Photo by Dave Watts

A polarizer is a tool that comes in handy a lot in photography. Polarizers increase contrast, deepen the blue of the sky and reduce harsh and distracting reflections. They’re a great tool, as long as your camera is set up to accept them. And for the point-and-shoot photographer, that’s where it all falls apart.

Polarizers require a filter mount to attach to the camera, a feature absent on most consumer-level point-and-shoot digital cameras. But never fear. There’s an easy way to polarize your images that doesn’t require any mount or filter at all: sunglasses.

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This is perhaps the easiest set of instructions ever. Ready? To use your sunglasses as a polarizer:

1. Take the sunglasses off your face.
2. Stick them in front of your digital camera lens.
3. Press the shutter.

Got it? Pretty easy stuff. Here’s why it works. Sunglasses are polarized for the same reasons that polarizers are used in photography: to reduce glare and increase contrast. By shooting through your sunglasses, you’re able to get a similar effect as if you had been using a polarizing filter.

Any caveats? A few. Don’t expect the results to be as sharp as if you had been using a polarizing filter - sunglasses weren’t designed for use in photography. Also, many polarizers are what is known as circular polarizers - a type specially adapted to work with the autofocus systems of modern digital cameras. Older polarizers - and sunglasses - use linear polarization, which may make it more difficult for your digital camera to focus effectively.

Using a polarizer increases the contrast in the sky and reduces glare off the lake.

Photo by Stefan Mendelsohn.

Even if you have a polarizer filter, a good pair of sunglasses is still a fine tool to have. By wearing them, you can visualize the effect of a polarizer filter on the landscape you are photographing, making it easier to decide whether you want to dig through your kit bag to find the filter before taking your shot.

Should sunglasses be a replacement for a polarizer filter? No. But for many photographers, it’s the only option.

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