How To Wiki
How To Wiki
Advertisement

There are many camera filters and many brand that make them. This page describes what the filters do, examples of where to use them, and howto use them.


Filter Types[]

Round Square Rectangle Bayonet round Series
  • Common Sizes
    • 49 mm, 52 mm, 55 mm, 58 mm, 62 mm, 67 mm, 72 mm, 77 mm, and 82 mm
  • Common Sizes
    • 2" x 2", 3" x 3" and 4" x 4"
  • Cokin Sizes
    • A" (amateur) 67 mm wide, "P" (professional) 84 mm wide, "Z" 100mm wide and "X Pro" 130 mm wide.
  • Common Sizes
    • 100 mm, 67 mm, 84 mm
  • Rollei type
    • Bay I through Bay VI
  • Hasselblad type
    • Bay 60 through Bay 93
  • Sizes
    • I through IX
    • and 4.5 filter series

List of Filter Names[]

Standard filters Color Modification B&W Special Effects Other
  • UV, Haze & Protection
  • Skylight
  • Polarizer
  • Neutral Density
  • Color Compensating
  • Color Conversion
  • White Balance
  • Enhancing & Intensifier
  • Contrast
  • Fluorescent
  • Graduated Color, Graduated Neutral Density
  • For Black & White Film
  • Star Effects & Spectral Effects
  • Soft Effects & Pro Mist
  • Multi Image & Multi Exposure
  • Dual Color, TriColor, Half Color & Streak
  • Spot Filters, Center Filters
  • Close Up Lenses
  • Underwater Filters
  • Infrared IR


Manufactures[]

High End Med Low Other
  • B+W
  • Singh-Ray
  • Heliopan
  • Tiffen
  • Hoya
  • Kenko
  • Quantum
  • Sunpak
  • Vivitar
  • Cokin

Protection & Haze[]

A protection filter is usually used. You scratch a protection filter 10-20$US, you scratch you lens 100-200$US or more. But opinions vary.

  • UV filters
    Remove ultraviolet rays, which can decrease the appearance of haze.
  • Skylight filters
    In many places haze reflects more blue. The skylight filter removes a small amount of blue, to help clear up haze, while not effecting the picture. It also has the effect of giving clouds a little pink.

Color Enhancement and distortion[]

{|style="margin:0px; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; spacing: 4px; background-color:#f6f6f6; align:center;"

|width="105"|Camera-filter-Greenhancer.png |width="105"|Camera-filter-enhancing |width="105"|Camera-filter-Bluehancer |- |Greenhancer |Enhancing |Bluehancer |}

  • Enhancement
    Enhances reds and oranges, but does not effect the rest of the picture too much. Look amazing in fall colors.
  • Blue Enhancement
    • Brightens blues. good for glaciers, water, and sometimes snow.
  • Green Enhancement
    Enhances greens. Makes brilliant greens, but more noticeable effects on the rest of the photo
  • sepia
    Makes the photo have old fashion look like earlier photographs. It makes the pictures a tan tobacco color.


Polarizers[]

Camera-filter-circularPolarizer
Polarizer


when light hits something it reflect back light, in the color of the object. That light can hit another thing reflecting its color. the light will keep bouncing till all of its absorbed by something. This makes light waves come from all directions into the camera lens. polarizers only allow light to come from one direction.

The effect is
  1. Remove reflections from water or windows
  2. Enhances colors
  3. Remove haze (somewhat)
  4. Make things look less shiny

Graduated filters[]

Graduated Neutral Density
comes in .3, .6, .9, and less commonly 1.2
Graduated Color
Usually blue for skies or golden for sunrise/sunset

Black and White Photography filters[]

{|style="margin:0px; border: 1px solid #d6d6d6; spacing: 4px; background-color:#f6f6f6; align:center;"

|Camera-filter-YA2 |Camera-filter-Y2 |Camera-filter-R2 |Camera-filter-PO1 |- |YA2 |Y2 |R2 |PO1 |}

#8 Yellow
Improves contrast in landscapes, and corrects natural tones, some contrast between clouds and sky
#15 Deep Yellow
Enhances landscapes and water scenes, more contrast between clouds and sky
#11 Green
Improves portraits and flesh tones
#25 Red
creates strong contrast between clouds and sky, can be used for partial IR photography.

This site describes the different effects of filters on B & W film, in a nice table.

Other[]

Camera-filter-ND-0.9 Camera-filter-Life-Size Camera-filter-Close-Up-No.4
ND 0.9 Life-Size Close Up No.4
  • Neutral Density Filter
    This filter darkens the cameras input uniformilly, red, green, and blue are equally darkened. This allows you to brighten the picture to normal brightness by opening the shutter speed longer. This allow nice waterfall pictures, and other blurring effects. Comes in .3, .6, .9, and less commonly 1.2, which lower 1, 2, 3, and 4 f-stops, respectively


ND-filter-Cascading waterfall

A picture of a waterfall with the shutter open for 1/2 second

  • Close up
    usually a set of three filters to allow close up, macro, photography. At about 50$US, they're much cheaper than a macro lens. These filters may have more distortion on the edges. Usually negligible.
Close up button picture

A button taken with close up filters

  • Star Effects
    This filter makes lights in the photo become stars
  • mist effects
    these filters can add an overall mist over the picture or a mist on the edges of the photo.

See Also[]

Advertisement