DIY Photography Hacks: build an anti-flare shield with wire and black card

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In the latest installment of our DIY Photography Hacks series, find out how to build a simple shield that attaches to your tripod to banish flare.

Architecture photography is great fun and can produce some amazing abstract images. A day out in the urban jungle is always rewarding, especially when the weather is fine and the light good.

However, bright sunshine and pointing your camera skywards to take in a majestic building can produce flare, resulting in washed-out images that even your lens hood can’t eliminate.

Using your hands to shield the sun is tricky, so an anti-flare flag will give you the freedom to focus on creativity.

Here’s how to make one of your own…

Find some wire
Get some thick but bendy wire and spray it black to minimise glare. Using some thin-nose pliers, bend both ends into a small circle that allows screws to pass through.

Clamp site
For easy attachment and removal of the flag, get hold of a tool clamp that will fit snugly around your tripod leg. Spray it black. Bolt the wire to the clamp.

Clips with everything
On the opposite end of the wire, use a bulldog clip with holes in the handle, so you can pass a screw or bolt through the wire and clip. After fitting, spray the bolts black.

Put out the flags
Use dense black card or plastic to make flags of various sizes and shapes. Remember to include one with curves, for when you need to use it close to the lens.

Make some shade
Point the camera skywards and use the flag to shield the sun from its brightest side. Rest the wire on the lens for stability. Look through the viewfinder to check the results.

See the difference
With bright sunlight well shielded from your lens elements, the results are crisp images with bags of contrast – and you won’t have to spend ages cloning out flare.

Posted on Thursday, October 4th, 2012 at 2:00 am under Photography Tutorials, Tutorials.