Wanted: guaranteed lens flare

Post by **mondo77** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 12:56 pm

I love flare. Not fogging you understand but actual light flares.

I think it was Gianni who posted a clip taken on Standard 8
where a young boy knocks over or drops a camera. It had some beautiful flare.

And I've always liked the light leaks you often see at the end of film rolls and you sometimes get some neat effects even if that's not what the operator intended. I'd like to experiment with this sort of thing on S8.

So, I'm hoping you can name a cheap lower end S8 camera with a lens so bad it flares all the time.

Any ideas? Thanks in advance.

Post by **mattias** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 1:29 pm

bad lenses don't create the flare you're talking about, they just "fog". the best lens i've found for flares is on the canon 814 non electronic autozoom. beautiful. the coating on the electronic is better, thus reducing the flare plus it makes it less colorful.

/matt

Post by **mondo77** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 6:49 pm

Mattias,

Thanks for that. What actually causes the flare then? I have the Canon 814 AZ (not the e version) but I've not noticed any flare.

Thu Dec 20, 2007 6:55 pm

mondo77 wrote:What actually causes the flare then? I have the Canon 814 AZ (not the e version) but I've not noticed any flare.

From light reflecting off of the surface of each element in the lens. Most lenses are coated to reduce this reflection. The size of the glass, the glass coating and the number of elements in the lens determine the type of flare.

You should get lens flare with any lens. Just point it in the direction of the sun (NOT directly at the sun) and be sure to keep the lens hood off. You will undoubtedly get some kind of flare from it.

-Scott

Post by **mattias** » Thu Dec 20, 2007 9:37 pm

MoonstruckProductions wrote:Just point it in the direction of the sun (NOT directly at the sun)

why not? it would be a sad world if we couldn't take pictures with the sun in them. now it's not good for your eyes nor video camera ccd's and in the long run even the optics, but that's in the long run. just be careful and you can point your camera wherever you like. the sun is fun.

/matt

Post by **flatwood** » Sun Dec 23, 2007 6:35 pm

mattias wrote:....it's not good for your eyes nor video camera ccd's and in the long run even the optics....

Agreed. Shooting for flare is fun and the results can be spectacular (if you like flare). I usually position my subject just off axis with the sun in one corner or the other of the frame and just move the camera in and out of the direct sun because I like to see the flare patterns move.

Matt, thanks for the tip. I didnt know that direct sun will hurt the chips in my video camera. Maybe I better reserve flare for film???

Post by **super8man** » Sun Dec 23, 2007 10:59 pm

Shoot into the sun like this with a Zeiss (the Zeiss gives itself away based on the shape of the flare)

Post by **super8man** » Sun Dec 23, 2007 11:17 pm

The Sankyo LXL255...notice the triangle wedge shape - just like the aperture on the camera...

Post by **super8man** » Sun Dec 23, 2007 11:21 pm

Same camera with moving flare during a pan - very cool...

Post by **mondo77** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:13 am

Nice stills. I love flare!

I double checked some of the stuff I shot with my (sadly broken) 814 AZ and there is actually more flare than I'd remembered.

Post by **Justin Lovell** » Thu Dec 27, 2007 10:18 pm

My results...

1014xls will 'haze' more than the 814xls.
Think it is due to their being more elements in the 1014xls. They should both have the same coatings. If you look at the front element on the 814xls it is round, not flat like the 1014xls. That may have something to do with it as well.

When using the XLS, you'll really notice that ugly haze when pointing towards soft sources (ie, windows).

NIZO's give off a flare that is shaped like a bull's head.

Post by **Mike P** » Fri Dec 28, 2007 11:20 am

another flare fan here - my profile pic is a still with some nice flare from a nizo pro (but it's very small!)

It's also worth bearing in mind the temperature of the light when shooting for flares. Personally I love the golden flares you get from an evening sun low on the horizon, while flares from a midday sun don't really do anything for me. I try and shoot flares as an added texture to the scene I'm shooting, not as the subject of the scene itself.

Post by **gianni1** » Fri Dec 28, 2007 1:01 pm

Methinks some of the lens flair like effects on "victor's first movie" (here on archive org) may have been the effects of the blown out hotspots from my first attempt at DIY telecine (or the low dynamic range video camera pointed into lamp). I used a fixed focus lens 8mm Soviet Quarz M with John Schwind's 25D Kodachrome on a mid summer sunny day. Without a lens shield, got some lens flairs or highlight reflections shooting at f5.6-ish. It also starts and ends with the 8mm kodachrome golden flash.

That said, since childhood I've loved pointing the lens skywards to include El Sol in my pix. I prefer manual focus (at times) because of my displeasure that the autofocus searching often prevents me from shooting moments like people, trees, and clouds with the sun (or moon) in the frame.

gianni 8)

Post by **Janne** » Mon Dec 31, 2007 10:36 am

16 mm frames.

Canon Scoopic 16MS, Vision2 50D. The Scoopic produces a beam like flare effect.

Som Berthiot Pan Cinor 17-85, Eastman Ektachrome 400D

Post by **mondo77** » Mon Dec 31, 2007 9:21 pm

Janne,

I love that flare! I prefer the second shot, overall. But prefer the actual flare in the first. Thanks for posting. Film rules!!!