Correcting tint with LEE Filters

Don’t use the lee filter over high powered LEDs unless it’s a zircon filter. I don’t think it will straight up melt, but over time probably fade and maybe bubble.

I’ve had a piece of Lee 249 1/4 minus green between the optic and glass of my 219C D4 since December. I run the light on turbo fairly often. No issues yet.

That’s ok.

I have a gigantic sheet of the stuff. Enough for at least a hundred Emisar D4 flashlights. If the filter degrades over time, I’ll just cut another one. :stuck_out_tongue:

Good to know!

I installed a Lee Zircon 805 Minus Green in front of my Noctigon Meteor M43 5000K 219C and it removed the green tint and made it look almost identical to a 5000K Nichia 219B. I was bothered by the green tint, and the filter now made the light much more pleasant to use.

I’ve even put Zircon Minus Green 802 and 803 in front of my high CRI Zebralights. I enjoy using them so much more now and the loss in output is well worth the trade off.

Where’s the best place to get these minus green filters economically? Would anyone be willing to sell a segment of their sheet? I can’t see using more than like a few inches of the stuff, but everywhere I’ve checked on-line so far you have to buy a huge sheet of it (2 feet long). I checked on those filter swatch books that are offered pretty cheap, but it’s a flat rate of $7.50 for shipping and then I’d be stuck with a bunch of filters I’d never use.

I bought the swatch book

.

maybe someone will share a piece of Zircon 804 with you.

more info here about a Zircon 804 with a 5000k N219c

and more about Lee Filters and which one moves tint how much…

Does the default swatch book contain the minus green filters? What are the dimensions of the book?

yes it has the minus green, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2, 1
it also has other filters such as bastard amber 162, marlene #506, amber #775, amber #774, that someone I know mentioned using… so I liked that I could compare what they used, to what I like… I prefer 1/4 minus green… the filters are all marked with the light transmission rate, so you can know how much you are giving up in lumens…

and I have played with some green, and red filters too
I even put a green filter into a plastic bottle cap, that fits over my Novatac and HDS, so I can pop it on and off… all good fun… cheaper than a movie

just do it! LOL!

the swatches are 1.5” by about 3” of useable sample, the book is over 2” thick… there is even diffusion film

what are you wanting to filter?:wink:

Make sure that you buy the Zircon filters if there is any chance at all that they become warm during use (usually when the lens/filter is close to the LED => smaller lights). The standard LEE filters lose their function quickly if they become warm.

maybe true, but did you read this:

at the very least, I recommend the swatch book as a way to test the filters, so xevious can experience them, before spending money on the premium Zircon ones, and so he knows which one he needs, or wants

Search for a photography/theatrical supply store inour area and ask if they stock color correcting filters.
Those big 2-foot square sheets are meant to filter theatrical or photographic lights.

There is another brand — Rosco —- you may find locally.
And ask if they have the filter “sample packs” — which are often sold inexpensively.
Those are little books with 1x1.5-inch strips of each color filter.

PS — the filter packs come out every year; I found suppliers would give me last year’s sample packs free.

Do the various filters, in particular the minus green ones, have a significant impact on CRI?

Usually they raise the CRI by 3-5 points.

thanks, I found the reference

the CRI change depending which filter, is up to 3 points change in CRI Ra, and up to 10 points change in CRI R9

imo no, I do not think the CRI improvement to a Low CRI LED, is significant at all.

these are minus green filters:

they replace green tint with pink tint, at the cost of lumens
but they wont change a Low CRI LED into a High CRI LED

Probably a stupid question, but if you can't get the bezel off, how do you attach the filter? I use dc-fix on some lights but it has adhesive and it's no problem to attach and keep it there and be able to remove it. Does these filters have a similar type of adhesive?

there is no adhesive on Lee Filters

So how do you attach it to the outside of the lens, say to a Zebralight that you can’t open up?

I just press the plastic against the glass, and try to get it to jam in place. It is not ideal.

I have also used double sided tape, also not ideal.

I put a low priority on Lee Filters, they are a novelty to me, but not a serious solution for a poor LED. I tend to change the LEDs in my lights.

I do not own any zebras… you pretty much have to accept them the way they are, since they cannot be opened non destructively.

Also, I cannot clean a Lee filter with alcohol, because to my suprise, the filter dye comes off easily, leaving me with a piece of clear plastic.

Lee filters are a toy, not a serious tool.

Uh ... ok.

I’ve only used Lee filters on optics lights, since I’m able to sandwich the filter between the lens and optic. I wish I could put one on my beloved SC600 HI.

However, my ROT66 with SST20s is my favorite hiking light thanks to a lee 804 filter.