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Tiffen 62mm #12 Yellow Filter — main product image
Tiffen

Tiffen 62mm #12 Yellow Filter

★★★★★4.2 (75 reviews)

Tiffen 62mm #12 Yellow filter deepens skies and boosts contrast for striking black-and-white photography.

$49.99*
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*Price sourced from Amazon.com. Last updated:Jul 14, 2026.Price and availability are subject to change.

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Overview

The Tiffen 62mm #12 Yellow filter is a classic optical accessory designed for black-and-white photography. By selectively absorbing blue wavelengths of light, it darkens blue skies and increases the tonal contrast between clouds and sky, foliage and earth, and other elements that share similar brightness but differ in color. The result is a more dramatic and visually engaging monochrome image with greater depth and definition than an unfiltered exposure would produce.

Built with Tiffen's ColorCore glass construction, the filter delivers consistent, distortion-free performance across the frame. Its 62mm thread size fits a broad range of standard and mid-telephoto lenses, and the slim profile helps prevent vignetting at wider focal lengths. While digital photographers can approximate some of these effects in post-processing, many prefer the in-camera approach for its immediacy and the way it influences exposure decisions at the moment of capture. For film shooters, the #12 Yellow remains an essential part of the filter kit.

Key Features

Reduces excess blue of full moon in astrophotography

"Minus blue" cuts haze in aerial work

Primarily for black-and-white images

62mm diameter

Specifications

Brand
Tiffen
Filter Type
#12 Yellow
Diameter
62mm
Effect
Reduces blue light, enhances contrast
Primary Use
Black-and-white photography

Pros & Cons

👍 Pros

  • Noticeably enhances contrast and tonal range in black-and-white images
  • 62mm threading fits a wide range of mid-size lenses
  • Tiffen's glass construction delivers consistent optical quality
  • Lightweight and slim profile minimizes vignetting risk
  • Affordable way to add creative control to film or digital B&W photography

👎 Cons

  • Single-purpose filter with limited usefulness outside black-and-white photography
  • Only fits 62mm threads — requires step-up rings for other lens sizes
  • The roughly one-stop light loss requires exposure compensation
  • Effect cannot be precisely replicated in post-processing but similar results can be approximated digitally
  • No protective case is typically included

Frequently Asked Questions

It absorbs blue light, which darkens skies and enhances tonal separation in black-and-white photography, producing more dramatic contrast between clouds and sky.
It can be mounted on a lens during color shooting, but it will apply a strong yellow cast to the image. It is designed primarily for black-and-white work.
It fits any lens with a 62mm front filter thread. Check your lens cap or lens barrel for the thread size, often marked with a "ø" symbol.
Yes, it absorbs some light — typically about one stop — so you may need to adjust your exposure settings slightly when using it.
Tiffen filters are made with optical glass using their ColorCore technology, which laminates the filter material between two pieces of glass for durability and consistency.

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