that. As a single man roaming Tokyo in my early 30s, I certainly know my way around the streets of Shinjuku and Shibuya, but more importantly, I know how to spend it. That troublesome habit extends to my love of photography, and by anyone’s definition, I am a slave to Equipment Purchase Syndrome (GAS). Whether it’s the lens, the camera body, the software, or something else, if it’s new, I want it. Thankfully, marriage and kids have slowed that down, and when I look at all the gadgets I’ve amassed, I have to wonder if my spending is a bit too frivolous. are not. I often think about whether I need half of the equipment I have, including the filter.
And that brings us to this amazing video by fototripper, in which the host looks at the filters you really need to photograph landscapes. As you might expect based on my passage above, I have all sorts of filters, but these days, I rarely use any of them. One I use without error is a CPL or a Circular Polarizing Filter, usually from hoya. And in this video, the host agrees with me in claiming, perhaps controversially, that the CPL is the only filter you really need for landscape photography. I’m not sure all the manufacturers out there would agree, but he provides some good points as to why. Watch the video and let me know if you agree.
