How to deal with lens flare?

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alexmonkeychops

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What do you do about lens flare? i use a hood already but still get the odd unpleasant flare when shooting in direct sunlight.

Are there methods to avoid this and how to post process this if not?
 
Remove any filters... Dont shoot in direct sunlight..
Think thats about it! :lol:

You can clone out the flares in PS pretty easilly if needed.
 
Use a hood. Take the photo from somewhere which is sheltered from the sun.
 
All of the above, but watch the angles too. Sometimes it's very difficult to avoid flare, and some lenses are more prone to it than others. Changing your position and/or shooting from the shade can help a lot.
 
But mainly - don't use a so-called 'protective' filter. Even the best can only exacerbate flare problems.
 
Dammage to the coating on the objective lens may also add to flare.
 
Oggy is correct (so is everyone else). But I just want to make it clear, in case you didn't know, like Oggy said, there is a coating on the lens, a micro coating, that can actually be rubbed off after awhile when cleaning your lens too much. Another reason to always use a UV filter to protect your lens. But of course, you can take it off for situations like this.
 
In my case the damage was caused by a "blunt force trauma" to the lens. If I had a filter on, it would have shattered and the shards would have hit the lens causing even more dammage.
 
TySharp said:
I have actually seen filters completely shattered, from blunt force trauma, without causing one single scratch to the lens. And actually, the filter ring never was able to be removed from the lens, but the lens was fully protected.
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I wrap my camera in tissue paper. I've often seen the tissue tear without causing a single scratch to the camera body. The tissue was ruined, but it did it's job of protecting the body.
 
TySharp said:
Oggy is correct (so is everyone else). But I just want to make it clear, in case you didn't know, like Oggy said, there is a coating on the lens, a micro coating, that can actually be rubbed off after awhile when cleaning your lens too much. Another reason to always use a UV filter to protect your lens. But of course, you can take it off for situations like this.
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Sorry to be blunt, but this is completely untrue. I have never managed to damage a lens coating in 40 years through cleaning. Nor have I ever seen evidence of it.

Modern coatings are in fact incredibly tough. For reasons I won't go into, I recently tried to damage a multi-coated filter by excessive cleaning, to challenge the manufacturer's claims - and failed. It was totally unmarked.

I never use protective filters unless there is good reason. There is no need. Just look after them and clean them properly and carefully when necessary.
 
hollis_f said:
I wrap my camera in tissue paper. I've often seen the tissue tear without causing a single scratch to the camera body. The tissue was ruined, but it did it's job of protecting the body.
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How would you compare the coefficients of restitution of tissue and glass?
 
Use flare creatively and don't be afraid to include it in some of your images. Use a small aperture for star-light effect. I admit I'm not a big fan of it but seems to be in vogue at the moment.
 
Oggy said:
How would you compare the coefficients of restitution of tissue and glass?
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I would bet money that glass has a higher CoR than tissue - i.e., it is bouncier. What's that got to do with anything?

Tissue paper is more easily damaged than the rubber on my camera body.
Most (all) filters are more easily damaged than the front element of my lens.

Suggesting that an impact that damages a filter would also have damaged the lens is as erroneous as suggesting that an impact that damages tissue paper would also have damaged my camera body.
 
towershot said:
Use your hand to block out the sun,but you need a fast shutter and watch the hand does not get into the shot.
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Come on, primary school stuff :D

Lens hood? On my Industar 50-2 (which really needs a clean after it's trip to the beach a few days ago):

sTheq.jpg


Film canister + Hacksaw = Job's a good 'un. Even get a 'free' lens cap too ;)
 
alexmonkeychops said:
What do you do about lens flare? i use a hood already but still get the odd unpleasant flare when shooting in direct sunlight.

Are there methods to avoid this and how to post process this if not?
Click to expand...

If the sun isn't in shot, flag it off with something - French-flags can be homebrewed from blackwrap (use LV to be sure you aren't in the edge of frame if you don't have a 100% viewfinder) - but as you probably haven't got any of that to hand, try a lump of thick cardboard.

If the sun is in shot - as said, start by removing all unnecessary filters (i.e. UV, Clear, etc). The more expensive lenses have better-quality coatings to reduce the effect (get what you pay for here...). If the sun is coming through leaves, experiment with slightly different positions or simply take multiple shots and hope the wind blows through the leaves in the "right" way in ones of them...

Not sure about post-processing to remove lens-flare, but adding it artificially seems to have been a popular choice for years :cuckoo::bang:
 
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