Clear Night Filters
The biggest problem in night photography is rarely the darkness, but rather the wrong kind of light: the light dome of cities casts an orange haze over the night sky. The Clear Night Filter is designed to combat exactly that. Here you’ll find Haida’s NanoPro Clear Night Filters as screw-in filters, magnetic filters, and clip-on filters for 100 and 150 mm.
What the Filter Does
Streetlights do not emit light across the entire spectrum, but primarily in narrow bands—typically the yellow-orange light of sodium vapor lamps. The Clear Night Filter attenuates precisely these wavelengths and allows the rest to pass through largely unimpeded. As a result, the night sky loses its orange cast and returns to a neutral to bluish hue, making the stars stand out more clearly.
When it helps
It’s most effective when a city’s light dome is on the horizon but you’re outside of it. It’s a noticeable improvement for Milky Way photos taken near towns, for night landscapes with illuminated villages in the frame, and for astrophotography in the Swiss Plateau. Under truly dark skies in the high mountains, however, you don’t need it—there’s no light pollution to filter out.
Where its limitations lie
Modern LED street lighting emits broadband light, meaning it covers the entire spectrum. Naturally, a filter designed for narrow bands is less effective against this than it is against the old sodium vapor lamps. The effect is therefore less pronounced in areas with new LED lighting. And it’s no substitute for a dark location: a filter can’t turn a city sky into an Alpine sky.
Practical Information
The filter reduces light output slightly, but this is hardly noticeable with long exposures anyway. Because it shifts the color balance, you’ll want to shoot in RAW format and adjust the white balance during post-processing. As a clip-on filter for 100 and 150 mm, it fits into the Haida holder; the magnetic version changes quickly, which is a real advantage when your fingers are cold at night.