PolarPro | Peter McKinnon Variable ND - Edition II - A Disappointment!

[@orpaztron]

Thanks! it saved me money and time. The problem is not the X pattern in sky or color cast but the "youtube reviewers" ethics....

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

You are welcome 🙏

[@sutv6754]

GOOD REVIEW and thank you for not being a Peter Fan boy as so so many are star struck, bought and paid for. I do have the freewell and it's very good but the only problem is the magnet cover will fail. I have 2 and they both failed after a year. The company does not help and are poor with the customer. They treated me like I did something wrong and I never got a replacement. What a bummer.

[@PaulJoy]

You have to be really careful with the YT influencer machine. The majority of the big reviewers do YT full time so it's more important for them not to say negative comments which is why I really value people like you sharing this information. You helped me decide to stick to a couple of solid ND's and just adjust in between with shutter speed. People get so hung up about 180 degree shutter but honestly most people won't notice a 90 or 45 degree shutter where as brown skies can ruin a shot!

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Agreed… and thank you 🙏😊

[@whiterock1865]

Yeah, I use 1/2000 and above for interviews and such and not visible at all. And I've also used very high shutter with gimbal moves and have to say it didn't look anything like saving private Ryan! ;)

[@mikewilloughby5448]

A clear blue sky is actually reflecting back partially polarized light. Your variable nd filters use two polarized filters. When you combine even one polarized filter and a polarized light source (like the sky) you can get variations in intensity and color. Try the same thing with even just a pair of polarized sunglasses. You'll see that the sky in some directions will look darker than others. (usually this effect is most noticeable when looking at the sky with the sun behind you.) All variable nd filters will have this same issue. A work around to try is loosening the filter by ⅛ to ¼ turn on the lens so that the base layer is oriented differently to the sky. It won't be necessary for all shots but in the even you are shooting in a specific direction and you notice the issue, it may help.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

💪

[@WilhardtKruse]

What about lens hood or matte box? Does that help with the brownish glare?

[@PaulKentSkates]

Because most KZbin reviewers only use their filters indoors

[@karadytube]

Big respect for your review, love it and love Spain :)

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Thank you 🙏

[@100adventurer]

Thank you for your honest review! 🙏

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

you are welcome :-)

[@karadytube]

What is the difference between 2-5 and 6-9 steps? Sorry for the naive question.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

The higher the number the darker the filter

[@MrAlifarrukh]

Great review . Please can u please suggest me which nd should I get ? Peter mck polar pro 2/5 or nisi? 2/5? I’m using Blackmagic 6k with 18-35mm? I don’t need that brown shade or anything if I’m shooting in day light

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

If you want variable ND polar pro are the best I have tried… despite of its limitations. For best result don’t use a variable

[@AlexSTR]

Too bad I found this after I noticed same issue with mine. The thing that bother me the most is darker sky color in the left top corner (I can see it on your example too 9:12). I have this issue at 4 and 5 stops on my 20mm lens (Even adopting 82mm filter to 67 thread). I don't see this bad effect on my 35mm, but I'm adopting 82mm to 55mm with step-up ring.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Yeah... it’s kind of frustrating that none of those KZbin experts who were doing a review mentioned this problem... ...I wonder why... but if you can work around this problem it’s a good filter... but it would have been nice to know before :-)

[@AlexSTR]

@@oli-haukur-valtysson Honestly, Gerald Undone has told about this trade off in his review of these VNDs Mark II. I just didn't catch that from my brief watch. His solution is to White balance the scene after you applied filter and chosen angle/composition/scene. That eliminates all the color cast and make your results great and accurate

[@IanSmithFotografi]

Another good well thought out review mate

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Thank you 🙏

[@dab7963]

Wow I just ordered one. I ordered the mist. How about using an xrite color checker ? It must be some kind of color cast.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

That won’t fix it...

[@dab7963]

@@oli-haukur-valtysson I will try it and report back when I get it. I don't actually shoot the sky frequently but it is disappointing if this can't be fixed.

[@TimandLauren]

heyy so which variable nd would you recommend with the least color changes?

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

This one is the best I tried… even with its limitations. For best results just use regular ND… if you are ok with some limitations this one is ok… a bit pricey, but quality glass is always expensive

[@85blueberry]

I find them right in the sun really yellow / gold ish. I have seen this in my video and photo now so looked if its me or just the problem with this filter. Thanks that you showing that this is the filter. Cheers, Arnold

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

You’re welcome 😊

[@jackleggo9159]

Thanks Olih I was also looking at Polar Pro but I think I will hold off for now.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

You’re welcome

[@filipponascone4634]

Where are you from? If you live in Europe, I’m trying to sell mine, if you’re interested you can save some money.

[@cricketer3135]

Hi. In your opinion Mark 1 or mark ii witch one is better?? Thanks

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

I have the mark ii... haven’t tried the old one :-)

[@Real_Nilam]

A solution wouldn't be to shoot S-LOG en fix this in post?

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Shooting in log and cross polarisation has nothing to do with each other… with log you get more dynamic range… that’s basically it

[@Real_Nilam]

@@oli-haukur-valtysson Ok, I see

[@andrewhendrick3347]

Great review but.... your background music made it really hard to watch the whole video.

[@szatrasie]

I bought second edition of 2-5 for my Sony 24-105 f/4. My first shoots took place in snowy environment - ugly cross-polarization was quite exposed and pretty obvious. I was also dissapointed and surprised, that nobody mentioned it in any review!

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Exactly... because some of those reviews are done by pretty big names... and I have to wonder why they didn’t mention this...

[@szatrasie]

Hi Oli! Sooo, I wrote PolarPro support about our issue. They told me, that most likely my filter was missaligned during manufacture. I sent it back, and got a new one… no difference at all.

[@41vids]

Is it a bad idea to get the edition 1 (since they are cheaper now)? I know they made external changes, but is the quality of the actual results of photos and videos the same for both edition 1 and 2? That’s all I care about, please help!

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Decently not a bad idea… I never used the first edition but I’m told they are about the same… they mostly improved the external features 😊

[@farandulerooficial9147]

an error is pointing to the sky without making a white correction with a gray card, if it still persists in post-production you should move towards the blue and that's it, polar pro is the best

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

😊

[@UltimateSportsFX]

@@oli-haukur-valtysson so did you change the WB after putting the filter on?

[@capturedbyfabian]

Freewell has the same problem but 10 times worse. I was looking at polar pro to see if I didn’t get this but your video proved that no sooo time to go solid nd

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Thanks for the info... now I don’t have to throw away money to try Freewell :-)

[@kss9931]

Thanks for the great review. Doesn’t look like a good for my UWA or wide to tele zooms. Have you tried it with a fast tele (85L). I’m wondering if you still get those issues with a faster lens.

[@ahmadsebastian7633]

You all prolly dont give a shit but does anyone know a way to get back into an Instagram account?? I was stupid lost the login password. I would appreciate any help you can give me.

[@axelali4254]

@Ahmad Sebastian Instablaster ;)

[@ahmadsebastian7633]

@Axel Ali Thanks for your reply. I found the site on google and I'm waiting for the hacking stuff now. I see it takes quite some time so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.

[@ahmadsebastian7633]

@Axel Ali It did the trick and I now got access to my account again. I am so happy:D Thanks so much, you really help me out :D

[@axelali4254]

@Ahmad Sebastian glad I could help :D

[@dancygr]

Have you tried the first version? It’s on sale for 150 for 6-9 on Adorama and I’m sort of leaning toward it since it’s cheaper.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

I have not tried it

[@Propellerhead1]

Had a hunch this filter was just hyped by influencers, went for the Lee Elements 6-9 in the end as it’s a reputable brand despite not having much of any reviews online

[@leemaxfield6822]

I'm so glad I saw this review. I've been looking at a lot of reviews on Variable ND Filters and I'm still not sure which filter to buy. My question is this, knowing what you now know would you recommend the Nisi or the Polar Pro? Thanks in advance.

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

I still think these are the best variable ND I have tried... but they have this problem... ... and also it’s a bit pricey... so for variable ND I would probably still get this one... for quality I wold not use variable

[@bulgariastan]

Same. Here. Everyone talked so positively about it on blogs KZbin videos and everything so I put down the money and BOOM ugly artifacts especially in blue skies.

[@filipponascone4634]

You could try the freewell pro mist vnd 1/8 so you have a “different” filter for a different purpose. The pro mist look is really nice, and the magnetic options from freewell is really tempting me 😅 I have the polar pro too(both of them) and I’m thinking to switch to freewell. I’m trying to sell the polarpro at about 400€, I think it’s a good price, they’re like brand new.

[@JsGarage]

Something that does multiple things will always have a sacrifice over something does one thing best. No free lunch!

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Free is not expected… this filter is far from it 🤣🤣🤣 But being honest about it’s shortcomings would be nice… it’s still the best variable nd out there, despite of its shortcomings, just be honest🤠

[@JsGarage]

@@oli-haukur-valtysson I get your point and understand where you’re coming from. Obviously it’s not cheap by any means. What beats it and doesn’t have the same compromise? My point is that anything that attempts to master too many things will almost always be inferior to something that has one focus. VND will always be second to a quality ND. You’re paying a premium for convenience and that doesn’t make it without compromise. The problem you have is mostly a problem on any VND and usually worse on cheaper VND. I think it’s worth letting people know the compromise exists. I’m not faulting you.

[@bikextheworld4223]

Coliflower ear you have another interesting hobby

[@oli-haukur-valtysson]

Hahahah... Jiu Jitsu man :-)

[@aspiringproduction3006]

Won't post-production colour correction take away that away??

[@sutv6754]

Stay away from Freewell. Bad bad customer service and the Magants will wear out. I've never know a magenant that did not. Boo Boo Free Well. I have 2 FreeWell filters both Maganauts wore out. Bad batch but when I called them they pretty much said sorry Charlie.