Can FXbuddy add lens flares to video footage?

Yes. FXbuddy can generate lens flares — including anamorphic horizontal streaks, spherical lens ghost patterns, and soft glow halos — that are anchored to the appropriate light source position in your clip. The flare tracks the light source position consistently across the clip duration.

What is the difference between an anamorphic streak and a spherical lens flare?

An anamorphic streak is a horizontal blue or teal elongated light streak across the full width of the frame — the signature look of anamorphic lenses used in cinema. A spherical lens flare produces a more complex pattern of circular ghosts and halos that radiate from the light source. Specify which you want in your prompt: 'anamorphic horizontal streak' or 'spherical lens flare with ghost pattern.'

Can FXbuddy add background bokeh blur to a clip?

Yes. FXbuddy can add or enhance background bokeh — the characteristic circular blur of out-of-focus highlights. Describe the bokeh quality you want: 'large soft circular bokeh in the background, warm amber from the background lights, keep the foreground subject sharp.' This works best on clips with identifiable point light sources in the background.

AI VFX Prompts for Lens Flare and Bokeh

Add cinematic optical effects — anamorphic streaks, spherical lens flares, warm bokeh, and light halos — to any clip from a text prompt. These prompts tell FXbuddy what type of optical aberration to generate, where to anchor it to the light source, and how it should feel within the scene.

Lens flares and bokeh are optical artefacts — they occur when light enters a camera lens and reflects internally (flare) or when out-of-focus highlights are rendered as soft circular discs (bokeh). These effects add a sense of physicality and cinematic character to footage. They suggest that a camera with glass optics was present in the scene.

Unlike stock flare overlays, AI-generated optical effects are anchored to the actual light sources in your clip. The flare follows the position of the sun, a practical light, or a headlight as they move through the frame. This is the difference between an effect that reads as part of the photography and one that reads as a digital add-on.

What FXbuddy needs in a lens flare or bokeh prompt

Flare type: anamorphic horizontal streak, spherical ghost pattern, glow halo, starburst, light leak
Light source anchor: the sun in the upper right, a practical lamp in the background left, a car headlight entering from the right edge
Colour: warm amber, cool blue anamorphic streak, golden white, teal anamorphic
Intensity: subtle, moderate, prominent, overwhelming/stylized
Bokeh description (if applicable): large soft circles, small tight discs, warm coloured from practical lights, cold from a light source colour
Preservation: keep the foreground subject sharp and unaffected by the flare

5 example prompts you can copy

add an anamorphic lens streak from the sun in the upper right corner of the frame. long horizontal streak across the full width of the frame, bright teal-blue colour. moderate intensity — cinematic, not overwhelming. the streak should feel like it's coming from a genuine anamorphic cinema lens. preserve the foreground subject — no flare over their face.

add a golden spherical lens flare from the practical lamp visible in the background right of frame. the flare should include a bright warm halo around the light source, plus 3-4 circular ghost elements radiating toward the lower left of the frame. warm amber-gold colour palette. moderate intensity. the effect should feel like vintage 35mm photography. preserve the foreground sharpness.

add large, soft background bokeh to this night exterior shot. the background string lights and headlights should render as large warm amber-white circular bokeh discs. keep the foreground subject sharp. the bokeh should feel like a fast 1.4 aperture lens on a full-frame camera. gentle, romantic atmosphere. no change to any foreground elements.

add a subtle light leak and lens haze from the upper left corner of the frame. soft warm white light washing into the upper-left quadrant, fading toward the centre. gentle vignette softening of the frame edges. organic, film-like feel — as if light leaked past the lens mount. low intensity, not aggressive. works with the golden hour light already in the scene.

add a dramatic starburst effect from the street lamp visible in the upper mid-frame. the lamp should have a bright multi-pointed starburst shape — 8 points radiating outward. the starburst is white-gold at the centre, fading to transparent. around it, a soft circular halo glow. cinematic night photography feel. the effect should stay on the lamp and not spread to the rest of the frame.

Common mistakes

No light source anchor: "Add a lens flare" without identifying the light source means the AI has to infer where the flare should come from. Always name the light source position and type: "the sun in the upper right," "the headlight entering from the left edge."
Wrong flare type for the aesthetic: Anamorphic streaks have a very different feel from spherical ghost flares. Anamorphic is cinematic and modern; spherical ghosts have a vintage photography feel. Choose the type that matches your aesthetic and name it explicitly.
Over-intensity: "Strong" lens flares can easily overwhelm the image. Start with "moderate" or "subtle" and increase if needed on a second generation.
Bokeh on clips without background light sources: Bokeh is the blur of out-of-focus light sources. On a scene with a plain, evenly lit background and no identifiable lights, there is nothing to render as bokeh. Bokeh prompts work best on clips with practical lights, windows, or light sources visible in the background.

Tips for better optical effect results

Naming specific photographic lens characteristics ("fast 50mm look," "anamorphic 1.33x squeeze aesthetic," "vintage Helios lens swirl bokeh") gives the AI more precise aesthetic direction than generic descriptors.
For music videos, combining an anamorphic streak with a golden hour colour grade in two separate passes produces cohesive results that reinforce each other.
Lens flares at scene transitions — a flare sweeping across the frame as a cut motivator — can be generated by specifying flare motion: "the streak sweeps from the left edge to the right edge during the clip duration."

Frequently asked questions

Can FXbuddy add lens flares to video footage?: Yes. FXbuddy generates lens flares anchored to light sources in your clip — including anamorphic horizontal streaks, spherical ghost patterns, and soft glow halos. The flare tracks the light source position consistently across the clip duration.
What is the difference between an anamorphic streak and a spherical lens flare?: An anamorphic streak is a horizontal elongated light streak across the full width of the frame — the signature of anamorphic cinema lenses. A spherical lens flare produces a pattern of circular ghosts and halos radiating from the light source. Specify which in your prompt: "anamorphic horizontal streak" or "spherical lens flare with ghost pattern."
Can FXbuddy add background bokeh blur to a clip?: Yes. Describe the bokeh quality: "large soft circular bokeh in the background, warm amber from the background lights, keep the foreground subject sharp." This works best on clips with identifiable point light sources in the background that can be rendered as out-of-focus discs.

Related prompt guides

Glow and Light Rays Prompts

Volumetric light rays and glowing practical lights.

Golden Hour Look Prompts

Warm cinematic golden light for any exterior scene.

Cinematic Color Grade Prompts

Professional grade looks to complement optical effects.

Generate lens flares and bokeh in Premiere Pro

FXbuddy adds AI optical effects to any clip from a text prompt — no plugins, no manual keyframing.

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