Is there any way to eliminate glare from house lights?

Question

Every time I flim inside homes I always see wite/yellow lines coming down from the light bulbs. Is there any lens that I can use on my camcorder to eliminate or reduce these line glares. Thanks

Answer 1

This is a standard problem with digital cameras which use ccd imagers. Cheaper systems read the pixels using a matrix a line at a time and if one pixel is overloaded with light, that affects the read out down the lines. There are several fixes.

one is to use a star filter, that way any point of light strong enough to make a line will actually make a pretty star image.

Always avoid shooting directly into a light fixture. If it has to be in the shot try blocking it behind another object.

Turn the house lights out, and just use lights you bring in, placed behind the camera of course. If you still want it to look like house lights are on, get some 25 watt bulbs to put in the house fixtures.

If the lights tend to always be near the top of the scene, then a graduated ND filter aligned with the dark side up can sometimes help.

Many professional grade video cameras address this problem and use different methods to read the ccd. If you shoot like this all the time, think about a better camera.

I find that normal ND filters and shutter settings don't help, while they darken the entire frame, the overloaded pixel will still be there because the aperature will open to compensate for the light loss.

Answer 2

I don't think a lens would make a difference, but then again I haven't tried that.
I would turn OFF the ceiling lights and bring another light source, perhaps on a stand. Position the light source behind the camera, shining onto the object(s) to be filmed.

Answer 3

You are going to get starring no matter what, but one way to reduce any kind of starring is to reduce your shutter speed. You will still have starring but the effect will be somewhat minimized. Other things to consider is that if you currently have a filter on your camera then make sure that the filter is free of any scratches or abrassions as this will definately amplify the problem.

Answer 4

old camera tricks like strech a pair of panty hose over the lens to soften the light or go to a good camera shop and try put some filters that affect the light