P3D polarization

[bob Wier <wier@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

This question might better belong in tech-3d, but I'll start here.

I'm attempting to get an intuitive feel for "circular polarization".
Standard (linear?) polarization is reasonably easy to follow if one
thinks of the "pocket fence" model - where light waves (let's call 'em
waves) pass thru vibrating either horizonally or vertically. Thus
you can block/pass them with another "polarizer" which is also aligned
either vertically or horizontally as appropriate.

Is there some kind of similar analog to follow for circular
polarization? Could you get less ghosting if you right hand
polarized one side and left hand polarized the other?

I have a reason in asking this beyond photo-3d. Another of my
mailing lists is talking about using polarized light to bring
out faded/bleached signatures and artwork outdoors  - this is
done via a polarizer over a flash with another polarizer over
the lens. Since it's outside, this is done at night. I'm
wondering if using circular polarizers might behave significantly
differently than linear (if that's the correct terminology).

And another question - if you place a polarizer over the lens of
a digicam (probably one of the 2 mil pixel models) will the resulting
image be the same as if you did this with film (I'm *thinking* so, 
but have no ready way to test it - I suppose you could just take
a polarizer and rotate it in front of the lens and see if the 
usual blue sky darkening occurs on a digicam similar to what you
get with an film based camera).

THANKS!

--Bob Wier

       mailto:wier@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 
       9:34 PM Thursday, July 29, 1999
     Unix/Internet Systems Administrator
    Rocky Mountain College, Billings, MT
      (currently in Ouray, Colorado)



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