Top Lens Filter Brands for Capturing Stunning Shots

When it comes to preserving and enhancing the quality of your photographs, choosing the right lens filter is crucial. Renowned for their precision and quality, leading brands offer a variety of lens filters to cater to diverse photography needs, from reducing glare to enhancing colors. Among the top contenders, names like B+W, Hoya, and Tiffen stand out, each providing unique features and craftsmanship that photographers worldwide trust. Interested in exploring the best brands and what makes them exceptional? Read on to discover a comprehensive guide to the finest lens filters available today.

Illustration of lens filters

Best brands of lens filters in 2025

B+W

B+W, a renowned brand in the photography industry, has been a leading producer of high-quality lens filters, particularly noted for their black and white filters which have historically accounted for around 30% of their sales. Despite recent challenges, B+W filters are highly regarded for their excellent value and competitive pricing, often comparable to other high-quality brands like Heliopan and significantly more affordable than Leica filters. The brand's filters are essential for controlling light, color, and contrast, making them a staple for both professional photographers and hobbyists. However, the demand for B+W black and white filters has seen a decline, leading Schneider Kreuznach to discontinue their production. This shift is despite the growing popularity of photography and videography, which generally drives the lens filters market. For more insights on the current situation of black and white filters, you can read this detailed article: Black and White Filters Urgently Needed.

Hoya

Hoya is renowned as one of the best producers of lens filters, celebrated for its exceptional quality and innovative technology. Hoya filters feature advanced multi-coating systems, such as the Super HMC PRO, which reduces light reflections to as low as 0.3% and ensures an average light transmission of over 97%. Introduced in 1996, Hoya's Super Multi-coated filters have set industry standards with their 5+1 layering system. The company's commitment to precision and durability is evident in its use of machined aluminum frames and high-quality optical glass, ensuring long-lasting performance. With a global presence and a history dating back to 1941, Hoya continues to innovate and expand its market share in the optical industry.

Tiffen

Tiffen is a renowned brand in the lens filters market, celebrated for its high-quality and innovative products. With over 80 years of experience, Tiffen has established itself as a leader, providing a diverse portfolio of filters including UV, polarizing, and neutral density filters. Their commitment to product development and quality has enhanced their competitive position, making them a preferred choice among professional and consumer photographers. Tiffen's filters have been used globally and even in space, contributing to the creation of perfect images. The company continues to innovate, introducing new filter technologies and expanding their product offerings to meet emerging trends. For more information on their impressive array of filters, visit the Tiffen Camera Filter Collection.

Lee Filters

Lee Filters, established in 1967, is a leading global manufacturer of professional lighting gels and photographic filters, catering to cinematographers, lighting designers, and photographers worldwide. The company is part of the Panavision Group and is known for its high-quality technical, diffusion, and color-effect filters, including resin and glass lens-filtration solutions. Lee Filters exports over 75% of its products globally and maintains a strong reputation for quality and consistency, with lighting and camera filter products each representing around 50% of its business. The company has innovated significantly, including the production of scratch-resistant glass filters like the ProGlass Cine IRND range. Lee Filters continues to be at the forefront of new technologies, responding to the evolving needs of its customers. For more details, you can visit their official website.

Heliopan

Heliopan is renowned as one of the top producers of lens filters, particularly noted for their high-quality SH-PMC filters, which feature 8 layers of coating on each side, reducing reflections to almost 0% and providing excellent protection against moisture and dust. Made from the finest optical glass from Schott (Zeiss), Heliopan filters are ground, polished, and coated to the highest standards of the German optical industry. These filters are mounted in precision black anodized brass rings to ensure optimal alignment and prevent binding or cross-threading. Heliopan's commitment to quality and performance makes their filters a preferred choice among photographers. Their filters are available in various types, including polarizers, neutral density filters, and special effect filters.

Haida

Haida is renowned as one of the best producers of lens filters, offering a wide range of high-quality options including screw-on, square, and rectangular filters. Established in 2007, Haida specializes in optical glass filters with advanced coatings like the NanoPro multicoating, which ensures minimal color cast and no image degradation. Their filters, such as the Red Diamond and Greystone series, are designed for durability and ease of use, with features like magnetic attachments and ultra-thin frames to prevent vignetting. Haida filters are competitively priced, often significantly lower than other high-end brands, yet they deliver sharp, clear images with minimal loss of detail. The M10-II filter system, for example, is highly praised for its usability and compact design.

NiSi

NiSi is renowned as one of the top producers of lens filters, particularly praised for their high-quality, all-glass filter lineup that ensures minimal light leakage and excellent color reproduction. Their Medium Graduated Neutral Density filters, with transitions of 3 centimeters, are highly versatile and ideal for landscapes with elements above the horizon. NiSi filters have been tested and compared favorably against other brands like Cokin and LEE, with a rating of 9/10 in terms of performance and durability. The NiSi ND64 6-stop filter is a favorite among photographers for its ability to achieve optimal exposures without compromising on image quality. NiSi's filter systems are also designed to prevent light leaks, making them a reliable choice for professional photographers.

Singh-Ray

Singh-Ray is renowned as one of the top producers of lens filters, offering high-quality products that enhance photographic capabilities. Their filters, such as the Vari-N-Duo Variable Neutral Density (ND) filter, allow for continuous adjustment of neutral density from 2.7 to 8 stops, making them versatile tools for photographers. Singh-Ray filters are used by professionals to create dramatic effects, reduce glare, and improve color saturation, as seen in their application in various photography scenarios, including landscape and portrait photography. The brand's commitment to quality is evident in their use of the same glass quality for both DSLR and cell phone filters, ensuring no loss in sharpness. With their filters, photographers can achieve unique compositions and perspectives that cannot be replicated in post-processing.

Cokin

Cokin is a notable brand in the camera lens filter market, known for its extensive range of filter products, including the P series and the Z-Pro 100mm filter holders. Although Cokin filters, particularly the resin-based ones, have been criticized for their susceptibility to scratching and a magenta color cast, they remain a popular choice among photographers, especially those starting out. The brand has a long history of providing solutions for ultra-wide lenses, making it a valuable option for specific photographic needs. However, in comparisons with other brands like Lee and NiSi, Cokin filters often rank lower in terms of durability and optical performance. Despite these limitations, Cokin continues to innovate and expand its product line to meet evolving consumer demands. For a comprehensive comparison, you can explore the comparison of Cokin filters with other leading brands.

Breakthrough Photography

Breakthrough Photography is renowned for producing some of the world's sharpest and most color-neutral lens filters, particularly their X4 ND filters, which are manufactured in Germany using SCHOTT Superwhite B270(r) optical glass and feature 16 layers of anti-reflective multi-coatings. Since their inception in 2015 through a successful Kickstarter campaign, Breakthrough filters have set a high standard in the market, known for their rugged design, weather-sealed aluminum or brass frames, and superior performance in harsh conditions. The X4 filters are especially praised for their ability to withstand extreme weather elements and their ease of cleaning. Both the X2 and X4 models come with a 25-year ironclad warranty, reflecting the brand's confidence in their products. Breakthrough filters have consistently surpassed other brands in terms of circular polarizer and linear transmission.