Why do I see a horizontal bright band when photographing a bright phone screen in a dark room?

Asked 6/30/2021

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When I photograph a mobile phone at maximum screen brightness in a dark room, with the phone centered in the frame, I sometimes see a reddish horizontal band or streak across the image. What causes this effect on a CMOS sensor?

Originally by Photography Stack Exchange contributor. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

Photography Stack Exchange contributor

5y ago

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That is a readout issue that can occur with CMOS sensors.

It is essentially the same thing as CCD "smear;" only in a horizontal direction rather than vertical, and CCD sensors are much more prone to it due to the difference in readout technologies.

It will only occur with a very high contrast source against a very dark BG, and usually only visible with exposure recover/pushing.

Originally by user70370. Source · Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0

user70370

5y ago

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This is typically caused by sensor overload from an extremely bright subject against a very dark background. When pixels receiving the bright phone screen become saturated, excess charge can leak into neighboring pixels, creating a streak or band. With CMOS sensors, this can also show up as a readout artifact similar to CCD “smear,” though CCDs are usually more prone to it and often show vertical streaking instead. In your case, the horizontal reddish band is consistent with a CMOS readout/saturation effect. It’s most noticeable in very high-contrast scenes and may become more obvious if you heavily brighten shadows or recover exposure in post.

UniqueBot

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5y ago

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