Beginner Washed-out colours from light diffusal

[x6herbius]

Not 100% sure which category would be the best to post this in, but I guessed beginner questions wouldn't be far wrong!

I recently bought a Nikon D610 for my birthday, upgrading from a D3100, and for the most part the quality is pretty exceptional. I'm spending time getting used to the new camera and I've noticed that in some cases, especially when the shutter speed is slower, pictures can appear washed-out due to light from sources spreading over the image - this was never something that caught my eye too much when using the D3100 but it's noticeable on the D610, perhaps because the colours are stronger on average.

These are a couple of unprocessed pictures (from RAW) that don't suffer from the problem - colours and contrast are generally good.

And these are a couple where the colours are washed out - the first from the sun, the second from artificial lights.

I can correct for this somewhat in post-processing but it's more difficult to do when the diffusion doesn't cover the whole image, like in the second example. It seems to happen more in low light because the shutter speeds are slower, but I don't remember it being that much of a problem on the D3100. For comparison, this is what my D3100 low-light images looked like (after processing this time):

I was wondering whether anyone could give me more details about the exact conditions which cause this? Is it more to do with the environment or the lens, and are there any steps I can take to reduce it? I have been using the D610 kit, but may look into getting another lens more urgently if this is why. The D3100 lens, for comparison, was a 35mm 1:1.8G.

Many thanks.

 

[Bobsyeruncle]

Do you use a lens cap when shooting in bright sun?
I don't think its anything to do with the lens. More likely your positioning in relation to the sun, and the camera exposure settings.

 

[x6herbius]

I do use a lens hood (I think that's what it's called - the plastic petal-like shroud) that I was given when buying the camera but that doesn't seem to affect the situation - the photos above were taken with it on.

 

[boyfalldown]

The first problem shot is caused by lens flair. Although the sun isn't in shot its probably pretty close and thats whats causing the effect. Leaving your hood on will help (you should always) but won't eliminate the hazing you see. Keeping your lens very clean and not using filters may also help. Its everything to do with your lens and caused in large part by light entering and bouncing round as the maker never intended. On the image of the lanterns your problems are exaggerated by the high iso you seem to be using. The higher the iso the lower the dynamic range you can capture (the range of colours between black and white) which is exaggerating the flair more

The lake/mountains/clouds shot looks to be predominantly movement issues (in the clouds and water) caused by long shutter speeds. Coupled with high iso thats causing the lights in the background to overwhelm your sensor and blow out to pure white very quickly. They're also flaring to the neighbouring pixels as a result. Leaving the exif intact may of helped with giving you a more detailed answer

Do you use a lens cap when shooting in bright sun?

leaving your lens cap on results in a completely different effect

 

[Bobsyeruncle]

Sorry guys, I meant a hood

 

[HoppyUK]

Flare, as Hugh says. Use lens hood, don't use 'protection' filter, make sure lens is clean (esp no finger prints).

 

[droj]

Yes, veiling flare from the lens when shooting contre jour. It doesn't look like it's a good performer in this regard. Primes tend to be better in my experience (fewer elements and simpler construction mean less opportunity for the light to bounce around inside the lens on its way to the sensor).

I like the term 'diffusal'.