How To Get A Starburst In Your Photo
A question I get on a regular basis is “How do you get those cool starbursts in some of your photos?”
People have speculated on everything from special filters to photoshop to alien intervention (OK, made that last one up) – but it’s way easier than that.
To get a starburst in your photo, you just need a DSLR and a couple steps:
1. Set your F/stop somewhere between F8 and F16. Generally the smaller the opening (f/16) the more dramatic the starburst. I personally start at around F/11 (aperture priority) and that seems to work pretty well for most of my starburst attempts.
Tech Note – Going much past F/11 or especially F/16 starts to introduce too much diffraction, softening your overall image (yeah, yeah, I’ll do an article on diffraction one day).
2. Get the sun against a hard surface. When the sun is right against a mountain, horizon, rock, or even a tree and and you’re set in that F/11-ish range, it should produce a nice starburst. No special gear or processing required 
The aperture of the lens itself produces the starburst. (NOTE – yes, I’ve seen images where the sun was not against a hard surface, but in my experience starbursts are easier to capture when you use the “hard surface” rule.)
So, what actually causes the starburst?
The starburst is basically created when the light slices past the points on the lens aperture where the blades physically overlap. The more blades your lens apature has, the more points your starburst has.
Again, keep in mind that different lenses and even different focal lengths within the same zoom lens can produce different effects. At this point I’m pretty familiar with how my main lenses will respond when trying to produce a starburst, but that wasn’t always the case.
If you’re new to creating starbursts (which you probably are if you’re reading this ), then my advice is to quickly check the photos on the back of your camera as you shoot. Try different F/stops and focal length combos until you see a starburst you can be proud of!
Happy Shootin’
Oh, and as always, your comments and feedback is appreciated :)
~Steve
This tip is filed under: camera effects , lens , photo tricks , starbursts
9 Responses to How To Get A Starburst In Your Photo
Thanks for the starburst tip.
Thanks for the starburst tip! I guess I’m a “newbie” when it comes to photography but this will definitely help.
Great tips on getting starbursts. Just love all your tips on photography.
Awesome tip there Steve. Thanks for that
Thank you for the tip sunsets are my favorite pictures to take.
MarkHi Steve…I enjoy seeing your beautiful pictures so much! You have a very special talent! I was wondering if you have a tip for photographing mirrors? I’m an artist and have done a series of Dallas Skylines out of wood and applied lots of mirrors and crystals. I’m having a real problem getting good clear images to put online. Any suggestion would be appreciated!
RitaGreat tip for Starburst. I’m OK with the f11-f16 settings, but how does direct sunlight affect the shutter speed so the rest of the landscape remains properly exposed ?
Wow this was a great tip. thanks ever so much.
Thanks STEVE great lesson.