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Sunset Flare Monster!
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Dec 8, 2018 07:44:10   #
Bipod
 
boberic wrote:
I don't care what camera or what lens is used. When shooting into the sun, flare is always a possibility. There is only 1 way to avoid it--don't shoot directly into the sun.

Unfortunately, not all flare is visible.

In particular, a birght light source outside the angle of view can
drastically reduce contrast--particullarly in a lens with many surfaces,
such as any zoom lens.

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Mar 14, 2019 15:17:06   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
Thanks for the advice, there isn't a higher quality lens in it's class so that's out. Filters cause even more grief as I have tried. ;)

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Mar 14, 2019 18:34:49   #
Bipod
 
Sdubois wrote:
Thanks for the advice, there isn't a higher quality lens in it's class so that's out. Filters cause even more grief as I have tried. ;)

What--a school that doesn't own a prime lens?

Ditch the zoom--it's the flare monster.

BTW, flare isn't necessarily a bad thing. Invisible flare can reduce
contrast in high-constrast situations. And even a tiny bit of visible
flare isn't necessarily a bad thing: check out the "black sun" photo
taken by Ansel Adams, Example, p.124. (5 x 7" Linhof with
a Ross 5" wide-angle lens.)

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Mar 14, 2019 18:40:36   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
Agreed, I like flare in some cases.. I'm going to go Prime next time and give that a whirl.
-Steve

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Mar 26, 2019 09:35:15   #
gvarner Loc: Central Oregon Coast
 
I watched this Steve Perry YouTube video where he took two photos and used his thumb to block out the sun on the second. Then in PP he combined the two shots using layers and carefully cloned out a few stray spots.

https://youtu.be/J9DggKGiLb8

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Mar 26, 2019 12:01:48   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
gvarner wrote:
I watched this Steve Perry YouTube video where he took two photos and used his thumb to block out the sun on the second. Then in PP he combined the two shots using layers and carefully cloned out a few stray spots.

https://youtu.be/J9DggKGiLb8


Nice! Thanks!

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Apr 2, 2019 21:24:04   #
Daniel Veazey Loc: Little Rock, Arkansas
 
If you bracket your image, you can block the sun with your finger while exposing for the ground, then mask it out when you combine the images. Here is a video that demonstrates the technique:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCJGZgDEpqA

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Apr 2, 2019 23:06:04   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
Daniel Veazey wrote:
If you bracket your image, you can block the sun with your finger while exposing for the ground, then mask it out when you combine the images. Here is a video that demonstrates the technique:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCJGZgDEpqA


This is awesome thank you!

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Apr 4, 2019 05:37:27   #
PPP Loc: Florence
 
Sdubois wrote:
Pardon the cheap Halloween reference.

Hi All,
For the following image I used a Nikon D850 with a Nikkor 14-24 ISO100 f/14 1/160sec. Is there a better lens that has less lens flare? is there a technique I can use to reduce it?
I read somewhere that the 20mm f/1.8 has very little flare.
Here is the image that would have been much better without the flare.


1st -You won't find a better lens than the 14-24 Nikkor
2nd- When I shoot into the sun which I do often because I love the effect, I shoot several images from the same set up but slightly moved up-down-right -left incase flare is overwhelming. Then I fix it in post.
Great Image by the way!

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Apr 4, 2019 12:14:41   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
Great advice thanks!

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Apr 4, 2019 19:42:49   #
Bipod
 
PPP wrote:
1st -You won't find a better lens than the 14-24 Nikkor

That's a good lens and a useful one. It's one of best ultra-wide zooms available
That said, I suggest you look at Nikon's published MTF data.

From the standpoint of optical correction, the best lens in any manufacture's catalog
is a long prime.

Nikkor AF-S 14-23 f2.8G:
http://www.btobey.com/nikon/images/24mm-14-mtf.jpg

Nikkor 500 mm f/5.6 PF:
http://cdn.photographylife.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/Nikon-500mm-f5.6-MTF-Chart-634x650.png

Those are the results of rigrous testing. What you expressed was a a personal preferrence,
not an objective fact. You may like chocolate ice cream the best--that doesn't make it
"the best food". Sorry.

In addition to aberrations, ultra-wides always introduce distoration -- seen most clearly in a fish-eye
lens --which is not measured by MTF. That won't matter is a sunset, but might m a
scene with buildings in it. You can have your choice of several different kinds of
distoration, depending on the lens design. Shoot a grid test chart, and you'll find
out which kind that lens has.

Also, any zoom has more groups (and more air-glass surfaces) than a prime.
Alse being equal (e.g., the optical coatings), the zoom will create more flare.

No matter how much money you spend for an ultra-wide zoom, the MTF isn't going to
improve much. Each class of lens has limits to performance. If you insist on an ultrawide,
you get more distortion. If you insist on a zoom, you get more aberrations. It comes down
to the buyer's priorities.
Quote:

2nd- When I shoot into the sun which I do often because I love the effect,
I shoot several images from the same set up but slightly moved up-down-right -left incase
flare is overwhelming. Then I fix it in post.
Great Image by the way!

It's a good idea to try framing the scene differnt ways. But you can't do much to
change the angle of the sun except point you camera in another direction entirely.

Flare can be an interesting effect. When cinematographers and directors first started
leaving flare in moves (which didn't happen in Hollywood until the 1960s), it was
considered revolutionary. However, the novelty soon wore off.

Flare has several effects: causing visible streaking, reducing global contrast,
and blowing out highlights. Not all of these can be satisfactorily fixed.

The problem with putting bandaids on image defects is the same as with
White-Out on calligraphy: it's almost always detecdtable. It looks like what it is:
an attempt to repair a defect. Image Bondo.

This doesn't apply to global color correction. global contrast adjustment and
other processing where there is no seam and no imformation lost from the
image.

Serious landscape photographer used to limit themselves to the usual
lens filters, global contrast expansion/contraction (push/pull devleopment),
and dodging and burning: no scissors, no paste, no hand-tinting. They
worked very hard to make their dodging and burning undetectable
(and sometimes failed).

Why bother with the camera? Why not just use paint software to create
a sunset? Oh, but that would required understanding how landcapes look
in different light, and how color works.

Whether an image is great or not all depends on what you plan to do with it.
A lot of images look good on computer screens or websites that do not look
good when printed and hung in a gallery.

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Apr 6, 2019 05:17:08   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
DaveC1 wrote:
Some older Nikkor lenses are noted to have almost no flair. Most of these are primes with decidedly less elements than a typical zoom. Nikkor-Q f4 200mm comes to mind as an example.



Awesome!!! Thank you for responding. One of my new favorites is the Nikon 2.8 f/2.8 manual focus

I love old lenses!

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Dec 6, 2019 13:13:17   #
Bill P
 
boberic wrote:
I don't care what camera or what lens is used. When shooting into the sun, flare is always a possibility. There is only 1 way to avoid it--don't shoot directly into the sun.


You've got it right.

I've never seen a group like the one on this list. It seems that a high percentage of users when they hear hoofbeats thihk Zebras. Guys, these are horses.

There's no solution if you are shooting directly into the sun.

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Dec 9, 2019 15:28:36   #
Sdubois Loc: Narragansett RI
 
I am sorry but yeah I know. I won't stop trying.. some shots with certain combinations work great and THAT is what I was asking.
Thank you for your response regardless.
Happy Holidays!

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Jan 2, 2020 15:12:53   #
flyboy61 Loc: The Great American Desert
 
[quote=Bipod]It was a great idea to take that shot. But shooting into the sun is the worst possible
case for flare (and a hood won't help). A zoom is pretty hopeless in that situation.

YUP! Even the Super Whiz-Bang lenses WILL flare when shot directly into the sun! Still a remarkable photo!

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