LAOWA 12mm F2.8 Lens Flare
When I got the Laowa during a visit to China I was super happy to get it a little cheaper and hope for the promised almost zero Distortion. It is called 12mm Zero D. During my visit to the Maryhill Stonehenge in Washington up state, USA I came across the wonderful Flare the glas makes. Since then I always look for it.
See the making off
Today I share two cool examples of the flare it makes.
What happens here?
When I got the Lens it was about being wide angle, not the flare hey. A Lens flare pattern usually occurs when bright light sources, such as the sun or artificial lights, directly enter the camera lens and interact with its internal elements. In the main Light Painting shot, you see Dan pointing the torch straight through the rocks into the lens. This interaction can lead to the formation of various artifacts, including flares, halos, and streaks of light.
BOOM! there is the coolest flair I had ever seen in any of my lenses.
All Lens flares are primarily caused by the scattering and reflection of light within the lens system. When intense light rays enter the lens, they may encounter internal lens elements, such as glass surfaces, lens coatings, or even the camera's image sensor. Since these are not perfect and can introduce unwanted optical effects we get the extra feature to our images.
This was taken in Bolivia on the Salar de Uyuni
Several factors contribute to the specific appearance of lens flare patterns:
Internal reflections: Light can bounce between different lens elements, resulting in multiple reflections. Each reflection adds to the overall brightness and contrast of the flare.
Lens coatings: Modern camera lenses often feature anti-reflective coatings on their elements to minimize flare and ghosting. However, under certain conditions, these coatings may not completely eliminate flare, especially when dealing with strong light sources.
Lens aperture and design take a huge impact on the shape and size of the lens flare. The actual aperture has a fixed number of diaphragm blades, which can influence the shape and intensity of lens flare. The more rounded the aperture, the more circular the flare will be. However, some lenses may produce polygonal or irregularly shaped flares due to the shape of their aperture blades. Whatever the Laowa does here, I love it!
Change the Shooting angle to discover new shapes: The angle at which the light enters the lens strongly affects the appearance of lens flare. Shooting directly into a bright light source, such as the sun, increases the chances of a noticeable or as sexy flare as in my Light Paintings. By changing the angle you change shapes and also colors you find in the pattern. Shielding the lens from direct light can help minimize or avoid flare altogether, if unwanted in your images. So play around the moment you see what works for you.
In Movies, we see them a lot as an artistic feature for mystic moments. Photographers often use lens flare creatively to add a sense of atmosphere, drama, or visual interest to their images. However, it's worth noting that lens flare may also reduce image contrast, introduce unwanted haze, and obscure details in the photograph. Ask yourself if that is what you want. For product catalog photography may be not but a commercial that should make someone excited about your product may be another story. Different lenses and shooting conditions can produce these amazing unique flare patterns, so experimenting with various settings and compositions can ad diverse and appealing visual effects. Go try!
What lenses?
There are soooo many different lenses on the market. All may have something interesting in store. I accumulated way too many and can't let go. About 3 years ago I published a Video about how I choose my lenses.
What Lenses I use for Light Painting and how and why.
I hope you found these images inspirational. If you have more questions please do not hesitate. I am happy to share my knowledge.
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Gunnar Heilmann Photography
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