<p>It's an artifact from the digital sensor and/or the image processing in some cameras. </p>

<p>There have been a number of digital cameras with this issue. E.g. <a href="https://www.cinema5d.com/sony-fixing-sony-a7s-ii-black-sun-bug/" rel="nofollow">here is a Sony camera</a> where the sun turned black with a specific setting for the picture profile. (In the example video, it's the S-log picture profile at 0:49.)</p>

<p>Sony called it a bug, and <a href="https://www.cinema5d.com/sony-issues-a7s-ii-firmware-update-fixing-black-hole-sun-problem/" rel="nofollow">released a fix</a> for it. </p>

<p>This artifact only affects a relatively small number of cameras, and it makes sense to think of it as a bug in the camera image processing: Yes, the sensor is oversaturated, but oversaturation is better represented as all white rather than all black. </p>

<p>If you have an affected camera, it's not just the sun that turns black, it's all oversaturated highlights, like <a href="http://www.eoshd.com/2016/03/canon-c300-mark-ii-suffers-sun-spot-issue/" rel="nofollow">this example with car headlights</a>.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-02T16:54:41.960Z
2016-07-02T17:04:28.103Z
2016-07-02T17:04:28.103Z
j-g-faustus
<p>That does seems like the most probable explanation. Pointing a camera directly towards the Sun is <a href="https://photo.stackexchange.com/q/4016">not exactly healthy for it</a></p>

<p>You may want to try to take some other pictures and study them to see it some permanent damage is present. (That is, if this is your camera anyway.)</p>

<p>At a close up look the artefact can look somewhat like some common painting or spray tool in common editing software, but it is hard to tell if it is fake. I could not find any meta-data like "created with GIMP". It says though that the image is almost 8 years old.</p>

<p>It could be an optical artefact, as it appears like the image is taken through a window. (Please give some more information on this if you have it.) Any astronomical phenomenon seems highly unlikely.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-02T16:38:20.677Z
2016-07-02T16:38:20.677Z
2017-04-13T12:44:06.413Z
SE - stop firing the good guys
<p>Is this picture of a digital camera being oversaturated by bright light source i.e. the Sun?</p>

<p><a href="http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3110/3147227521_396e16bcfc.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3110/3147227521_396e16bcfc.jpg</a></p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/Y1nYN.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/Y1nYN.jpg" alt="oversaturated?"></a></p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-02T17:59:35.717Z
I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it concerns the optical and electronic qualities of cameras, rather than any astronomy.
James K
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-03T01:43:35.570Z
Might be over-saturation, or trying to photograph an eclipse.
Eubie Drew
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-03T07:32:51.760Z
Can someone migrate this to SE:Photography?
iMerchant
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-03T14:38:17.443Z
It's an everyday problem with digital cameras, called (unimaginatively) "black spot". You can easily find thousands of articles about it.  This QA would seem to be on the wrong site.
Fattie
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-07-03T16:10:13.623Z
This photo has been used before http://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/12256/brown-dwarf-transcending-past-the-sun-with-the-naked-eye
James K
<the-sun>
Is this picture of a digital camera being oversaturated by bright light source i.e. the Sun?
Simon Eissen
# Is this picture of a digital camera being oversaturated by bright light source i.e. the Sun?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-07-02)

Is this picture of a digital camera being oversaturated by bright light source i.e. the Sun?

<http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3110/3147227521_396e16bcfc.jpg>

[![oversaturated?](https://i.sstatic.net/Y1nYN.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/Y1nYN.jpg)

**Tags:** the-sun
> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it concerns the optical and electronic qualities of cameras, rather than any astronomy.  
> **username_2**: Might be over-saturation, or trying to photograph an eclipse.  
> **username_3**: Can someone migrate this to SE:Photography?  
> **username_4**: It's an everyday problem with digital cameras, called (unimaginatively) "black spot". You can easily find thousands of articles about it.  This QA would seem to be on the wrong site.  
> **username_1**: This photo has been used before http://astronomy.stackexchange.com/questions/12256/brown-dwarf-transcending-past-the-sun-with-the-naked-eye  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_5 on 2016-07-02. Score: 2

It's an artifact from the digital sensor and/or the image processing in some cameras.

There have been a number of digital cameras with this issue. E.g. [here is a Sony camera](https://www.cinema5d.com/sony-fixing-sony-a7s-ii-black-sun-bug/) where the sun turned black with a specific setting for the picture profile. (In the example video, it's the S-log picture profile at 0:49.)

Sony called it a bug, and [released a fix](https://www.cinema5d.com/sony-issues-a7s-ii-firmware-update-fixing-black-hole-sun-problem/) for it.

This artifact only affects a relatively small number of cameras, and it makes sense to think of it as a bug in the camera image processing: Yes, the sensor is oversaturated, but oversaturation is better represented as all white rather than all black.

If you have an affected camera, it's not just the sun that turns black, it's all oversaturated highlights, like [this example with car headlights](http://www.eoshd.com/2016/03/canon-c300-mark-ii-suffers-sun-spot-issue/).


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### Answer by username_6 on 2016-07-02. Score: 1

That does seems like the most probable explanation. Pointing a camera directly towards the Sun is [not exactly healthy for it](https://photo.stackexchange.com/q/4016)

You may want to try to take some other pictures and study them to see it some permanent damage is present. (That is, if this is your camera anyway.)

At a close up look the artefact can look somewhat like some common painting or spray tool in common editing software, but it is hard to tell if it is fake. I could not find any meta-data like "created with GIMP". It says though that the image is almost 8 years old.

It could be an optical artefact, as it appears like the image is taken through a window. (Please give some more information on this if you have it.) Any astronomical phenomenon seems highly unlikely.


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