An Instagram photographer with a passion for capturing sun flares has released a Reel along with the rather dramatic caption: “This photo just destroyed my camera's sensor… was it worth it??”
Karna Hansen’s (@karnawesthansen) video has certainly garnered plenty of attention, with 4.3 million views and counting. The picture is an absolute stunner; a perfect ring of flare surrounded by a patchwork of foliage. But did the photographer really destroy their camera in the process?
Karna shot the image on the Fujifilm X100F. The description of the video reveals that the camera does, in fact, still work, but says that “Every time I take a photo like this the camera sensor gets less and less usable.”
In reality, it’s unlikely that the sensor will degrade over time. The real danger is damage happening in the moment, but there are a few reasons why Karna’s compact camera is unlikely to get damaged from a shot such as this.
Firstly, this kind of photography should not be confused with solar eclipse photography, where you’re typically using a long lens that concentrates the sun’s rays onto the sensor, and/or longer exposures, which extend the time harmful rays make contact with the sensor. As such, a solar filter is essential for subjects such as solar eclipses and solar flares.
But Karna’s sunburst is taken at a wider angle, so the sun is smaller in the frame, and the exposure would probably have been fairly quick. In all likelihood, the camera’s sensor is in very little danger. That said, I don’t mind a little hyperbole in this instance, because it’s no bad thing to warn others of the harmful impact the sun can have on your camera.
Ultimately, the longer your camera is exposed to the sun, the more you risk damage. If you’re using live view or a mirrorless camera, where the shutter curtain is open, damage can occur even if you’re not taking a photo. And yet, as somebody who’s shot plenty of sunbursts and portraits with sun flare, I’ve not ruined a camera yet.
One other thing you must always be wary of is how to protect your eyes when pointing your camera towards the sun. The Fujifilm X100F sports Fujifilm’s Hybrid Viewfinder, which means it can be used as an electronic viewfinder and an optical viewfinder. When photographing the sun, it is imperative that you never look at it through an optical viewfinder, as this could seriously damage your eyesight.
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Want more sunny tips and tricks? How to create portraits with flare. Sunbursts and starbursts: shoot stunning sun flare photography. Cheat at photography: create realistic lens flares in Photoshop.
