Cokin Nuances Clearsky review: a fully pro light pollution filter

Light pollution is caused by the bright glow of artificial lights from towns and cities, which can be a problem for photographers taking pictures at night, adding a yellow color cast, haze, and reducing sharpness and contrast in your low-light shots, whether it's cityscapes, landscapes, or astrophotography.

A light pollution filter is designed to cut out the specific wavelengths of light emitted by artificial lights and the general glow of towns and cities, and should therefore deliver cleaner, sharper shots with impact.

I got my hands on the 100x100mm version of the Cokin Nuances Clearsky filter for this review. Cokin claims “The yellow and orange glow of street lights is removed for urban photography at night, and the contrast of the sky is enhanced for astrophotography by darkening the gradient of the sky background, highlighting the stars or the Milky Way.”

With that in mind, I took it out on some late-night photography excursions to see how it ranked amongst the best light pollution filters. Here’s how I got on…

Cokin Nuances Clearsky: Specifications

Cokin Nuances Clearsky: Price

Let’s not beat around the bush. With a list price of $67 / £69 / AU$133 for the smallest 52mm screw-in filter or $200 / £165 / AU$387 for the largest X (130x130mm) slot-in square type, it can be an expensive option. However, few other filter manufacturers offer the range of both square and circular lens sizes, and working pros will find it worth the asking price for the quality materials and coatings employed.

If you’re on a tight budget or need the smaller circular options associated with more entry-level kit lenses, such as 39mm or 49mm, you may be better off with budget-friendly options from the likes of Rollei, Hoya, or K&F Concept. But if you’re a professional astro or nighttime cityscape photographer, the Cokin Nuances Clearsky is reliable, durable, and capable of producing quality images in low light.

Cokin Nuances Clearsky: Design & Handling

The Cokin Nuances Clearsky filter is available as a circular screw-in option, available in popular filter thread sizes between 52mm and 95mm. While it’s not available for smaller – perhaps more entry-level – lenses with 49mm filter threads, the 82mm filter thread was big enough to use with my Canon RF 15-35mm f/2.8L IS USM lens.

Professionals will be glad to hear that the filter is also available for square filter holders, with Cokin’s P (100x84mm), X (100x100mm), and Z (130x130cm) sizes covering all the bases.

I got hold of the Cokin Z (100x100mm) ‘L’ size to fit 100mm filter holders, though I ended up putting it in one of Cokin’s metal frames to use it with the company’s NX Series filter holders, which are a little larger. These metal filter frames cost $35 / £26 / AU$55 for a pack of two and come apart with two small screws, allowing the glass filter to be securely locked in place.

The metal frame offers good protection, and the filters are made from hardy glass, too. I’ve dropped Cokin Nuances from a height of 1.5m onto hard concrete before, and they’ve shrugged it off with virtually no sign of damage. Taking a sharp nail to the Cokin Nuances Clearsky showed the same high-quality anti-scratch coatings I’ve become used to in this range, as it’s a seriously hardy filter that’s very difficult to leave a mark on – so it should last you many years.

Whether you go for the circular screw-in or square filter options, Cokin employs a multi-anti-reflective coating on both sides of the filter. This coating is designed to minimize reflections and reduce glare, further improving contrast, along with the improvement gained by cutting out the light wavelengths of sodium and mercury-vapor lights. The coating is also waterproof, anti-oil, and scratch-resistant.

Cokin Nuances Clearsky: Performance

As one of the more expensive light pollution filters, I had high hopes for the Cokin Nuances Clearsky, and the good news is: it didn’t disappoint!

Key to the filter's performance are its double-sided coatings, which not only tame reflections but also make the filter very resistant to scratches. They are also hydrophobic, so water beads off really well and usually comes straight off simply by shaking the filter, rather than having to wipe it down. It's super easy to clean.

I tried the square Z version (100x100mm), so I’m not able to comment on the quality of the metal ring used for the circular screw-in iterations, though Cokin confirmed it uses the same high-quality glass and coatings in both the circular and square variants.

Cokin says the glass is high-res phosphate laser neodymium glass that can block wavelengths of urban light, such as sodium and mercury-vapor lamps. My tests showed the filter does precisely that, and it was one of the few light pollution filters I've tested that made fine details look sharper and more contrasty, compared to having no filter attached at all.

It had one of the strongest purple hues of the light pollution filters I've tested. This means it easily compensates for the yellow and green tint of street lights, though it does take a little more effort in post-processing to correct its purple color cast to get the images looking right. See my raw images straight out of camera, below.

Astrophotographers operating in sub-zero conditions will also be happy to hear the filters are rated for temperatures down to -10ºC / 14ºF and up to 40ºC / 104ºF. So you can shoot safely in the knowledge that you'll be able to photograph without issue on those chilly, clear nights when shooting stars.

My test shots revealed that the Cokin does a good job of neutralizing the yellow glow of street lamps, though straight-out-of-camera images can take on quite a strong purple color cast, so you will need to play around with the temperature and tint sliders to remove this. But once done, the garish yellow-and-green of light pollution is well controlled, and image quality remains very good with sharp details.

Cokin Nuances Clearsky: Verdict

As with all light pollution filters I’ve tested, the Cokin Nuances Clearsky cannot fully combat the light spill and loss of definition in the stars that comes from city lights – there really is no substitute for heading to a dark sky area for astrophotography. However, what the filter is great for is taming the garish color cast you get from sodium and mercury-vapor lights – the effect on LED streets will be negligible as their light is neutral white to begin with.

The Cokin Nuances Clearsky comes packed to the rafters with brilliant features and quality materials. The standout was its double-sided multilayer coating, which is oil, water, and scratch-resistant, and makes the filter super easy to clean and wipe down when it gets dirty. For professionals working in harsh environments and looking for reliable kit that lasts a long time, the Cokin Nuances Clearsky is the filter for you.

Alternatives

The K&F Concept Natural Night filter boasts a strong set of features, with quality Japanese glass, a light and thin frame, and a 28-nanolayer multi-coat, which does a great job of making the filter resistant to oil, water, and scratches. The filter is available in filter threads between 49mm and 82mm. Prices of the smaller sizes are similar to Cokin's, but the larger sizes, like 82mm, are considerably cheaper.

The Irix Edge Light Pollution filter is designed to tone down the bright yellow color casts you might come across when shooting cities at night. It is very well made, boasts some great features, and is available in a generous range of filter thread sizes, up to 105mm.