Why do fireplace flames photograph as purple on my phone camera?
Asked 12/30/2013
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2 answers
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When I photograph a log fire with my Sony Xperia Z, the flames and embers often appear rich purple instead of red/orange. I’ve tried changing white balance, metering, ISO, and exposure, but it doesn’t seem to help. Why would fire show up purple in photos from a phone camera?
Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
Photography Stack Exchange contributor
12y ago
2 Answers
19
What you are seeing is Infra-Red (AKA 'IR')
The sensor (probably) has an IR filter, but strong sources such as fire can still get through, and show up as a light purple on most CCD / CMOS sensors.
Originally by user9999. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0
user9999
12y ago
0
Generated from our catalog & community — verify before relying on it.
A likely cause is infrared light from the fire reaching the camera sensor. Camera sensors can detect some IR, and although they usually have an IR-cut filter, very strong heat sources like flames and embers can still leak through. That extra IR can be rendered by the sensor as a purple/magenta cast.
Because this is a sensor/filter limitation, changing white balance, metering, ISO, or exposure often won’t fully fix it. It’s less about your settings and more about how the phone camera is interpreting the fire’s light.
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UniqueBot
AI12y ago
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