Weekly Assignment: Creating Images with Flare

[PWS-Staff]

Lens flare can be something you don't want in a photo or it can produce a nice artistic touch. While it can occur by chance, you can also create it intentionally.

Try shooting a scene outdoors on a bright, sunny day, perhaps around mid-morning or -afternoon; you can use any lens you'd like--wide angle, telephoto, or normal. When you select a subject, direct your shot so that the sun is just out of view in the upper-left or upper-right corner of the shot. Then, tilt your view so that the bottom edge of the sun's light enters your lens and your shot.

Take the image with the sun entering your photo. are you seeing geometric patterns, or a lot of haze? Does the effect help or detract from your photo? A few different angles and perspectives will change how the sun's rays will reflect in your lens, so you might need to experiment before you get exactly the effect you want.

From "Canon EOS Digital Photography," by Serge Timacheff

[Ati]

A little off subject, perhaps, but I think the mercury light flare on the left does add atmosphere, in a creepy sort of way.    The light in the middle doesn't help, but it wouldn't go away.

[Ati]

A second try, not a success.  Not only did I get these strange blue 'UFOs', but the beautiful golden colour I was trying to capture got washed out.    Oh well.

Ati.

[JFlash]

This is my attempt at creating lens flare purposely .