CSI Miami Lens Flares...

[Nicholas Shields]

My apologies if this question has been asked and answered...

The bokeh looks 35mm round but the flares are anamorphic - all added in post?

Thanks

Nick

 

[Andrew Ceperley]

Streak filter in front of the lens? I've never seen the show.

 

[Andrew Ceperley]

I was so intrigued by what you said, I went looking for an example. I'm assuming this is the kind of flare you're talking about. (in the attached photo)

It doesn't look anamorphic, that would be a horizontal blue line or fragments of blue lines and other oval/squeezed flare elements, but this also doesn't look like some standard streak filter either. It does have a very optical look, but that doesn't mean it's not a digital effect. Maybe someone else recognizes it or has a theory. It is a neat effect...very organic, not like a lot of these digital lens flare plug ins.

 

[XiaoSu Han]

Could be created in front of green with actual lenses and then composited?

 

[Pietro Impagliazzo]

Could be created in front of green with actual lenses and then composited?

Perhaps black bg would be best for this kinda composition?

 

[David Mullen ASC]

From what I've seen, it seems they occasionally use a horizontal streak filter.

 

[Kirk]

I was guessing they were done in post. They looked too artificial.

But I digress to the experts.

 

[David Mullen ASC]

If the flares are over credits, then yes, they are probably done in post -- but when the horizontal flares are over some action sequence, etc. then it's probably done in-camera with a streak filter.

Even on a big-budget TV show like this, there are limits to how much time and money they want to spend in post adding little digital flares to every scene, not when they have so many efx shots to do.

 

[Sarah C.]

but this also doesn't look like some standard streak filter either. It does have a very optical look, but that doesn't mean it's not a digital effect. Maybe someone else recognizes it or has a theory. It is a neat effect...very organic, not like a lot of these digital lens flare plug ins.

Just a theory.. wouldn't surprise me if they did "all of the above"... real lens/filter fx, library of real lens/filter fx, digital fx... and in combinations. I'm primarily with the real lens/filter fx at the time of photography theory due to the time involved in post-production to correctly match camera movement, lens distortion and scenic highlight hits: realize that compositing in a flare would require motion-tracking, potentially rotoscoping, etc...so I'd imagine they'd save that effort for when having such a controlled effect is necessary/significant(like in a montage or credit sequence).

~s