Why is this happening?

[KaiceeHubbard]

no matter how many shots i took of this tree, all of them turned out the same, with this odd opaque sort of lighting.. what am I doing wrong?



Camera: Nikon D5000
Aperture: f/7.1
Shutter speed: 1/200
ISO: 200
Focal Length: 55mm
Flash : Auto, did not fire.

[inkista]

Did you take your UV filter off to see if it made any difference? Were you shooting with a hood? That looks a lot like veiling flare from shooting into the sun.

[BuddhaPi]

Originally Posted by inkista

Did you take your UV filter off to see if it made any difference? Were you shooting with a hood? That looks a lot like veiling flare from shooting into the sun.

You don't charge enough for your photogear help...and you're input is worth every nickle!

[KaiceeHubbard]

Originally Posted by inkista

Did you take your UV filter off to see if it made any difference? Were you shooting with a hood? That looks a lot like veiling flare from shooting into the sun.

No, I didn't take my UV filter off, No, I don't own a hood, and yes, I was shooting towards the sun.. Wow, I wish I knew enough to look at a picture and pinpoint the problem that easily. Thank you so much!

[inkista]

Originally Posted by BuddhaPi

You don't charge enough for your photogear help...and you're input is worth every nickle!

Snee. Did I ever mention I know Scott McCloud? I believe in the power of the micropayment! (Gosh, that takes me back).

Originally Posted by KaiceeHubbard

No, I didn't take my UV filter off, No, I don't own a hood, and yes, I was shooting towards the sun.. Wow, I wish I knew enough to look at a picture and pinpoint the problem that easily. Thank you so much!

No worries. And you, too, now have the superpower to recognize flare when you see it. Just hang around long enough, and you'll be helping the newbies in your turn.

[joe27]

Like us other beginners, just take lots of photos and you will get there.

[dandellion]

This looks like dirty lenses or filters to me.
Even if shoot against the Sun, exposure can be done right (sky will be bleached out, but the trees should come out right.

Have you shot RAW or JPG? Any postprocessing?

[KaiceeHubbard]

Originally Posted by dandellion

This looks like dirty lenses or filters to me.
Even if shoot against the Sun, exposure can be done right (sky will be bleached out, but the trees should come out right.

Have you shot RAW or JPG? Any postprocessing?

noo.. it couldn't have been dirty lenses because i took other pictures literally moments before I turned and snapped this one, and the others turned out great.. :/ So, I guess it was just form the sun..?

[EOBeav]

Looks to me like what happens when you shoot into the sun.

[inkista]

Here. Take a look at this example of flare from a filter.

http://neilvn.com/tangents/2010/02/27/using-filters/

Basically, when you shoot into a light source, you can get reflections between the pieces of glass. Sometimes, you just get typical flare, like you see in the movies:



but sometimes you get "veiling" flare, where the reflected light covers most of the image, and the contrast of your lens is drastically lowered. Flare can be mitigated by shading the lens with a hood, or your hand, or a nearby friend , so that light doesn't fall on the front element of the lens. And flare is the main reason you'd pay more for a multi-coated UV lens, if you use one as protection for the front of your lens (I had a UV filter on the lens in that shot above).

Understanding Camera Lens Flare