Why screens look weird in photos – And how to fix it.

Have you ever taken a photo or video at an event—maybe a concert or conference and noticed that the big screen behind the stage looked... off?

Instead of seeing the crisp visuals you remember, your footage might show:

Wavy or rainbow patterns on the screen
Flickering or pulsing visuals
Dark horizontal bands rolling across the screen

If that’s happened to you, don’t worry—it’s not your camera or phone glitching. You’ve just run into a couple of common visual effects known as moiré and banding.

Even if you’ve never heard of them before, you’ve probably seen them in everyday life. For example:

Taking a photo of a couch with very small dots, or stripes or someone wearing a small striped patterned shirt and seeing it turn into strange ripples or rainbow swirls
Pointing your phone camera at a TV screen and getting flickering or horizontal lines
If you’ve ever filmed through a fly screen or mesh door, you might’ve noticed a weird shimmering or overlapping grid pattern in the video—that’s moiré in action.

These are all examples of how patterns—especially repeating ones—can confuse a digital camera sensor and create visual interference.

What Is the Moiré Effect?

The moiré effect happens when two fine patterns overlap in a way that creates a third, weird-looking pattern. When you photograph or film a screen—especially an LED wall or digital display—your camera’s sensor is interacting with the pixel grid of the screen. If it can’t “read” those pixels cleanly, it produces visual distortions.

You’ll usually see:

Wavy lines that weren’t visible to your eye
Rainbow colors or shimmering textures
A distorted or pixelated look on part of the screen

And while this can also happen with patterned fabrics, mesh, or architectural details, it’s especially tricky when screens are involved—because the pattern (the screen’s pixel grid) is constantly changing and refreshing.

What About the Flickering or Rolling Lines? That’s Banding.

Another issue you might run into—especially in videos—is banding. This shows up as:

Flickering on the screen
Dark, rolling horizontal lines that travel up or down
Glitches or strange lighting shifts in your footage

This is caused by your camera’s shutter speed not syncing with the refresh rate of the screen. Most screens refresh 50 or 60 times per second. If your camera is capturing frames at a slightly different speed, it records the screen in mid-refresh—causing visual flicker or bands.

It’s the same reason you sometimes see lights flickering in slow-motion videos or on phone footage under fluorescent lighting. Your eyes can’t see the flicker, but your camera can.

Why These Issues Matter at Events

Screens are everywhere at modern events. They’re used to display:

Live feeds of speakers, performers, or the audience
Corporate branding and visual content
Music videos or visual backdrops at concerts
Wedding slideshows, livestreams, or ceremony footage

When the screen in your photo or video looks distorted, flickery, or glitched, it:

Distracts from the subject
Makes the content look unprofessional
Could make the footage unusable for sharing or marketing

And unfortunately, these kinds of problems can’t always be fixed afterward with editing—especially if the footage was captured on automatic settings or without noticing the issue in the moment.

How Professionals Prevent Moiré and Banding

This is where having an experienced photographer or videographer makes a huge difference.

As a professional, I know how to prepare for and adjust to these challenges in real time. Here’s how I make sure your event photos and videos stay sharp, clean, and screen-friendly:

✅ Use professional equipment – Higher-resolution cameras and lenses are better at resolving fine patterns and avoiding interference.
✅ Adjust shutter speed and frame rate manually – I set my camera to match the screen’s refresh rate, eliminating flicker and banding.
✅ Test different angles and distances – Sometimes just changing position or focal length can remove moiré entirely.
✅ Collaborate with AV teams – I check what type of screens or projectors are being used so I can prepare accordingly.
✅ Monitor footage live – I keep an eye on the screen through my camera while shooting to catch and correct problems before they show up in your final content.

Why Hiring a Professional Matters

When you're investing in an event—whether it's a corporate launch, live performance, wedding, or private celebration—you want it captured clearly and beautifully. That includes what’s happening on the big screen.

Hiring a professional means:

You won’t end up with distorted, flickering footage
You get high-quality content that reflects the real energy and atmosphere of your event
You can trust that all the details—onstage and onscreen—will be handled with care

Planning an event with screens or digital displays?
Let’s talk about how to make sure every moment—from the people to the presentation—is captured perfectly, without weird lines, flicker, or frustrating visual issues.

👉 The second half of the blog (below) will speak directly to photographers and videographers on how to troubleshoot these issues in the moment.

Phone image capturing the moiré effect AND banding

🎥 For Photographers and Videographers: Troubleshooting Moiré and Banding at Events

If you’re a photographer or videographer and you’ve found yourself stuck shooting an event with a massive screen behind the action—only to discover your footage is full of flicker, strange lines, or shimmering patterns—you’re not alone.

Moiré and banding are frustrating, especially when you're under pressure at a live event. But with the right tools and a few quick adjustments, you can often fix—or at least minimize—the issue without stopping the shoot.

Here’s a breakdown of what causes these problems, and how to work around them on the fly.

🌀 Moiré: When Patterns Clash

Moiré is the result of two fine patterns interfering with each other—in our case, the screen’s pixel grid and the camera sensor’s pixel layout. It’s most noticeable on LED walls, projectors with visible pixel structure, or even fine-patterned clothing (like tightly woven shirts or mesh).

🔧 Quick Fixes for Moiré During a Shoot:

Change Your Distance
Move closer or further away. Moiré often occurs at very specific focal distances—shifting even slightly can clear it up.
Adjust Your Angle
Moiré is most intense when shooting the screen straight on. Try tilting the camera up or down, or moving slightly off-center.
Use a Different Lens or Focal Length
Zooming in optically (not digitally!) can reduce interference. Sometimes switching to a prime lens can help resolve finer details.
Stop Down Your Aperture
A smaller aperture (f/5.6 to f/11) increases depth of field and can help your sensor "see" more detail—reducing interference.
Avoid Digital Zoom
Digital zoom exaggerates pixelation and moiré. If you need to crop, do it in post.

📶 Banding: When Refresh Rates Don’t Match

Banding (aka rolling flicker or screen flicker) happens when your shutter speed doesn’t sync with the refresh rate of the screen. The result? Flickering lines that roll across the display in your footage—often visible only after you hit record.

This is especially common when shooting video, or slow-motion footage under artificial lighting.

🔧 How to Fix Banding On Set:

Match Shutter Speed to Refresh Rate
- For 60Hz screens (common in North America): try 1/60, 1/120, 1/240 shutter speeds.
- For 50Hz screens (common in Europe/Australia): try 1/50, 1/100, 1/200.
- These aren’t always perfect, but they reduce the chance of capturing mid-refresh.
Use Manual Exposure Settings
Automatic exposure settings often choose shutter speeds that almost sync up—but not quite. Go full manual to lock in a safe speed.
Enable Flicker Reduction or Anti-Flicker Mode
Many mirrorless and cinema cameras (Canon, Sony, Panasonic, etc.) include flicker detection and reduction settings—use them when working with LED or fluorescent lighting.
Shoot Test Clips
If you're unsure of the screen’s refresh rate and can’t get the specs from the AV team, shoot short clips at different shutter speeds and play them back immediately. You’ll know fast what works.

⚖️ Balancing Screen & Stage Lighting

Sometimes you’re not just dealing with one screen—but a combination of LED walls, moving lights, and strobes, all of which can cause flickering or banding.

If that’s the case:

Prioritise your subject (person/speaker/performer) first.
Get a clean exposure for the person, and then adjust for the background.
Consider isolating the screen in a few dedicated shots using different settings.

🔁 Final Pro Tips

Communicate with AV – Ask the tech crew about screen types, refresh rates, or if there's a feed you can tap into directly.
Preview Your Shots – Don’t wait until post to discover issues. Use your camera’s display or external monitor to check for flicker or patterns.
Shoot a Variety of Angles – Give yourself editing options later. If moiré or flicker is visible in one angle, another shot might save it.

🧠 Bottom Line: Be Prepared, Stay Adaptable

Even with experience and gear, moiré and banding can sneak up on anyone—especially in fast-paced, high-pressure environments. The key is knowing the signs, making fast adjustments, and working smart to minimize their impact without disrupting the flow of the event.

Being able to solve these issues calmly and efficiently is one of the things that separates a hobbyist from a true professional.

Photographers and filmmakers:
If you’ve dealt with these problems and found your own creative solutions, I’d love to hear about them! Let’s share ideas and make each other better.

Photo taken at the Tiny Home Expo Brisbane 2025

Screens and trouble shooting with Neil from Sublime Audio Visual Brisbane. (Absolutely awesome to work along side!)

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