A Bit of Flair

There are quite a few rules in photography. Two rules we hear quite early are keep the sun behind you while shooting, and don't point the camera at the sun. Well, sometimes the best picture is between you and the sun, or some other strong light source.

You can shoot into the sun, sometimes getting pretty cool results. When you point your camera in the direction of a bright light source while using a wide angle lens, you will probably get lens flare-those odd bubbles of color and streaks. part of your image will be washed out, and you loose contrast.



Lens hoods help reduce flare, you can help your hood a bit by holding your hand or a piece of paper above the front of the lens. As you look through the lens you can see the results of your added hood extension by the change in contrast.

Now, if you want to be a bit creative, just go for the flare. Probably will have to bracket your exposures a little, but with a digital, you can see what you are getting. Balance your exposure so you get flair, usually want to be able to see your light source, and still have some detail in the foreground.



A bit of flare can add some real flair to a routine photo.