Introduction

Throughout my years of photography, I've come to find that there's a particular kind of light that just stays with you...

I’m talking about that warm, hazy glow that’s nostalgic, cinematic, and synonymous with late summer and early autumn.

And it’s not just me who has fond feelings for that light and that look. Like all “Golden Hour” photography, it’s a stunning, highly sought-after aesthetic for a range of photographers. And now, there’s an exciting array of filters and products from photography kit manufacturers that help image-makers achieve that look.

For a recent trip to the Mediterranean island of Sardinia, that’s exactly I wanted to achieve in my photos, so I tried out the CineGold filter made by PolarPro. My aim was simple: I wanted to create a cinematic warmth in my image like that of a film, that feels like the very last days of summer meeting the first notes of autumn, no matter when or where I shoot. That’s where the filter came in brilliantly.

Read on to find out more, and see some gorgeous examples of what the CineGold filter can do:

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What is PolarPro’s CineGold filter (and what does it do)?

The PolarPro CineGold filter is “your filter to the nostalgic warmth of film" and “adds a gentle golden glow to your images — softening digital harshness while preserving natural skin tones.”

Physically speaking, it’s a diffusion lens filter mounted to the front of your lens, and is available for any camera lens that will take a filter between 49mm and 82mm. Depending on the lens size, different sizes and ring adaptors are available.

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Specifications of the CineGold filter (as given by PolarPro):

- Transmission: 90%
- Mist Strength: 1/2 Gold Mist Diffusion
- Image Quality: Softer with less contrast
- Colour Tone: Warmer Highlights, Neutral Shadows

The filter is “Designed to emulate the creamy highlights, low contrast, and pastel-toned palette of Kodak Portra 400.”

Kodak Portra 400 is a well-loved film stock, and the CineGold filter is aimed at getting that filmic look directly within a digital camera. As discussed in previous guides on Focus, getting the film look in your digital camera has considerable advantages over film. It’s much cheaper and more efficient, but you still get that gorgeous filmic look for your images.

The CineGold lens filter also comes with a set of Lightroom Presets that you can apply in post-production to enhance and refine the look you’re after even further. I used these for my images, and I love the effect (read more below).

I used the screw-on 67mm CineGold filter, with a 52mm ring adaptor, as I was using a 52mm lens, along with my usual Fujifilm Mirrorless X-T30 camera body.

Out of the box

Like the other PolarPro kit I’ve worked with (more on that here), it’s been packaged beautifully, feels superior in quality, and comes with a sturdy, slimline case. With the adaptor ring, the lens filter fit onto my camera without any problems and came packed with a decent cleaning cloth.

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Using the lens filter in the field

It was a joy to use the filter in the field. Throughout my week-long trip, I never took it off, and it worked fantastically for my subject matter: travel, nature, and outdoor images in mainly bright, sunny conditions. The lens fit onto my lens without issue, and I didn’t have any problems with the lens falling off, misaligning, etc. As I mentioned above, the filter feels superior in quality.

Like all diffusion filters, the difference can be subtle initially (see my other guide on black mist filters, where you’ll find more in-depth information about diffuser filters and before-and-after examples). The same is true of the CineGold filter; using the filter adds a subtle effect to images, a slight, soft, diffused warm glow, meaning your images have a smoother, more dreamlike look. In my opinion, it’s beautiful.

While some images may not show much difference, on closer examination, you’ll see that your pictures have subtle diffusion throughout compared to photos taken without it. Per PolarPro’s website description, the filter is “Infused with golden particles directly in the glass, the CineGold filter delivers a warm, cinematic diffusion around light sources, while preserving smooth skin tones and nostalgic pastel hues.”

The diffused effect is particularly evident in light sources in the image, such as skies, lights, etc., where you'll notice a much softer, diffused look to them. You’ll see evidence of this in the gallery of sample images below.

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Here are some of my favourite images taken using the CineGold filter. Again, you’ll notice throughout that the photos have a beautiful, soft, subtle feel. In other words, the filter has removed the hard edge from the images, so to speak, and that’s what gives them their beautiful, cinematic, nostalgic look.

Note that I’ve further enhanced these images using PolarPro’s complimentary CineGold presets, which you can read more about below.

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PolarPro’s accompanying CineGold presets

In addition to the CineGold lens filter, PolarPro offers a complimentary set of CineGold presets for desktop and mobile images taken with the filter.

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What do the presets do? They amplify your images' golden hues and other elements to enhance the warm look. The presets also make your pictures more filmic-looking by softening details and adding mild grain-like effects, similar to 35mm and 120 film.

The two presets that worked best for my images (for sunny, outdoor, warm, and glowy travel pictures) were the Golden Hour and Portra 400 Cine presets.

Below are more examples and before-and-afters showing how the preset effects look on the image. Viewing the images side-by-side, you can clearly see the enhancements made by the presets.
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Before and after using the CineGold presets (left to right, top to bottom):

‍Top tip:

If you use presets (it doesn't matter what type of preset), a top tip from me is not just to apply the preset as is; spend some time actually applying your own edits on top of the preset.

I used the CineGold presets for these images abive, but only at 30% - 40% strength, as I didn't want to go with their full effect.
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On top of the preset effect, I added the Classic Chrome Fujifilm film simulation (which I do for most of my images) and altered the colour temperature, contrast, grain, and vignetting to give my pictures my own personal editing touch.

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What do I like about the filter experience, and would I use it again?

Absolutely, I would use the CineGold filter again!

It really was such a pleasure to use when I was out and about with my camera, and I would certainly use it again if I were looking to do a cinematic series in particular or one where I want warm glows. But even without going for that aesthetic, it would work in various subjects. While I’m very much a landscape, travel, and outdoor photographer, I can see this filter working for literally all sorts.

One thing I would invest in (which is down to my habits more than anything) is a lens cap for the larger filter, as I kept it on most of the time and therefore could have warranted more protection on my part. However, the filter felt very robust.

I want to spend more time experimenting with the different preset looks to get the best results using the filter and more of my own edits and experimentation.

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Final thoughts

I loved using this filter and believe it will become a go-to in my kit bag. For my trip to Sardinia, I found it a fantastic companion for my photography there.

If you’re looking to give your images that cinematic golden glow, I highly recommend it. It’s one of the simplest and most effective tools I’ve used, and the soft glow it gives images, whether you’re going for a strong, warm look or not, is just gorgeous.

PolarPro’s CineGold filter can be purchased directly from their online store, and they ship worldwide. Above all, I hope this article has inspired you to give some thought to trying out some new kit and pushing yourself to do something different.

As always, whatever you end up doing with your photography, don’t forget to upload your images to your Picfair Store and share them with the world!