https://xtfilters.com/blogs Precision camera filter guides, field tests, and optical insights by XT Filters. en-us https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/leica-39mm-46mm-q3-49mm-filter-threads https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/leica-39mm-46mm-q3-49mm-filter-threads M and Voigtlander often 39mm, some lenses 46mm, Q3 43 is 49mm. Three threads, three filters. Ask before you buy 43mm. Tue, 29 Sep 2026 13:24:54 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-i-clean-coated-filters https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-i-clean-coated-filters No paper towels. Blow, drop of fluid if needed, nano cloth on the coating. Add a cloth to the filter order. Free shipping over $99. Tue, 29 Sep 2026 04:19:06 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/fuji-39mm-vs-x100-49mm-filter https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/fuji-39mm-vs-x100-49mm-filter Do not mix them up. XF 27mm-class lenses are 39mm. The X100 needs an adapter, then 49mm. Wrong size will not thread on. Mon, 28 Sep 2026 13:34:57 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/you-dont-need-a-flagship-cpl https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/you-dont-need-a-flagship-cpl Skies and water do not require a $190 polarizer. Start with XT003; step up to XT001 PRO when coatings matter more. Mon, 28 Sep 2026 04:17:37 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/when-to-take-off-black-mist https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/when-to-take-off-black-mist Fog, architecture, product detail, already-soft lenses: mist makes them worse. Trust means saying when to unscrew it. Sun, 27 Sep 2026 13:11:42 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/what-lightroom-cant-fake-polarizer-black-mist https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/what-lightroom-cant-fake-polarizer-black-mist Dehaze will not pull glare off water. Bloom from black mist is not an LR slider. Protection can wait; these two cannot be faked later. Sat, 26 Sep 2026 13:11:52 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/black-or-silver-filter-frame-leica https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/black-or-silver-filter-frame-leica Silver bodies like a silver ring. Black paint Q likes black. Frame color is a Leica buying decision, not a spec sheet line. XT925. Fri, 25 Sep 2026 13:15:49 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/fuji-x100-filter-thread-is-49mm https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/fuji-x100-filter-thread-is-49mm X100/V/VI has no native thread. After an adapter it's 49mm, not 39mm. 39mm is for other Fuji lenses such as the 27mm. Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:45:26 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-to-read-filter-size-on-your-lens https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-to-read-filter-size-on-your-lens The ø on the front ring is the filter size, not the focal length. Can't find it? Email Leo the lens model and we'll match the mm. Fri, 25 Sep 2026 10:45:24 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/when-street-lights-need-more-than-1-4-mist https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/when-street-lights-need-more-than-1-4-mist A 1/4 black mist works for daytime streets. At night, street lights need lower reflection, not a stronger grade. Here is why I swap to the XT925 1/4. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/softer-black-mist-for-portraits https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/softer-black-mist-for-portraits If a friend asked which black mist makes portraits look softer without turning into a neon light show, I'd point them at our XT888 Top. If their lens thread is somewhere between 49mm and 82mm. If they Mon, 21 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/cpl-uv-or-black-mist-which-filter https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/cpl-uv-or-black-mist-which-filter If a friend stopped me in a camera store parking lot asking whether they should buy a CPL, a UV, or a black mist filter first, my advice is blunt: pick one path. Do not buy a three-filter starter bund Mon, 21 Sep 2026 04:16:23 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/not-every-clear-filter-fits-leica-fuji https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/not-every-clear-filter-fits-leica-fuji Will a generic clear filter actually fit your Leica or Fuji? Usually not. It might catch half a thread, bind up, or stick out just far enough that your factory hood never clicks home again. I'm Leo Li Tue, 15 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/keep-the-hood-on-slim-uv-leica https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/keep-the-hood-on-slim-uv-leica Yes, you can keep the original hood on. But only if the UV filter frame is genuinely slim and the threads are cut clean. Screw on a generic, thick clear filter, and that factory hood gets kicked straig Mon, 14 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-a-polarizer-turns-white-water-clear https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-a-polarizer-turns-white-water-clear The river looked white. Not frothy white water. Flat glare, like someone stretched a sheet of paper over the surface. Rocks, silt, the green under the bank. Gone. That is usually a polarizer job, no Sun, 13 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/cinematic-glow-leica-without-looking-fake https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/cinematic-glow-leica-without-looking-fake I hang a black mist on my Leica when I want street lights to bloom. Not when I want the whole night to go soft and grey. That is the whole job. Fake glow is easy. Real glow is picky. I'm Leo Liang. I Sat, 12 Sep 2026 13:04:26 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/can-you-stack-black-mist-and-polarizer https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/can-you-stack-black-mist-and-polarizer Can you stack a black mist and a polarizer? Yes. I do it on the Lumix GH7 when a river wants cleaner water and morning sun makes digital highlights look like razor blades. The polarizer cuts glare off Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:44:22 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/which-black-mist-strength-to-leave-on https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/which-black-mist-strength-to-leave-on Mounting diffusion tuned for midnight neon expecting it to behave under open daylight ruins an afternoon walk. Two hours in, contrast collapses, backlit edges vanish into haze, and deep shadows turn t Mon, 07 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/black-mist-strength-you-can-leave-on https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/black-mist-strength-you-can-leave-on If a friend grabbed my arm in a camera store parking lot and asked whether there is a black mist filter you can screw on in the morning and leave on all day, my answer is simple: yes. Buy a 1/4. Not 1 Thu, 03 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/leica-q3-43-filter-size-is-49mm https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/leica-q3-43-filter-size-is-49mm If a friend called me from a camera store parking lot holding a brand new Leica Q3 43 and asked what filter size to buy, I would tell them straight: buy a 49mm filter. Not 43mm. The official Leica fil Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:00:00 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/uv-filter-vs-clear-filter https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/uv-filter-vs-clear-filter A filter that stays on your lens all day has one difficult job: it needs to protect the glass while making itself almost invisible. That sounds simple until you photograph a streetlight at night and d Thu, 13 Aug 2026 01:44:29 GMT https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-to-choose-an-nd-filter https://xtfilters.com/blogs/news/how-to-choose-an-nd-filter I don’t think most photographers need a drawer full of ND filters. That is probably not the best way to start this article, since I run a filter company. But it is true. A good ND filter solves a spec Sun, 26 Jul 2026 13:30:00 GMT