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Reducing flaring with uncoated vintage lenses


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Hey all,

I've been messing around with a new lens for my Krasnogorsk-3 (bayonet version), an old soviet Mir-11 12.5mm lens. I like the general look of the lens because it has some interesting distortions, however it really likes to flare, like a lot and it tends to wash out the image. There aren't too many wide angle options for this camera so I would really like to make use of this lens. Despite my efforts adjusting my matte box I can't seem to get the flares down to an acceptable level in many scenes.

Does anyone have any tips for working with old uncoated lenses like this?

Edited by Jake S. Del Mastro
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So then I guess there's nothing special then, just keep bright lights out of the shot, and block everything else with the matte box? Was kinda hoping there was some magic anti-flare filter I was not aware of, but I guess nothing is that easy ?.

I'll just have to frame my shots very carefully.

Thanks!

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1 hour ago, Jake S. Del Mastro said:

So then I guess there's nothing special then

No, there isn't. This is what mattes and fingers and dots and things are for, to keep things from shining in the lens. If the light source is in shot there's not so much you can do, as you'd naturally see whatever's flagging it, unless you can figure out a way to flag it with a piece of set dressing so it looks reasonable. Lights that are out of frame can still flare the lens, which is where mattes (hence mattebox) come in.

But no, you're absolutely right, there's no perfect solution. This is why people spend so much time designing lens coatings.

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