Cokin holders, GND's and Poralizer

I need help choosing a Cokin holder for my Tamron 17-50 mm lens (67mm) and my Hoya circular polarizer which does not allow other filters to be attached to it.

I had opted for the Hitech 85/P ND filters (.6 and .9 )graduals with a Cokin P Wide Angle holder. Looked like a good choice for my budget until I noticed the the Cokin P Wide Angle holder does not have a slot for a polarizer.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks! Michel

My advice: skip the holder altogether and hand hold the GND filters. It takes a little practice but when you master the technique it's well worth the effort. No vignetting, and your filter line isn't static. You can move the filter(s) up or down as needed. And, it is easy to use the polarizer with this technique. Just my 2 cents...

Thanks, Is this technique possible with a 85mm width?

Thanks, Is this technique possible with a 85mm width?

Thanks, Is this technique possible with a 85mm width?

Wow, thats a lot of questions! I agree with Brett, and yes it is possible. I have a Cokin holder and i never use it--i also use a hoya circular and hitech grads.

Thanks Bret and Stan...and sorry for the multiple questions. Didn't realize that doing a refresh actually reposted my question! Thanks again.

I also typically handhold my filters, however, there are occasions when the holder is required (ND grad plus polar, for example). I'd go with the Cokin "P"-size, because this is usable up to 77mm. You -do- have to use their polarizer, though.

Ken

I prefer to use the holders. When I shoot with the 4X5, correct placement of the filter is critical and I don't feel that it can be done correctly without the holder. Plus you risk getting your fingers into the frame. I have hand held with 85mm filters with both the 4X5 and my dslr, but prefer to use a holder when I can.

If you want my advice, you don't need the slim filter for that lens at any focal length. Sell it and buy a standard front threaded CPL and then use the Cokin holder as intended.

Also, I use a Cokin P holder with all my lenses down to the 10-22 (the wide version). There is no vignetting if the filter holder is kept perpendicular to the frame. I suggest that you purchase two standard holders and cut the front two slots from one of them. I personally don't like the Cokin wide holder as well as the standard.

Mel-

I'm also a holder user, and I'll show you why...

This was taken last week on a work-related trip to Charleston, S.C. Due to my appendix bursting after Christmas, this was my first time out with the camera in quite awhile, so I was a bit rusty. You can see how I ruined this photo with poor hand-holding technique (not to mention forgetting to reduce ISO back to 100). My biggest mistake was not holding the filter exactly parallel to the lens. I was holding the filter nearly vertically, while the lens was angled downward. It looked good through the viewfinder and LCD at the time, and I didn't notice the problem until I got back to the hotel room. Not only can you see the bottom of the filter, there is additional glare coming from the back side of the filter on the right side of the photo.

I can assure you that the next evening the Cokin P holder was in place.

Thanks everyone for your comments and suggestions. Didn't realize the slim filter was not required for my lens. For now, I think I may go both ways, hand holding when I need to use my polarizer and experimenting with the standard holder vs handholding when I only use the GNDs. Thanks again! Michel