Canon® EOS Digital Photography Photo Workshop

7.8. ASSIGNMENT

Improving Outdoor Photos with a Polarizing Filter

A polarizing filter can dramatically enhance your photos. Pick a nice sunny day to shoot outdoors with your polarizing filter. Ideally you can shoot where you have lots of sky or water (or both) in your shot, which is where your polarizing filter is really going to show its capabilities.

Take at least three photos: one without your filter, one with the filter at its least amount of filtration, and one with the filter with its greatest amount of filtration. This will allow you to see how much the polarization can really affect the level of blue. If you shoot with your camera on a manual setting, you may also want to adjust your exposure by a stop or a little more to prevent it from being underexposed. Otherwise, the polarizing filter makes the image darker.

Choose the image you like the best and post it to the Web site with your explanation.

In the example here, you see a photo of a statue of Joan of Arc in Orleans taken on a bright, sunny morning." The polarizing filter was rotated to optimize the deep, rich blue of the sky. Taken with a 1D Mark IIn using an EF 70-200mm f/2.8L lens at 1/2000 second, f/2.8, ISO 50.

Remember to visit www.pwassignments.com when you complete this assignment and share your favorite photo! It's a community of enthusiastic photographers and a great place to view what other readers have ...