Tilta Illusion Filters Announced, Adding Additional Flare of Creativity to the Mirage Matte Box System

Camera Accessories

by Omri Keren LapidotDecember 11^th, 2023

Tilta announced a slew of new creative filters designed to enhance creative capabilities. The new Illusion filter series includes Black Mist, White Mist, Pearlaura Mist, Digital Diffusion, Digital Dynamic Diffusion, and Glimmer filters. All filters come in three flavors, with either 1/2, 1/4, or 1/8 Density. All six will work with the Tilta Mirage motorized matte box system.

It seems as if sharpness has lost some of its halo in recent years. The rise of higher and higher video resolutions has also pushed optics towards a clinical, technical look. The same lenses are being used for both video and stills, thus requiring even higher resolution levels. So, after years of sharpening and honing the technical aspects of lenses, something seems to be missing.

Details are just one part of the story

Life isn’t clinically clean, and so – its visual representations shouldn’t be clean either. Technical lenses tend to miss something that is sometimes called “character”. I tend not to attribute this to objects, but I do understand the importance of different optical characteristics for a good visual story. Much like different levels and methods of writing that dictate the way we’ll experience a text, different optics may alter our perception in many interesting ways.

Enter the Illusion Filters

Tilta’s Illusion series provides us with numerous tools. Each filter will alter the image in a slightly different way. The Black Mist will create distinct halos around light sources. The Digital Diffusion filter will generate subtler halos and will apply some softness across the entire frame. Other filters will create slightly different effects.

Tech-specs

The Illusion Filters are built to high standards. They are all 95mm quality glass filters, Nano-coated on both sides. They are compatible with the Tilta Mirage system, thus enabling quick switching, lightweight and compact carry, and overall snappy workflow next to the system’s motorized VND, Vaxis VFX filters, and more. This recent addition further enhances the impressive Mirage system, making it even more flexible and adapting it to a larger variety of productions.

Price and availability

Each Illusion Filter will set you back $55. This includes the glass filter alone. The filter tray will cost $39 and the basic matte box is $119 (including a top flag)

Do you like the softer, hazier look to your footage? What do you use to achieve this kind of character? Let us know in the comments.