Why do bright water reflections show purple fringing in some shots on a Sony NEX-5N?
Asked 3/11/2012
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When photographing whitewater in bright sun with a Sony NEX-5N, some frames show purple coloration around bright reflected droplets/highlights, while other nearly identical frames in a rapid-fire burst do not. Example settings were 1/2500s, f/4, 35mm, ISO 200. The effect has appeared with more than one lens, so the camera body may also be a factor. What causes this, and is there a way to reduce it?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
14y ago
2 Answers
5
This is called Purple Fringing. "Purple fringing" is a spectral phenomenon which it occurs (it doesn't all the time! It's very dependent on the conditions) it is visible in big sized displays or prints. The smaller, the less visible. In practice, that limits the number of times that it is a problem!
Purple fringing usually occurs in high contrast parts of pictures where different kinds of light, with differing wavelengths and therefore differing breaking indexes, 'meet'. E.g. shooting up through a tree with patches of very bright skylight coming through, you may see purple fringing at the edges of leaves.
You can avoid it by shooting it at smaller aperture (you were shooting at f4 - try f/5.6) or by shooting in RAW and then in post processing part.
I've usually seen purple fringing in aperture such as f/1.4 or f/1.8 but f/4 is kind of odd. You may consult your lens manufacturers guide too.
Originally by user7318. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user7318
14y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
This is most likely purple fringing, usually caused by chromatic aberration around very bright, high-contrast highlights like sunlit water droplets.
It can happen inconsistently because it depends on exact light angle, focus, reflections, and tiny framing changes between shots. In bursts, one frame may trigger the effect more strongly than the next.
Common causes mentioned here are lateral or longitudinal chromatic aberration, where different wavelengths don’t focus or magnify identically. On the NEX-5N, some users also report the effect being more noticeable with adapted lenses.
Ways to reduce it:
- Stop down a bit, e.g. from f/4 to f/5.6
- Shoot RAW so you can correct fringing in post
- Try a polarizer to reduce strong reflections
- If applicable, turn off the electronic front shutter, which may help on this camera
So the camera is probably not defective; it’s a known optical/sensor interaction that shows up in demanding lighting conditions.
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