Strange light issue with a G9 picture

[BobsYourUncle]

I was at a home show today and took a bunch of pictures of various things. Because I was inside a stadium, I didn't want to use the flash, as it is not very powerful and only illuminates the immediate foreground, leaving everything else dark.

All my pics turned out OK, except this one.

I am wondering what the heck happened here.

I took all the pics the same, handheld without flash. (G9) This one was Program AE - tv .4, f2.8, ISO 80, IS on, WB auto, This picture and only this one had this strange light swirl in it. There were no external light sources, people moving - nothing. The other pics had the same settings, but turned out fine.

Anyone have any ideas?

http://www.hanover1.net/files/miscfiles/OddLight.JPG

[Bob_A]

Did a small bug land on the lens during exposure?

[raiderkilo]

You Use filter or ND?

[Kevan_G9]

Ghost.

[CJinAustin]

Virgin Mary?

[Savas K]

Umbrella and a lounge chair.

[cosworth]

Use filter or ND

Maybe use Skype or Office 2007 to fix it.

[okiediver]

your finger?

[JS4KIKZ]

Do you smoke ?

[umbra]

Thats actually kinda creepy if you keep looking at it. I with JS4KIKZ, do you smoke? Or maybe someone who smokes walked by you when you snapped that...

[BobsYourUncle]

Thanks for the thoughts and input everyone.

No bugs around - at least none that I noticed. Hard to imagine a bug making it light like that. I would think a bug would make a dark spot.

If all the pics were like that then I could see using a filter, but the rest of them turned out, including the near same shot taken moments later.

I called in Ghostbusters but they said none were present today. They packed up and left yesterday.

The Virgin Mary was busy that day so couldn't attend.

There was no umbrella and lounge chair nearby, only some rockery and shrubs.

Picture is not worth fixing - I always shoot many of the same thing to get different effects.

Not my finger either - it would have put a dark shadow like the bug.

And I don't smoke - never have - never will. Nobody else smoking either - it is prohibited in places like this.

Well, I'm not worried about it at all - no big deal, it would just be interesting to know why it happened.. .

Maybe it was the Martians . . . .

Thanks for the good guesses though. Many sound plausible.


Oh well. . . .

[ben_s]

Isn't it simply someone walking in front of the lens???
Your exposure (according to the EXIF data) is 1/2 sec. Someone walking in front would blur like that.
Just a thought... IMHO it looks like a white t-shirted figure, perhaps wearing a shiny hairband or similar, which is giving that bright flash in the middle?

[rpolitsr]

The first thing I thought was ‘May the force be with you, that is a projection of Obi-Wan Kenoby!’

Really, I have no idea of the reasons for that glare.

...
I always shoot many of the same thing to get different effects.
...

A shot of the same thing from a similar angle (without the same effect) will help our curiosity :)

[Jannie]

Just an idea, look into the lens when you have bright sunlight and see if there is any dust or marks between elements, it was common in very old cameras to have actual bubbles in the elements but as long as direct light (flare) didn't hit that bubble, it didn't matter. It won't show in most shots but when the flare is just right in a certain way that it might.

Jannie

[katobayker]

were you wearing a wrist watch. the crystal reflection might of bounced off the flash.......
The one ghost looks a bit like the shape of the G9's flash

[raiderkilo]

Maybe use Skype or Office 2007 to fix it.

or cosworth

[BobsYourUncle]

Isn't it simply someone walking in front of the lens???
Your exposure (according to the EXIF data) is 1/2 sec. Someone walking in front would blur like that.
Just a thought... IMHO it looks like a white t-shirted figure, perhaps wearing a shiny hairband or similar, which is giving that bright flash in the middle?

I guess that is possible. I sure don't remember anybody walking past. When I do slow shots without flash, I always wait until no people are around. Maybe my brain is turning to peanut butter and I didn't notice somebody right in front of me. Wouldn't be the first time I can't see the forest for the trees!:rolleyes:

[BobsYourUncle]

were you wearing a wrist watch. the crystal reflection might of bounced off the flash.......
The one ghost looks a bit like the shape of the G9's flash

Good thought, but no wristwatch and no flash. . . . .

[BobsYourUncle]

The first thing I thought was ‘May the force be with you, that is a projection of Obi-Wan Kenoby!’

Really, I have no idea of the reasons for that glare.



A shot of the same thing from a similar angle (without the same effect) will help our curiosity :)

Since you asked. . . . . I wasn't steady enough - this one is blurry but it is the closest shot to the other one. I used the same settings on both pics.

http://www.hanover1.net/files/miscfiles/CedarDeck.JPG

[xhack]

Is that a strong light source within the upper right of the wooden structure? That might be your bad boy?