Light leaks

Back when I first became a photographer, light leaks were considered a bad thing. We mounted large hoods on the lens of our camera to prevent solar flare from ruining our shots.
Boy, how things have changed. One cannot stroll Pinterest photography boards without seeing photos with light leaks, sun spots and lens flare streaks. They can be pretty when used carefully.

These photos were all shot late in the day with the sun just outside the frame. A nice golden glow lights the picture and the sun, just off to to top, created streaks in the bottom shot and circles in the top. The shape of the lens flare depends on the angle at which the harsh light is entering the lens.

The photo below was taken on a larger scale, however the sun off to the left still created a light leak that looks good.
Set ups like these are great for portraits. Just remember to have an additional source of light to cast on the subjects face, so it won’t get lost in shadows. A reflector works nicely for this.

Playing with light

Canon Powershot, F/4, ISO 800, 1/250 sec.

Shooting into the light source is tricky for photographers, but when done at the right time and from the right angle, it can produce some spectacular effects. The photo above was taken close to sundown and the sun is barely peeking out from behind a tree.

Canon Powershot, F/4, ISO 800, 1/250 sec.

This shot, taken moments later, shows the reflection of the sun on the water.

Canon Powershot, F/8, ISO 800, 1/250 sec.

This photo was also taken close to sunset. I was surprised to see some lovely lens flare in this shot.

For more information about light leaks, see this post.

Have fun 🙂

New app-Picture Show

I discovered a new photography app for my iPad that is amazing. Picture Show is my new favorite toy. I am really impressed with the vintage look pictures it produces by changing various combinations of settings. When you finish, you can create a “recipe” of all the things used to create that look, so you can save time later with another photo that you want to look the same.
You can either take a photo or use an existing one. Then apply HDR, tilt shift, various light leaks, color filters, etc. There are too many combinations to count.
Here are a couple of examples:

The top photo is the original I pulled from my photo stream. The manipulated one was opened in Picture Show, cropped, tilt shift applied, bokeh light leak and limelight filter applied.

For this one, in order to change from the original (top) picture, I cropped then applied the red cross filter and the halation 1 light leak.
The app is not free, but the many combinations you can create make it well worth $1.99. It is an iPhone app, but will work on an iPad. You just have to check iPhone only when searching the App Store.
Have fun 😉