My apologies for being a day late with this post – between the Super Bowl yesterday and some errands and a fun session with a darling two-year old on Saturday – my computer time was limited…so now, I’m finally getting around to posting last week’s theme. I chose “sun flare” for my theme…which might seem a bit odd since it’s winter here and just two weeks ago we were covered in a thick layer of ice…on top of several inches of snow! Around the Pacific Northwest, we are sometimes blessed with a gift from Mother Nature during the winter months…and this past week has been just that! Sunshine and warmer temperature…and dry!! When we get days like that around here in the winter, it brings people out to their yards, in anticipation of spring (which could be months away), out for walks, kids are either coatless or even some wearing shorts and t-shirts. One of my favorite parts of the sun, is capturing some sun flare or my favorite…the sun star!! It’s funny as technically, you are suppose to avoid this sort of thing in photos by either shielding your lens by your hand or a lens hood…but, I LOVE using it as part of my photos. So here is some of what I captured this past week…to me, it’s a gift from nature – something that I love capturing it’s beauty….year round!!
Lens flare occurs when non-image forming light (usually the sun) enters the lens and hits the sensor. This often appears as a characteristic polygonal shape, with sides which depend on the shape of the lens diaphragm. It can lower the contrast of a photograph significantly and is often an undesired artifact, although some kinds of flare may actually add to your artistic meaning or vision of the photo.
Couldn’t share photos without a sun star…which, if you know me, you know that I OFTEN capture sun stars when the opportunity presents itself!!
I even had the opportunity to add a bit of lens flare during my session on Saturday…this adorable little girl had so much fun when we got outside…as did I!!
Oh my, it’s me…something that many haven’t seen in quite a while. After my self portrait 365 from last year, I’m sure many were ready to take a break from my “mug!” I couldn’t resist adding some “flare” to myself on this sunny day last week!!