Controlling Reflections with a Filter
by A.B. Russell
eBay Staff Member

I hope you'll pardon the small detour my article took last month, but I was honestly excited to bring you that information about how different kinds of lighting can be used to enhance your pictures. It's something that you can use not only in photographing for eBay, but also in everyday photographs of children and friends. As promised, I'll get back to large items this month - focusing mostly on cars, but the information will carry over into other areas as well.

Remember the photographs I wrote about in a previous article on cars? You may have noticed a lot of reflections in the windows and on the metal areas. (The reflections probably aren't as prominent on my car; I really don't have the time to keep it shiny. But if you keep your car in tip-top condition, yours will probably show more reflections, too!)

You can minimize those reflections very easily and without too much expense. Aside from trying to photograph in an area where there is little to be reflected, you can use what's known as a polarizing filter. I won't tell you how it works -- it's a trigonometric-Pythagorean-serendipitous kind of thing. But I'll tell you how to use it.

The filter screws into the barrel of your lens. You need to be certain that you have the right size or it won't fit properly. When you have one, you'll notice that there's an extra ring on the filter. This will allow you to rotate the front element relative to the rear one.

Once you've set up your shot, look through the viewfinder of your camera. You may want to look without the filter first to see the difference. Then screw the filter on to the lens, and while looking through the viewfinder, rotate the second ring. You'll see many of the reflections appear and disappear as you rotate the ring.

You may also notice something else that's quite neat. The sky will lighten and darken as you rotate the ring. If there are clouds against a blue sky, the filter can make them more pronounced. Usually this won't detract from the image of the car unless you are so far away that the sky becomes the center of interest (remember, that's the background and your car is the subject). You may also notice that other colors in your image are richer and more saturated.

Keep in mind that the polarizer will not remove all of the reflections, particularly in the metal portions of the car. That's part of the Zen of polarizing filters: they don't remove all reflections from metal surfaces, even painted ones.

The filter will work inside and with smaller subjects, but remember that it will absorb some light. If you're using a flash, the results will be very difficult to predict.

As with all of the subjects we're dealing with here, there's much more to it. I can't begin to tell you the value of just going out and trying it. Practice is as important in photography as it is in anything else. Sure, you'll make mistakes, but that's part of the learning process.