Black and White Filters Explained

Blue Filter
A blue filter suppresses yellow, orange, and red tones. It brightens the sky and can increase haze, since—unlike most filters—it doesn’t absorb UV light. It works well under warm artificial lighting and can enhance overall contrast. However, it’s unflattering for portraits except with very light skin, as it accentuates blemishes. It can also serve a technical use: compensating for the orange mask in color negative film.

Green Filter
This filter enhances the separation of green tones, making it useful for landscapes with large areas of foliage. It mutes orange and red tones. For portraits, it’s even less flattering than the blue filter, highlighting skin imperfections—so it’s better suited to technical or dermatological photography.

Yellow Filter
A yellow filter slightly darkens blue skies, enhances cloud contrast, and reduces haze. It improves the differentiation of greens in plants, makes skin appear lighter, and softens blemishes—making it one of the most balanced choices for portrait and landscape work.

Red Filter
A red filter amplifies the effects of orange filters even further. It dramatically darkens blue skies, making clouds stand out with bold contrast for a graphic, high-drama effect. Human skin tones can take on an unnatural, waxy look, and lips may appear very pale.

Infrared Filter
Infrared filters extend beyond the visible spectrum, effectively continuing the red filter’s properties into infrared light. They produce extremely strong contrast effects—like “red on steroids.” One distinctive characteristic is their treatment of vegetation: chlorophyll reflects infrared light, making leaves appear luminous and bright, creating the striking “Wood effect.”