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Why does nobody talk about how lens flare ruins nebula photos
I was looking through my old shots of the Orion Nebula and realized I kept getting these weird blue streaks across the image. Turns out it was internal lens flare from a bright star just outside the frame. A guy at my local astronomy club in Phoenix showed me how to use a simple cardboard baffle to block it, and my next 30-second exposure came out totally clean. Has anyone else dealt with random flares messing up their deep sky shots?
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the_ben6d ago
Yeah the cardboard baffle trick is a game changer. I've been using one for years after a similar issue with the Pleiades, where a bright star just outside the frame was throwing these ghostly crescents across the whole image. What really helped me was adding a second baffle closer to the telescope tube, not just at the front. It cuts down on internal reflections from the tube walls themselves. Also, if you're shooting with a DSLR or mirrorless, check the back of the lens. Sometimes the sensor reflections bounce off the lens elements and create different flare patterns. The cardboard trick works, but you can also try flocking paper inside the lens hood or around the camera adapter. Your mileage may vary on how much you need, but a simple piece of black foam core with a hole cut in it can do wonders for those cheap stock lenses.
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aliceharris6d ago
Rigged up something similar last month with a black foam board and a hot glue gun after a particularly bad session with the Orion Nebula. @the_ben is right about the flocking paper too, stuck some inside my lens hood and it killed the last bit of stray light I was getting from a nearby streetlamp.
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angela7286d ago
My first attempt at fixing mine involved a paper towel tube and some electrical tape, looked like a disaster but worked for about two minutes before it fell off and landed on my sensor. Building a proper baffle out of a foam plate and a razor blade made my apartment look like a craft store threw up in it. By the time I was done, my trash can was full of cardboard cutouts that looked like a kindergartner’s art project. Still, the final image came out cleaner than my last vacation photos, so I guess it was worth the mess.
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