The picks in detail
What each filter is published to do and the trade-off you are accepting. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure, we say so rather than filling the gap.
Hoya HD nano Mk II CIR-PL
Photo spaceHoya HD nano Mk II circular polariser fitted to a lens, with a second filter beside it showing the slim frame. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Most polarisers cost you between one and a half and two stops of light, which is a real problem when the reason you are using one is that the light is already awkward. Hoya publishes a filter factor of ND 2.2 here, roughly one stop, which keeps shutter speeds usable while the reflection control does its work.
Hoya also states a hardened surface it describes as considerably harder than that of common polarisers, with water and oil repellent treatment. That matters on a filter you will be wiping regularly, since a polariser lives on the front of the lens in exactly the conditions that produce spray and fingerprints.
Key specifications
16 layers applied to both sides (Hoya published)
ND 2.2, about 1 stop (Hoya published)
Ultra-thin aluminium (Hoya published)
49 to 82mm, nine sizes (Hoya published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Anyone who shoots landscapes, water, foliage or anything behind glass. If you only shoot indoors or at night, a polariser will spend its life in the bag.
Typical UK price
£100 to £145 (67mm to 82mm)
NiSi True Color ND-VARIO 1 to 5 stops
Photo spaceNiSi True Color ND-VARIO fitted to a lens on a camera set up for video, with the rotation ring being adjusted. Roughly 1200 by 720.
A variable ND is two polarising layers rotating against each other, and pushed too far they produce an uneven dark X across the frame. NiSi solves this the honest way, by restricting the travel to a range the design actually holds up across rather than printing a bigger number on the ring.
One to five stops covers overcast, shade and much of a British summer, which is the range most video work lives in. In direct midday sun you may still need a stronger fixed filter behind it. NiSi also notes that the rotating element means the filter is not weatherproof despite the hydrophobic coating.
Key specifications
1 to 5 stops, ND 0.3 to 1.5 (NiSi published)
HUC high ultra clarity optical glass (NiSi published)
Nano coating with water repellent treatment (NiSi published)
40.5 to 105mm, fifteen sizes (NiSi published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Anyone shooting video outdoors in changing light, where stopping to swap fixed filters is not practical.
Typical UK price
£89 to £279 depending on thread size
Hoya PROND EX Filter Kit
Photo spaceHoya PROND EX ten stop filter fitted to a lens on a tripod, coastline in the background. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Strong neutral density filters are rarely truly neutral, because many of them pass infrared unevenly and leave a colour cast that is tedious to correct. Hoya states that its ACCU-ND process reduces light evenly across the visible and infrared spectrum, which is the specific problem the premium price is aimed at.
Buying three, six and ten stops together covers almost everything a stills photographer asks a neutral density filter to do, from smoothing water on a bright day to a two minute exposure. Hoya also specifies a thick aluminium frame intended to stop light leaking in around the edge of the glass, which matters on very long exposures.
Key specifications
PROND EX 8, EX 64 and EX 1000 (Hoya published)
3, 6 and 10 stops (Hoya published)
ACCU-ND metallic coating front and back (Hoya published)
49 to 82mm, nine sizes (Hoya published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Landscape and architecture photographers who want long exposures without a grading job afterwards.
Typical UK price
£200 to £250 (77mm)
DJI Mavic 4 Pro ND Filters Set
Photo spaceDJI Mavic 4 Pro with an ND filter fitted over the gimbal camera, drone on a landing pad. Roughly 1200 by 720.
Drone filters are not really an optical decision, they are a mechanical one. The filter clips over the gimbal camera, and the gimbal motors are calibrated for a known mass, so a first-party set with a published per filter weight removes the main risk. DJI publishes about 5.1 grammes per filter here.
The reason you need them at all is the same reason you need them on the ground. Holding a 180 degree shutter in daylight means a shutter speed of roughly double the frame rate, which badly overexposes without something cutting the light. DJI sells equivalent sets for its other aircraft, and they are not interchangeable between models.
Key specifications
ND8, ND16, ND32 and ND64 (DJI published)
About 5.1g per filter (DJI published)
DJI Mavic 4 Pro (DJI published)
3, 4, 5 and 6 stops, converted from the ND numbers rather than published by DJI
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Any drone pilot shooting video in daylight. If you only take stills from the air, this is a filter set you can skip.
Typical UK price
£120 to £140
Kase Revolution Plus Pro Kit
Photo spaceKase Revolution Plus magnetic filter being snapped onto a lens adapter ring, hands in frame. Roughly 1200 by 720.
The case for a magnetic system is speed and the impossibility of cross threading. Filters attach to an inlaid adapter ring, which Kase says sits deeper in the thread than a surface mounted ring in order to reduce vignetting, and the four frames are colour coded so you can identify a density without reading the engraving.
The case against is lock-in. Adapter rings are brand specific and magnetic filters do not swap between systems, so you are choosing an ecosystem rather than a filter. Kase does at least state compatibility with its own earlier Revolution filters and accessories.
Key specifications
Magnetic CPL, ND8, ND64 and ND1000 (Kase published)
3, 6 and 10 stop NDs plus a polariser (Kase published)
KW optical glass with nano coatings (Kase published)
46 to 112mm, thirteen sizes (Kase published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Anyone who changes filters often enough for the fumbling to be a real cost, particularly in cold or wet conditions.
Typical UK price
£205 to £619 depending on thread size
K&F Concept Nano-X CPL
Photo spaceK&F Concept Nano-X polariser fitted to a lens, showing the knurled edge of the frame. Roughly 1200 by 720.
A polariser is the one filter worth owning even on a tight budget, and this is the sensible amount to spend on a first one. K&F publishes a twenty eight layer coating on Japanese AGC optical glass in a slim aluminium frame, at well under half the cost of the premium options here.
The size range is the other reason it appears on this list, running from 37 to 112 millimetres, which is wider at both ends than most competitors. The gap in the specification is that K&F does not publish a filter factor, so how much light it costs you is not stated.
Key specifications
Japanese AGC optical glass (K&F published)
28 layer multi-resistant double coating (K&F published)
Ultra-slim aluminium with anti-slip teeth (K&F published)
37 to 112mm, fifteen sizes (K&F published)
Manufacturer published figures, checked July 2026. This is a Researched guide. Creator Gear has not used these items, so nothing here is our own measurement.
Who should buy it
Anyone buying a first polariser, or filling in a thread size you only use occasionally.
Typical UK price
£35 to £55