Does the L-eNhance give star halos?

Yes, in my test. On the star halo test around Sadr it showed a halo, as did the Altair 4nm; the SVBONY SV220 was the only one of the three without.

Is it better than no filter?

By a long way on emission nebulae. On the North America Nebula the same 30 minutes through it look like a different image next to my frame with no filter.

L-eNhance or SVBONY SV220?

The SV220. It brought out more nebulosity and was the only filter of the three with no halo around the bright star. The L-eNhance costs less.

Which size did I test?

The 2 inch version, on the Askar SQA106 with a colour camera. Optolong also makes it in 1.25 inch and as a Canon EOS APS-C clip-in.

Which lines does it pass?

H-alpha, H-beta and OIII. Optolong does not publish the width of each passband.

Does it need a mono camera and a filter wheel?

No. It is one filter for a one-shot colour camera: your images still come out in colour, with more nebula detail and no filter wheel.

What have I not tested on the L-eNhance?

I did not measure the L-eNhance's passbands or transmission; Optolong publishes a transmission figure but no bandwidths.

Optolong L-eNhance review: a big step up, with a halo problem

Where does it rank on our leaderboard

Nine of the 13 filters on my board, against price
Rank	Filter	Stars for Your Buck	Recorded UK price
1	Scorpio HSO 3nm	100 out of 100	£448
2	Laida HSO 5nm 1.25″	94 out of 100	£154
3	SVBONY SV220 Ha OIII 3nm	92 out of 100	£249
5	Altair HSO 6.5nm/7nm Narrowband	76 out of 100	£475
6	QuarkStar Chromosphere	76 out of 100	£1,149
8	Altair Ha OIII 4nm	74 out of 100	£399
11	Optolong L-Enhance	61 out of 100	£149
12	Optolong L-Ultimate Dual-Bandpass 3nm	43 out of 100	£216
13	ZWO HSO 7nm Narrowband	32 out of 100	£734

Contents

01 Where does it rank on our leaderboard
02 Specifications and features
03 The same target through each filter
04 Watch the review
05 Should you buy it?
06 Questions and more about this review

In 30 seconds

Stars for Your Buck 61/100

Reviewed 2 May 2026 Updated 25 Sep 2026

Rank: #11 of 13 filters
Verdict: Worth a look

Written by Damon Scotting 4 min read

Buy it if

You want the lowest-cost way to lift emission nebulae out of a light-polluted sky with a one-shot colour camera.
You shoot with a Canon APS-C DSLR and want a clip-in filter.
You want H-beta passed as well as H-alpha and OIII.

Skip it if

You image nebulae around bright stars and cannot live with halos.
You want the most contrast a dual-band filter can give.
You use a mono camera with separate narrowband filters.

“The Optolong L-eNhance image is a nice step up in terms of highlighting the nebulosity in the image, but it still falls miles short of the SVBONY and Altair filters.”

Specifications and features

Against the filters I have reviewed

Compare with

Optolong L-Enhance reviewed #11 of 13	SVBONY SV220 Ha OIII 3nm #3 of 13	Altair Ha OIII 4nm #8 of 13	Optolong L-Ultimate Dual-Bandpass 3nm #12 of 13
Recorded UK price	£149	£249	£399	£216
Stars for Your Buck	61/100	92/100	74/100	43/100
Type	Dual-bandpass light pollution filter (H-alpha, H-beta and OIII)	Dual-band narrowband filter (H-alpha and OIII)	Dual-band: Ha and OIII in one filter	Dual-band narrowband filter (H-alpha and OIII)
Bandpass	H-alpha 10 nm; OIII + H-beta 24 nm	3 nm OIII, 3 nm H-alpha, tolerance ±1	4 nm each band, tolerance about ±0.5	3 nm OIII, 3 nm H-alpha
Lines passed	H-alpha, H-beta, OIII	OIII 500.7 nm, H-alpha 656.3 nm	OIII 500.7 nm and Ha 656.3 nm	OIII 500.7 nm, H-alpha 656.3 nm
Peak transmission	Over 90%	85% or more on average (OIII and H-alpha)	Ha 90 to 94%, OIII 88 to 91%	90% or more on average
Sizes	1.25 inch, 2 inch (the size I tested), Canon EOS-C clip-in	2 inch, M48 x 0.75 (the size I used); 1.25 inch also sold	2 inch (M48 x 0.75 thread)	1.25 inch (the size I use), 2 inch
Thickness	1.85 mm B270 glass	2.0 mm substrate	1.85 mm	1.85 mm
Coating	Multi-layer anti-reflection, non-cemented, ion-assisted deposition	Multi-layer minimal halo coating	SiO2 hard overcoat with UV/IR block and anti-reflection coating	Multi-layer anti-reflection, non-cemented, ion-assisted deposition
In the box	Protective plastic case with EVA foam lining	2 inch SV220 3 nm filter; plastic case; outer packing box	Filter and its spectrographic test report	Protective plastic case with EVA foam lining

The same target through each filter

The Optolong L-Enhance against three other filters on North America Nebula, Western Veil and Star halo test, one telescope and one camera, star-aligned

Against

⇔

No filter Optolong L-Enhance North America Nebula drag

North America Nebula (emission nebula) · Askar SQA106, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, ZWO AM3N · Bortle 6.8 (in my garden) Left: No filter, 30 min (10 x 180 s) Right: Optolong L-Enhance, 30 min (10 x 180 s)

North America Nebula: Askar SQA106, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, ZWO AM3N, Bortle 6.8 (in my garden); Optolong L-Enhance 30 min (10 x 180 s); SVBONY SV220 Ha OIII 3nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); Altair Ha OIII 4nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); No filter 30 min (10 x 180 s)
Western Veil: Askar SQA106, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, ZWO AM3N, Bortle 6.8 (in my garden); Optolong L-Enhance 30 min (10 x 180 s); SVBONY SV220 Ha OIII 3nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); Altair Ha OIII 4nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); No filter 30 min (10 x 180 s)
Star halo test: Askar SQA106, ZWO ASI2600MC Pro, ZWO AM3N, Bortle 6.8 (in my garden); Optolong L-Enhance 30 min (10 x 180 s); SVBONY SV220 Ha OIII 3nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); Altair Ha OIII 4nm 30 min (10 x 180 s); No filter 30 min (10 x 180 s)

Watch the review

What is the BEST Astro Filter on the Market in 2026? · published 2 May 2026 · 6:06 · Watch on YouTube · 5,706 views, 316 likes on 2 Oct 2026

Jump to

0:30 Three targets and what I judge them on
0:55 The rig: Askar SQA106 and a colour camera
1:35 10 x 3 minutes per shot, the same NoiseX and BlurX
1:48 Round one: the Veil Nebula
3:01 Round two: the North America Nebula
4:10 Round three: the star halo test
5:24 The winner

Transcript of the review video 1,108 words · 8 chapters · searchable

Press a time stamp to play from there.

0:00 The question: the best colour-camera filter

0:00 Tonight I'm going to answer the question, what is pound-for-pound the best colour camera filter on the market today? 0:05 In this video, we're going to be finding out as I test the SVBONY 220 filter versus the Optolong L-eNhance filter and the Altair 4nm dual filter, as well as of course as no filter at all for a control variable. 0:17 Each of these filters cost very different amounts and as it turns out produce very different results. 0:22 Which one comes out on top? 0:24 Let's find out. 0:24 I'm Damon Scotting and this is Astronomical. 0:29 Okay, so let's jump straight into this.

0:30 Three targets and what I judge them on

0:31 No messing around. 0:31 I'm going to show you three different nebula based deep sky targets tonight. 0:34 And we're going to be looking at for which one provides the most detail, contrast, and least amount of star haloing with their filter. 0:40 I'm also going to be putting each image through various stages of editing so that you can see how your final image will likely turn out. 0:47 So, let's get started with a supernova remnant known as the Veil Nebula. 0:52 In particular, we are looking at the Eastern Veil Nebula.

0:55 The rig: Askar SQA106 and a colour camera

0:55 To capture these images, we are using the uber powerful and sharp Askar SQA106 telescope. 1:00 This is a scope that is practically guaranteed to give us the best colour and details we could possibly hope for. 1:06 I'll also be using the ASI 2600MC camera to take 26 megapixel colour images. 1:11 So, that's the key distinction here to note. 1:13 I'm using a colour camera. 1:15 This is just a single filter. 1:15 Your images are still going to turn out in colour, but with the help of these filters, you're bringing out similar levels of detail to what the likes of monochrome cameras with specific filters can do, but just, you know, with less mucking around. 1:28 So, to summarize, this is an absolute beast of a setup. 1:30 The conditions tonight are flawless. 1:32 So, let's get started. 1:34 So, for each shot, you are looking at 10 stacked 3-minute images, which means we have 30 minutes of exposure time per shot.

1:35 10 x 3 minutes per shot, the same NoiseX and BlurX

1:40 And a key distinction I'm going to apply to each image is the exact same NoiseX and BlurX effect. 1:46 Effectively improving the sharpness and noise of each image to give an idea of its full potential.

1:48 Round one: the Veil Nebula

1:49 This isn't so important for our filterless image here, but when it comes to our heavy intense filters, the images tend to be noisier as less light reaches the sensor. 1:59 Now, since the filter I'm mostly focusing on reviewing today is supposed to be the SV220, that will be the final filtered image shown. 2:05 But, as you can see, the Altair filter is the most expensive. 2:08 And as it seems, based on our first test, it's also the filter that produces the best image. 2:12 Both it and the SV220 are pretty noisy, but it just seems as though the red of the nebula is popping a little bit more in the Altair image. 2:20 The Optolong L-eNhance image is a nice step up in terms of highlighting the nebulosity in the image, but it still falls miles short of the SVBONY and Altair filters. 2:28 Here's a little insight into the effects of NoiseX and BlurX on our images. 2:56 So yeah, all in all, round one goes to the Altair 4nm dual-band filter. 2:58 This is the North America Nebula.

3:01 Round two: the North America Nebula

3:02 And I mean, look at the upgrade right here. 3:04 That is something special. 3:06 This is perhaps the perfect nebula to demonstrate the importance of a colour filter on. 3:10 It has made this into a completely different image. 3:14 It feels like I'm comparing 10-minute exposures with 10 hours. 3:15 The Altair and SVBONY filters take it a step further and really fine-tune a nebulosity. 3:21 But again, I feel the Altair filter edges it, or at least I do until you apply NoiseX and BlurX. 3:27 It's worth noting here that the Altair filter is supposedly 4 nm whilst the SVBONY is supposedly 3 nm, meaning it's even more specialized and filters out a lot more light. 3:39 Case in point, when you reduce the noise by the same amount on both, I'm starting to lean towards the SVBONY filter as being the best. 3:44 So maybe we just need some more exposure time to really start to appreciate who the real winner is here. 3:50 With that being said, in terms of testing on the North America Nebula, I don't think there are any losers here. 3:55 Every single one of them improves upon the raw image significantly, although the slight greenish hue the stars are getting in the Altair and SVBONY images is certainly something to keep an eye out for. 4:05 This will require a bit of tweaking in post to correct it, which then leaves us with a final target of the video.

4:10 Round three: the star halo test

4:12 Deneb, the star one third of the Summer Triangle. 4:15 This star is going to be key to determining which filter is ultimately the best. 4:19 Why? 4:19 Because what really separates the men from the boys when it comes to filters is whether or not there are any star halos. 4:24 Basically a deal breaker for most astrophotographers. 4:28 So the question is will they all pass the test? 4:30 Now Deneb is a very bright star making a great target to test this out on. 4:35 As we can clearly see the Optolong L-eNhance filter fails to pass the dreaded star halo test. 4:39 So too, in fact, does the Altair 4nm filter ultimately suffering the same fate as the Optolong. 4:46 This is very upsetting as it likely means all three filters are going to suffer the same fate. 4:51 Except, wait, look at that. 4:51 The SVBONY 220 filter passes the test with flying colours. 4:58 No star halos to be seen here. 5:01 How crazy is that? 5:01 It feels like it was always going to be very hard to pick a winner between the two here, but this final test makes it clear and obvious which filter produces the higher quality images. 5:10 The SVBONY filter images are still certainly noisier and gives our blue stars an even more greenish hue. 5:16 But it's doing a great job at bringing out the nebulosity whilst also keeping the stars the right shape and with no star haloing. 5:22 So, there we go.

5:24 The winner

5:24 Those are our final results. 5:24 I will leave it up to you in the comments to decide for yourselves which of these filters you think offered the most stars for your buck. 5:30 You can find direct links and even discount codes for each of the products featured in today's video by checking out the description down below. 5:38 Leave a comment stating which filters you would like for me to test out next.

Should you buy it?

61/100 Stars for Your Buck

Pros

On the North America Nebula it turned my no-filter frame into a completely different image.
It passes H-beta as well as H-alpha and OIII, and Optolong states over 90% peak transmission.
The cheapest 2 inch dual-band filter I have tested, at £149 from First Light Optics.
It comes in 1.25 inch, 2 inch and as a clip-in for Canon EOS APS-C cameras.

Cons

Next to the 3 nm SV220 and the 4 nm Altair it brought out less nebulosity in both nebula rounds.
Bright stars in the field come out with a halo.
Optolong publishes no bandwidth figures for it.

As we can clearly see, the Optolong L-eNhance filter fails to pass the dreaded star halo test.

Who the L-eNhance is for

First filter for a colour camera

Buy

It is the cheapest filter I have tested that turns a washed-out emission nebula into a real image.

Canon DSLR shooter

Buy

The EOS-C clip-in version fits inside a Canon EOS APS-C camera body.

Nebulae around bright stars

Skip

It failed my halo test; the SVBONY SV220 passed it.

Contrast chaser

Skip

The 3 nm SV220 and the 4 nm Altair pulled out more nebulosity in the same test.

Mono camera owner

Skip

A mono camera is better served by separate narrowband filters.

SV220 owner

Skip

Going from the SV220 to the L-eNhance would be a step back.

Three alternatives I have reviewed

Questions and more about this review

Reviewed by

Damon Scotting

The Telescope Man Verified

BSc (Hons) Physics with Astrophysics and Cosmology, Loughborough University PGCE / QTS, University of Nottingham

About Damon About Damon Damon Scotting is The Telescope Man. He holds a BSc (Hons) in Physics with Astrophysics and Cosmology from Loughborough University and a PGCE with QTS from the University of Nottingham, and taught physics in secondary schools before becoming an astronomy creator. He is a contributing writer for BBC Sky at Night Magazine and the author of 42 Wonders of Our Night Sky, and his photograph of the galaxy M100 with the dwarf planet Ceres was Highly Commended in the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2024 competition run by Royal Observatory Greenwich. He has appeared on the BBC's Blue Peter. More than 750,000 people follow his astronomy channels on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, and he has reviewed more than 140 telescopes, mounts, cameras, filters and accessories hands-on for this site. More about Damon · How I test · Damon's book

I review all kinds of gear: most of it I buy, some is gifted and some is loaned, and all of it is reviewed the same way. How this site is funded

Seven questions, answered

Questions about the Optolong L-Enhance

Reviewed 2 May 2026 ·Updated 25 September 2026

I review all kinds of gear. Most of it I buy, some is gifted and some is loaned, and all of it is reviewed the same way: no company sees or approves a review before it is published. Shop links marked Ad are affiliate links: I earn a commission when you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. How this site is funded

Does the L-eNhance give star halos? Yes, in my test. On the star halo test around Sadr it showed a halo, as did the Altair 4nm; the SVBONY SV220 was the only one of the three without. The same target through each filter ↓
Is it better than no filter? By a long way on emission nebulae. On the North America Nebula the same 30 minutes through it look like a different image next to my frame with no filter. The same target through each filter ↓
L-eNhance or SVBONY SV220? The SV220. It brought out more nebulosity and was the only filter of the three with no halo around the bright star. The L-eNhance costs less. The same target through each filter ↓
Which size did I test? The 2 inch version, on the Askar SQA106 with a colour camera. Optolong also makes it in 1.25 inch and as a Canon EOS APS-C clip-in. The specifications and the comparison table ↓
Which lines does it pass? H-alpha, H-beta and OIII. Optolong does not publish the width of each passband. The specifications and the comparison table ↓
Does it need a mono camera and a filter wheel? No. It is one filter for a one-shot colour camera: your images still come out in colour, with more nebula detail and no filter wheel. The same target through each filter ↓
What have I not tested on the L-eNhance? I did not measure the L-eNhance's passbands or transmission; Optolong publishes a transmission figure but no bandwidths.