how do you get rid of glare? [pictures included]

[dxpx]

so the picture has been captured, and you're quite satisfied with the result! but alas, an annoying bit of glare rightfully distracts the eye! my question for the MR community, is how do you deal with this bit of strife?

i've attached a before/after picture of mine taken with my nikon D60 from an evening out to sail with a few friends. notice the debacle in the first photo off to the right.

and here's the same shot after a bit of touching. i used the clone and blur tool through photoshop.

im not entirely pleased with the result - but i did throw it together quite quick.

so! if you like - please share how you would have gone about this same scenario! any efforts are greatly appreciated.

 

[gehrbox]

im not entirely pleased with the result - but i did throw it together quite quick.

Dunno what the pros around here would say, but I have retouched stuff like that out of some of my images. I was pleased with the results. It takes a gentle touch and time.

 

[RainForRent]

Clone tool, fairly low opacity, soft brush, patience and practice. I scanned a lot of film for a long time, and had to clone out dust and such. Plenty o' practice and you'll retouch in your sleep.

 

[Mike Teezie]

Looks great to me.

 

[R.Youden]

One thing that would help massively would be to get the horizon parallel, it looks tilted, either that or it is my eye sight!

 

[leighonigar]

I always use a pinhole camera for shots like this. No problemo.

 

[Chappers]

Nice photo - yes I'd normal use clone tool/healing brush in PS but for sometimes iPhoto will do a job just as well. If you like it level for example.

 

[Whorehay]

Nice photo - yes I'd normal use clone tool/healing brush in PS but for sometimes iPhoto will do a job just as well. If you like it level for example.

How the level horizon changes everything! Beautiful picture. Though it wasn't the subject of the thread.. Haha. Not a huge fan of downhill oceans

 

[jake-g]

Now the horizon is bisecting the image. That is usually frowned upon in composition.

 

[seany916]

"rule of thirds"...

hehe haha

If you like the composition... then it's fine. If everybody followed the "rules", then all of our pictures would come out looking alike.

I have a preference for portraits cut off at the neck at the bottom of the frame with the subject in focus at the very bottom

 

[Chappers]

Now the horizon is bisecting the image. That is usually frowned upon in composition.

I will happily break the rules to improve things - however that wasn't my point - which was to show - iPhoto has its uses.

So I started with the original (with lens flare) and did this in iPhoto - it is a bit rushed but my son just woke up.

 

[Chappers]

OK here is the picture I hope

 

[tonie]

maybe a filter will help.

 

[Cybornut]

maybe a filter will help.

I don't think so, a filter may add another dot on the image. This glare is caused by direct lights STRAIGHT into the lens.
The lights is then reflected internally between the lens elements, causing glares/flares.

In another word, more elements, more glares/flares.

In fact, I want to know if you have a UV filter or something on your lens. Taking that out may help.

Of course it would make complete sense to use photoshop to touch it out, and imho your original effort looks pretty decent (the composition can be retouched a bit, but it's been covered by other posters).

As far as "ethics", I would've/could've easily spotted it out in regular non-digital photography anyhow, why is digital any different? It's not as if you are doing photojournalism, where realism is something to be preserved.

 

[Lovesong]

And just to add to what Chappers has done:

 

[tonie]

i like