# Bokeh Lightning



## Melanie1981 (Dec 6, 2015)

I have been trying to do some Bokeh lighting with clear lights.  I keep seeing green spots on my lens which is then portrayed on the subjects face.  What is this and how do I get rid of it?  I'm shooting at 1.4 aperture and 60fps

The picture is just from my camera phone so you can see the setup.


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## astroNikon (Dec 6, 2015)

Do you have any filters in front of your lens?


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## Melanie1981 (Dec 6, 2015)

astroNikon said:


> Do you have any filters in front of your lens?




Yes, a uv filter.


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## nathan cox (Dec 6, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> astroNikon said:
> 
> 
> > Do you have any filters in front of your lens?
> ...



Take it off that can cause funky stuff in some situations


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## Melanie1981 (Dec 6, 2015)

nathan cox said:


> Melanie1981 said:
> 
> 
> > astroNikon said:
> ...


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## deeky (Dec 6, 2015)

Get rid of the filter, it's only hurting you.  I'm guessing you mean 1/60 second exposure, unless you are shooting video.  It's hard to know without seeing the actual shot, but the green is actually lens flare.  Getting rid of the filter may help, but your lights may be too bright or make sure they are more out of focus.  They are most likely just too strong in a shot with too much dynamic range.


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## 480sparky (Dec 6, 2015)

I'd be more worried about the smeared fingerprints on the front of the lens that is causing a ton of streaks in the image.


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## nathan cox (Dec 6, 2015)

480sparky said:


> I'd be more worried about the smeared fingerprints on the front of the lens that is causing a ton of streaks in the image.



That photo was just on a smart phone


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## nathan cox (Dec 6, 2015)

deeky said:


> Get rid of the filter, it's only hurting you.  I'm guessing you mean 1/60 second exposure, unless you are shooting video.  It's hard to know without seeing the actual shot, but the green is actually lens flare.  Getting rid of the filter may help, but your lights may be too bright or make sure they are more out of focus.  They are most likely just too strong in a shot with too much dynamic range.



I think increasing the shutter speed would help because there could be light coming in through the view finder


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## astroNikon (Dec 6, 2015)

Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.


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## nathan cox (Dec 6, 2015)

astroNikon said:


> Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.



They do nothing at all


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## Melanie1981 (Dec 6, 2015)

astroNikon said:


> Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.


I only use one so my lens doesn't get scratched, cheaper to replace a $5 uv filter than a $400 lens


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## 480sparky (Dec 6, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> astroNikon said:
> 
> 
> > Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.
> ...



At the cost of having images ruined by flare..........

If you spend only $5 on a filter, you bought the absolute cheapest, crappiest filter on the planet.  It won't be optical-grade glass.  It may not even be glass at all.


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## astroNikon (Dec 6, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> astroNikon said:
> 
> 
> > Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.
> ...


Actually through testing that has been disproven
They may actually cause more damage than good.


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## EIngerson (Dec 6, 2015)

Adjust your angle to the lights. Even if you remove filters you will still have the glare. The camera sees what it sees.


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## DB_Cro (Dec 7, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> astroNikon said:
> 
> 
> > Sales people sell cheap UV filters just for the profit.
> ...



There's a lot of videos proving that you can virtually do no damage to the front element of the lens, and it's way tougher then
all the filters are.. so.. they'd break and actually protect nothing. Also, most front element scratches can NOT be seen on images.

Dump the filters, it's a tax for noobs.


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## Designer (Dec 7, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> I only use one so my lens doesn't get scratched, cheaper to replace a $5 uv filter than a $400 lens



How rough and careless do you plan to be with your photography gear?  I'm not exactly fastidious, and I've owned cameras for 50 years, and have not scratched any lens yet.

Even if you do get a scratch on the front element, it probably will not affect your photos to any noticeable degree.  Maybe a little more flare when you aim toward a strong light.

Meanwhile, ALL your photos will be downgraded by the effect of a poorly-manufactured optical element on the front.  Lens manufacturers design and manufacture their lenses using the latest technology in the lens elements and the design does not include a UV filter to be the first element.

Did you get a lens cap with your lens?  Use that.  That is what I use to protect the lens when I place my camera back into the bag.  And I'm protecting the lens COATING more so than the actual glass of the lens.


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## Braineack (Dec 7, 2015)

Melanie1981 said:


> I only use one so my lens doesn't get scratched, cheaper to replace a $5 uv filter than a $400 lens



Well then you're going to have to deal with green dots all over your images...


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## astroNikon (Dec 7, 2015)

or get a higher quality, much more expensive clear/UV filter.   Then the "savings" won't be so obvious.  $37 for a 52mm  ==> B + W B + W 52mm XS-PRO Clear MRC (007m) Glass Filter

but then the problem is that is it made of glass, which has been shown in some instances to actually scratch the lens coatings if it was broken by a projectile directly into it.  Versus no effect if no filter was used.


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## DB_Cro (Dec 7, 2015)

Lens hood, guys.


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## Braineack (Dec 7, 2015)

DB_Cro said:


> Lens hood, guys.


aint going to help when youre shooting directly into lights.


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## astroNikon (Dec 7, 2015)

Braineack said:


> DB_Cro said:
> 
> 
> > Lens hood, guys.
> ...


But the lens cap will help shooting directly into lights, though might make the image a bit too dark to be useful


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## DB_Cro (Dec 7, 2015)

Braineack said:


> DB_Cro said:
> 
> 
> > Lens hood, guys.
> ...



..and a UV filter would?
When shooting into the light I obviously want to get the effect of shooting into the light.

I was commenting on protecting the lens from scratches.


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## Designer (Dec 7, 2015)

Sure, I use a lens hood if I'm pointing anywhere close to a light, but that is such a rare occurrence that I simply don't keep a lens hood on.  If I don't happen to have the hood with me, shading with my hand or some other object usually is fine.


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## Braineack (Dec 7, 2015)

DB_Cro said:


> I was commenting on protecting the lens from scratches.




ah, gotcha.  ignore me.


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## KmH (Dec 7, 2015)

LensRentals.com - Front Element Scratches


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## 480sparky (Dec 7, 2015)




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## desertrattm2r12 (Dec 26, 2015)

I'm at a party and looking at my computer screen with me is a bunch of photographers and wanna bees, wise guys and smart alecs. Some may know what they are doing with a camera.
Their comments --
"Everything seems out of focus but the background is hardly out of focus enough."
"She should get an actual camera."
"A camera with manual controls?
"A longer lens."
"Only a M99 Leica will do -- for anything."
"What is a cell phone? Something prisoners use?"
"Any beer left?"


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