This is the first lens filter I’ve ever used. I’ve always read/heard that a good filter can make a significant difference, but I never ended up getting one until now. This polarizing filter is very nice! It’s easy to see the quality construction of glass and metal. In my pictures, you can see that the filter is attached to my camera, but I was also able to attach my lens hood directly to the front of the filter. It has front receiving threads in addition to the rear threads. A really nice feature is that the front of this filter freely rotates. This now allows me to easily rotate the tulip hood to the best position without any risk of the filter or hood loosening. I couldn’t do this when the hood was connected directly to the camera. Does the filter make any difference though? I’m pleased to say that it works very well! I often take pictures through a window, and it's very common for the picture to have a certain “haze” to them that wasn’t there if I took the same picture outside. I took a picture through the window with this filter in place, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a picture that looked like I had taken it outside. I don’t know exactly how this works, but it does. Just like polarized sunglasses, this filter “controls” the light in a way that improves what you see. I’m impressed!