I have a 70-300 Nikkor VR Lens that I use with my D80 Nikon. I normally shoot with just a UV filter. A few days ago I decided to use a polarizer filter while shooting surfer photos on a beach. When I got home and viewed my shots on the screen, they are were blurred. I have very few blurred photos when shooting without this filter.

Anyone know what is happening?

A year or so ago I had a Neutral Density Filter that would not focus sharp either. I chalked that one up to a poor quality filter bought over the internet. Now I am not sure.

Can the filter effect the ability of the Auto Focus on the D80 Camera?

Steve

Both ND and Polarised filters reduce light maybe by as much as two stops, so this may well explain blurred images as you will drop down past where hand holding will cause camera shake..  Also the filter needs to be the circular type for digital cameras

Are you using a circular polarizing filter? The older type of polarizers do not work with digital cameras. I use the same lens and just tried it with my Hoya circular polarizing filter. I experienced no blurring.

Wayne

I think Danny probably hit the nail on the head....what was the shutter speed shown in the exif of the blurred photos?

I am sure the polarizer I have is NOT a circular polarizer. I checked exif data. It appears most of the blurred photos were shot from 1/400 to 1/640 which is very similar to the shutter speed I used when I had sharp pictures taken without the polarizer.

Is there any such thing as a circular ND filter?

Steve

Yes Steve just the same 400-640 th of a sec is still slow for handheld action shots you can do a test and look at the exif data with and without to confirm No Circular types are only for Polarising filters or combined UVpolarising filters.   These Filters have glass crystal embedded in a circular pattern to filter out "Dirty Light" which causes blurred edges and blending colours.

Well I learned some things too. I use a polarizer with no ill effects on my Nikkor lens but had no idea it was of a special kind.

I hope you get your problems solved as i am using ONLY the polarizer in daylight as a means of protection for my lens and the added color enriching. I found the UV haze can be digitally altered quite easily and hence have not had any reason to use a UV since my change over to DSLR.