Veil-like light scatter inside a lens that reduces contrast and softens highlights — once unwanted, now deliberately used as a stylistic tool.
Veiling glare occurs when light reflects off lens surfaces within a lens instead of passing through cleanly. This stray light lays over the image like a veil, reducing contrast and causing bright image areas to bleed into darker zones. In modern, high-quality coatings, veiling glare is minimized — with vintage optics, it's part of the character.
Why Veiling Glare Can Be Desired
Reduced contrast means softer transitions between light and dark. Highlights roll off more gently, and shadows fill with light. The result is reminiscent of film texture — because film negative has a similar highlight rolloff. For DPs shooting digitally who want a filmic look, controlled veiling glare is a tool.
How to Control It
Three ways: first, through lens choice — vintage lenses or single-coated optics naturally have more veiling glare. Second, through lens tuning — Panavision and other houses can modify coatings to intentionally increase glare. Third, through filters — Pro-Mist, Glimmer Glass, or Hollywood Black Magic add an optical stray light effect without modifying the lens.
Measurement
Veiling glare is measured as a percentage of incident light that lands on the sensor as stray light. Modern multi-coated cine optics typically have 1-3% veiling glare. Vintage single-coated lenses can reach 5-15%. Anything above that becomes difficult to control, even for stylistic purposes.