Flare

I have been trying a few night shots of London recently with my Optio S4. I have produced some excellent shots(by my standards!), but many have been wrecked by huge amounts of flare. I realise as a compact it is quite limited, but do any of you gurus have any practical tips to reduce, or correct flare?

Or am I just better off with my old P50, until I can sell my girlfriend and get a *ist D!

If the flare is coming from a light source outside of the frame then you can sometimes shield the camera with your hand to stop it. If the flare is coming from something in your frame then there is not a lot you can do other than experimenting with different positions/viewpoints. Sometimes adjusting the zoom position can prevent it.

Hope this helps

A lens hood can sometimes be more useful at night than it is by day, because at night you often get light sources such as car headlamps which are relatively much brighter than anything you'll get during the day, bar pointing the camera right at the sun.

Although Pentax may not make a lens hood for your camera, you might be able to bodge something using a rubber lens hood, or even some cardboard in the shape of a cone. Make sure you paint the inside a matt black.