Let's take a look at the Viltrox UV Pro MC HT filter. Viltrox had to agree to my collaboration terms before I accepted the product.
See the related video for more information
Check out the lens on their official store:
https://viltrox.com/products/viltrox-ultra-slim-mc-uv-protection-filter
I'm not an affiliate of their store and make no commissions from purchases there. This is intentional and based on my collaboration rules I've defined for myself.
Visit my affiliates to see the filters as well:
- Amazon: https://amzn.to/3CzAdL9
- B&H: https://bhpho.to/40QYBSk
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As an affiliate of these shops, I earn from qualifying purchases!
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| The Viltrox filter with it's included case. There's a paper manual behind the foam. |
Viltrox claims that it has high transmittance, featuring a UV cut at 395nm. With a single-sided reflectance within the visible spectrum of below 0.3%. That’s supposed to minimize any impact on image quality, which is always a concern with filters.
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| Texturing on the exterior surface is good for removal. |
The filter's design is a little different than what I’m used to. The texturing on the side is a nice touch. It should make removal easier.
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| The Waka and Promaster filters compared to the Viltrox. |
In comparison, some of my older filters don’t have that texturing, and I’ve found them a bit more difficult to handle. It’s still a thin filter overall, which is important to limit the chance of vignetting on wide angle lenses.
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| I use UV filters to avoid having to deal with lens caps. |
I like using UV filters. While some people avoid them due to the potential for affecting image quality, I prefer the convenience. With a filter on, I don’t have to worry as much about using a lens cap or damaging the front element of the lens. It’s much easier and less of a concern when cleaning a filter than the actual lens front element.
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| You can see a lot more bloom with the Waka filter and the Promaster has a green reflection toward the bottom of the image. |
I did a quick comparison test with the Viltrox filter alongside a Promaster MC UV filter and a Waka Ultra Slim MC UV filter. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting to see much of a difference considering the other two filters have multi-coatings, but the results surprised me. The Waka filter had a noticeable bloom effect, which is light that was coming through the edges more than it should, and it lost contrast as a result.
Even the Promaster filter showed some loss of contrast when compared to the Viltrox in addition to a strong green reflection toward the bottom of the image related to the Promaster's coatings.
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| The difference is clearly noticeable when zoomed in. |
In this tests, the Viltrox definitely performed the best. It retained more contrast and I didn't see any reflections like on the Promaster. This was particularly noticeable when zooming into the images. I don't remember how much the Promaster filter cost, but the Waka was definitely the cheapest of the three. In this case I guess you get what you pay for.
I didn’t expect such a clear difference between the filters, but the Viltrox filter outperformed the others in terms of maintaining contrast with a bright light in the frame. I was genuinely impressed by the optical performance in that quick test.
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| The three filters tested. |
So, in conclusion, if you're looking for a 67mm UV filter that minimizes impact on image quality, the Viltrox VR Pro MC HT is worth considering. The build quality is solid, and in my experience, it delivers better contrast than some other filters I’ve used.