Yellow or UV filter depending on the weather

Billy Axeman · Nov 3, 2017

Until now I always have a yellow filter on my lens (Y48), but I am contemplating to change that to UV or skylight depending on the weather.

I use the Y48 to get a darker sky and more pronounced clouds and I have the habit of overexposing 1/3 stop (on HP5+) so that is costing me about one stop in total.

Now, I guess a yellow filter is only useful in sunny weather and less so when it is clouded. Also, when it is clouded some extra light is also welcome, hence my plan to use UV in those circumstances.

Good plan? Is anyone doing that?

locutus · Nov 3, 2017

A Yellow/Orange/Red colour filter is especially useful when its clouded as it will keep definition in the clouds with Orange/Red giving stronger contrasts to them.

Billy Axeman · Nov 3, 2017

Perhaps I should use the word 'overcast' instead of clouded. When there are clouds I still like to use yellow to emphasize them, but when it is overcast, with a plain sky, yellow is not very useful I guess.

jeffreyg · Nov 3, 2017

Keep in mind that a colored filter will affect more than the sky, consider what ther entire scene is. To get more definition in the clouds I generally use a light orange filter which has the same filter factor as my yellow and tends to add more contrast as it "darkens" foliage as well as the blue sky. For bald skies I prefer the UV. The extra stop can come in handy if you are hand holding.

http://www.jeffreyglasser.com/

Vaughn · Nov 3, 2017

I only put a filter on if I need it...which is not all the time.

Edited to add -- actually this time a year I use the yellow filter the most -- popping out the yellow leaves under the rewoods. Such as in the image below.

Svenedin · Nov 3, 2017

Billy Axeman said:
Until now I always have a yellow filter on my lens (Y48), but I am contemplating to change that to UV or skylight depending on the weather.

I use the Y48 to get a darker sky and more pronounced clouds and I have the habit of overexposing 1/3 stop (on HP5+) so that is costing me about one stop in total.

Now, I guess a yellow filter is only useful in sunny weather and less so when it is clouded. Also, when it is clouded some extra light is also welcome, hence my plan to use UV in those circumstances.

Good plan? Is anyone doing that?

I am in the habit of having a yellow filter on the lens almost all the time when using monochrome. I do take it off when the sky is overcast because I also want the extra speed and for me the filter is of little use in such lighting. As Jeffreyg said, there may be reasons other than clouds why you might want to use a yellow filter.

Billy Axeman · Nov 3, 2017

I have some filters from B+W, Heliopan and Nikon. The B+W F-Pro is ok (apart from the gold lettering), the Heliopan (SH-PMC) is a bit too narrow to fit a hood securely, and I like the Nikon filters most because they have a vintage feel; they are heavy and the filter glass is mounted with a spring.

I have now searched for Skylight L1BC, UV L37C, UV L39 and Yellow Y48 but I can't find them on the Dutch and German Nikon web sites. Are the Nikon B/W filters still made?

macfred · Nov 3, 2017

Billy Axeman said:
...

I have now searched for Skylight L1BC, UV L37C, UV L39 and Yellow Y48 but I can't find them on the Dutch and German Nikon web sites. Are the Nikon B/W filters still made?

Don't know ...
I bought some used filters for my Nikons at Nikonclassics in Germany http://nikonclassics-michalke.de/zu...lter&zubeh-r=Filter&cat=c14&cPath=3_14&page=2

Billy Axeman · Nov 3, 2017

macfred said:
Don't know ...
I bought some used filters for my Nikons at Nikonclassics in Germany http://nikonclassics-michalke.de/zu...lter&zubeh-r=Filter&cat=c14&cPath=3_14&page=2

Nice shop, I'll have a look. Thanks!

BrianVS · Nov 3, 2017

The Yellow Filter has an additional advantage: It reduces Chromatic Aberration from the monochrome image that would otherwise produce a softer focus. I learned this when shooting a 1934 5cm f2 Sonnar. It was like a different lens with the yellow and orange filters on it. A good way to judge chromatic aberration with a lens: look to see where the IR index falls on the DOF scale. A highly corrected lens- the IR mark falls in at F2 or so. Lenses with more CA- the IR index tends to be past F4 or so.

I tend to use a UV or Skylight if I "need every last Photon" to make the exposure.

Sirius Glass · Nov 3, 2017

UV and Skylight filters cut distant haze. I have one on every lens and I replace them with contrast or polarizer filters when necessary.
Various shades of yellow filters bring out clouds with some contrast.
Orange filters make the clouds stand out more than yellow filters without darken the sky significantly.
Red filters make the clouds stand out more than orange filters and make the sky very dark to almost black.
Nothing helps overcast skies, except a shot of whiskey in a pub or bar.

Billy Axeman · Nov 3, 2017

BrianVS said:
The Yellow Filter has an additional advantage: It reduces Chromatic Aberration from the monochrome image that would otherwise produce a softer focus. I learned this when shooting a 1934 5cm f2 Sonnar. It was like a different lens with the yellow and orange filters on it. A good way to judge chromatic aberration with a lens: look to see where the IR index falls on the DOF scale. A highly corrected lens- the IR mark falls in at F2 or so. Lenses with more CA- the IR index tends to be past F4 or so.

I tend to use a UV or Skylight if I "need every last Photon" to make the exposure.

Thanks Brian, very informative.

Good tip Sirius, for the whiskey.

macfred · Nov 3, 2017

Sirius Glass said:
... Nothing helps overcast skies, except a shot of whiskey in a pub or bar.

Absolutely correct !

MattKing · Nov 3, 2017

Sirius Glass said:
Nothing helps overcast skies, except a shot of whiskey in a pub or bar.

Well, even with overcast skies....
A UV filter can certainly help with colour film.
And a polarizing filter can be effective.
And finally, if you want eerily smooth overcast skies, a really dark ND filter and a long exposure can work.

etn · Nov 3, 2017

Overcast skies provide soft and even lighting, which can be useful e.g. for portraits.

RalphLambrecht · Nov 3, 2017

Billy Axeman said:
Until now I always have a yellow filter on my lens (Y48), but I am contemplating to change that to UV or skylight depending on the weather.

I use the Y48 to get a darker sky and more pronounced clouds and I have the habit of overexposing 1/3 stop (on HP5+) so that is costing me about one stop in total.

Now, I guess a yellow filter is only useful in sunny weather and less so when it is clouded. Also, when it is clouded some extra light is also welcome, hence my plan to use UV in those circumstances.

Good plan? Is anyone doing that?

none of these filters will give you a more dramatic sky unless you're dealing with a blue sky and white clouds but, they all protect your lens from finger prints our spray water. The yellow filter will give you more natural tones with many films however

Svenedin · Nov 3, 2017

RalphLambrecht said:
none of these filters will give you a more dramatic sky unless you're dealing with a blue sky and white clouds but, they all protect your lens from finger prints our spray water. The yellow filter will give you more natural tones with many films however

It's not so much needing a blue sky as needing some actual sunlight on the cloud such as through a break in the clouds.

There seems to be a large effect from the actual wavelengths of light present. Photographs I have taken closer to the Equator have a greater sky effect (especially darkening blue) than in the UK. There is also variation by time of day.

This photo was taken with a yellow filter during a thunder snowstorm. It stopped snowing for a brief time and the sun shone through a break in the clouds.

Portsmouth #9

Svenedin
Apr 28, 2016
6

Although I have posted pictures of the Spinnaker Tower before, this one is a bit different. This...

Here is another photo (cloudless) taken in Gibraltar in Summer. The same yellow filter but a strong effect on the blue sky. I have never seen a yellow filter darken the sky like that in Southern England. (Gibraltar is rather close to North Africa, you can actually see the African coast in the distance).

Europa Point Lighthouse (8"x10" print)

Svenedin
Sep 15, 2017
4

Early evening, July. The camera batteries failed so a guesstimate of Sunny 16 using the...

cowanw · Nov 4, 2017

Billy Axeman said:
I have some filters from B+W, Heliopan and Nikon. The B+W F-Pro is ok (apart from the gold lettering), the Heliopan (SH-PMC) is a bit too narrow to fit a hood securely, and I like the Nikon filters most because they have a vintage feel; they are heavy and the filter glass is mounted with a spring.

I have now searched for Skylight L1BC, UV L37C, UV L39 and Yellow Y48 but I can't find them on the Dutch and German Nikon web sites. Are the Nikon B/W filters still made?

I agree that the new filters are thin on the front mount and thin on the ground. Responding to the digital market has diminished the manufacturers commitment to Black and White filters.
My solution is to buy used filters in older mounts whenever I can.

Svenedin · Nov 4, 2017

cowanw said:
I agree that the new filters are thin on the front mount and thin on the ground. Responding to the digital market has diminished the manufacturers commitment to Black and White filters.
My solution is to buy used filters in older mounts whenever I can.

I buy used filters from the well known auction site. They are often very reasonably priced and virtually unused. I have so many now that I don’t have to keep switching filters between lenses.

Vaughn · Nov 4, 2017

It seems to me that always keeping a colored filter on one's lens is sort of like always putting salt and pepper on ones food before tasting it.

Svenedin · Nov 4, 2017

Vaughn said:
It seems to me that always keeping a colored filter on one's lens is sort of like always putting salt and pepper on ones food before tasting it.

It’s more like the habit of keeping a UV filter on the lens at all times for protection. For me, landscapes are my thing so a yellow filter is useful to me far more often than not. I am not a fan of blank, white skies -sometimes unavoidable.

cowanw · Nov 4, 2017

Vaughn said:
It seems to me that always keeping a colored filter on one's lens is sort of like always putting salt and pepper on ones food before tasting it.

After a life time of eating food, one may have come to the realization that one always likes the effect of a yellow filter more than everybody else does. Or that you always like more salt and pepper, except when you are the cook. In which case nobody else likes your photo

Billy Axeman · Nov 4, 2017

I agree with RalphLambrecht (Post #16) and not so much with Svenedin (post #17). There's no magic radiation involved, a yellow filter simply blocks blue in the environment and on those places your photo is darker because there was less light. Photo 2 from Svenedin is proving that: above your head is more blue than on the horizon hence the gradient from dark to light.

So, my conclusion is now that my initial strategy is a good one (post #1).

In the mean time I found an UV L37C (near mint) and an UV L39 (mint). I also ordered two L1BC skylight filters from a shop that listed them as new and in stock, but shortly after that I got a mail that the status of my order was changed with a delay in delivery time because it was not in stock anyway. So I guess they are now roaming all Nikon's warehouses in Europe to find some new old stock and guys asking themselves why there are still idiots ordering stuff from the previous century.

Sirius Glass · Nov 4, 2017

Sirius Glass said:
UV and Skylight filters cut distant haze. I have one on every lens and I replace them with contrast or polarizer filters when necessary.
Various shades of yellow filters bring out clouds with some contrast.
Orange filters make the clouds stand out more than yellow filters without darken the sky significantly.
Red filters make the clouds stand out more than orange filters and make the sky very dark to almost black.
Nothing helps overcast skies, except a shot of whiskey in a pub or bar.

Svenedin said:
It’s more like the habit of keeping a UV filter on the lens at all times for protection. For me, landscapes are my thing so a yellow filter is useful to me far more often than not. I am not a fan of blank, white skies -sometimes unavoidable.

It is about cutting haze and lens protection.

Billy Axeman · Nov 4, 2017

A photo I wanted to show earlier but it didn't show up, which is now resolved.
HP5+ with yellow filter Y48.

Yellow or UV filter depending on the weather

Billy Axeman

locutus

Billy Axeman

jeffreyg

Vaughn

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Europa Point Lighthouse (8"x10" print)

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Yellow or UV filter depending on the weather

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