Green halo when taking photos

[HomerSp]

Hi, just wanted to ask here in case anyone has run into similar issues using the cameras. Basically, when I take photos close to (but not directly at) bright lights like my PC monitor or a window a green half circle/halo appears at the bottom in both the viewfinder and photos. It's like the light is reflected somewhere inside the sensor, and that's picked up in the image. It happens when using both the standard sensor and the ultrawide, but it's less pronounced using the latter. The circle intensity changes as I angle it, which seems to confirm that it's light being reflected. It disappears if I use something to cover the top half of the sensor as can be seen in one of the videos below.
It seems to have something to do with the focus, because if I either change the focus manually, or move something in front of it to change it automatically, the circle moves.
Here are a few pictures/videos to showcase the issue:
photos.app.goo.gl/PEY5GV9byL6D8FPo8 (just beneath my PC monitor)
photos.app.goo.gl/QdLLfPhWvVXTz4SC7 (different angle beneath my PC monitor)
photos.app.goo.gl/3AKvgSRahBK64qa56 (beneath a window, less pronounced)
photos.app.goo.gl/KHqC9m6ggfopnCpF7 (video beneath PC monitor)
photos.app.goo.gl/VvZMoaGQ7amh2LpH7 (video also beneath PC monitor that show how focus makes it move around)

Anyone else run into this issue? I've never experienced this with any other phone I've owned - including the Zenfone 8, so it seems like it has something to do with the particular sensors of this phone.

[Danishblunt]

@HomerSp
Hey homer, first off all thanks for making those pictures, it showcases my main problem with the new lenses perfecly.
ASUS really didnt have much time to make sure the images are processed properly hence you see the quality isnt exacly great, note how in your first image you notice excessive noise, despite shooting at 300iso.
While on the next image youll see blurryness despite having a shutterspeed of 1/40.
The thing you're referring to is called a "Lens flare", all phones suffer from this without exception. Since you worked on a gcam previously, yes I was one of the very few that had razer phone and used your gcam, thanks for that btw :), you might have seen that camera applications, that includes gcam, actually have an algorythm to remove the lens flare on the phone, this is also true for ASUS, however it's implemented very poorly or flatout doesn't work on the new Zf9 and rog6.
Overall the only solution is to wait for ASUS to fix or to write your own gcam version.

[HomerSp]

@Danishblunt Thanks, I did consider it might be lens flare, but I hesitated since I've never seen it from my PC monitor before with any of my previous phones. I mean, I have seen it before, but only when I take photos of particularly bright objects (like outside in the sun, or at night), and mostly when I've directed the camera straight on the object. The actual circles have moved around too on my previous phones, but here the only thing that seems to be making it move around is if the focus changes. I'm guessing because the sensors on the zf9 are quite large and deep it causes them to be particularly sensitive to light from the sides - I mean, my PC monitor isn't even that bright, nor is the light coming through the window in the photo above, and yet they both caused the lens flare.
I actually contacted ASUS support and they said they have no plans in trying to work around this issue in software, since it's caused by the lenses.
Shame really, because I was enjoying the phone, but if it's this sensitive to lens flare and I have to be this careful when taking photos to ensure there are no lights around I don't know if I can keep it.

[Danishblunt]

HomerSp

@Danishblunt Thanks, I did consider it might be lens flare, but I hesitated since I've never seen it from my PC monitor before with any of my previous phones. I mean, I have seen it before, but only when I take photos of particularly bright objects (like outside in the sun, or at night), and mostly when I've directed the camera straight on the object. The actual circles have moved around too on my previous phones, but here the only thing that seems to be making it move around is if the focus changes. I'm guessing because the sensors on the zf9 are quite large and deep it causes them to be particularly sensitive to light from the sides - I mean, my PC monitor isn't even that bright, nor is the light coming through the window in the photo above, and yet they both caused the lens flare.

I actually contacted ASUS support and they said they have no plans in trying to work around this issue in software, since it's caused by the lenses.

Shame really, because I was enjoying the phone, but if it's this sensitive to lens flare and I have to be this careful when taking photos to ensure there are no lights around I don't know if I can keep it.

View post

To be fair ASUS support is quite disconnected from what the devs are doing. I'm quite sure the devs will work on it, I can't see why the devs shouldnt fix lens flare correction.

[FunBike31]

@HomerSp
Looking at your photos, this Lens flare seems strange to me, it seems appropriate to cover the chrome strapping of the cameras in order to make it matt and to redo a test.
If not to eliminate this doubt which seems to me more of a reflection, take pictures day and night outdoors with lights in front.