Bokeh?

photographerdxb

photographerdxb

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Hello everyone, I am new to this forums. I just wanted to know if this is a Bokeh? It is a close up so it is in the right forum but wanted to know about Bokeh as well.

DSC_0028-3.jpg
 
Indeed it is.
Bokeh is the out of focus blur you get from using a stopped down aperture and shallow depth of field.

Wiki Linky

Cool shot! What aperture did you use?

Welcome to TP! (y)
 
I used f/5.6

It was just a random shot and was not sure if it was a Bokeh so thought would ask professionals and fellow enthusiasts! :) Thank you mate.. !
 
I would say not, tbh.

Yes you have a shallow depth of field, but the out of focus items are recognisable - just a little out of focus.

Try a shot of something with the foreground in focus and the background very out of focus - as small an f/value as you can. Something like a cheapy 50mm f/1.8 is probably the easiest way to get bokeh.

bokeh quality depends on light and number of aperture blades.
 
Oh, meaning I will have to go out and buy a new lens? or I can achieve a good bokeh using my current lenses?
 
Definitely Not!

Bokeh (derived from Japanese, a noun boke 暈け, meaning "blur" or "haze") is a photographic term referring to the appearance of point of light sources in an out-of-focus area of an image produced by a camera lens using a shallow depth of field.

Different lens bokeh produces different aesthetic qualities in out-of-focus backgrounds, which are often used to reduce distractions and emphasize the primary subject. The Bokeh is altered by the number and smoothness of the aperture blades. Thus a 6 circular bladed diaphragm may well give a better Bokeh than a 8 straight bladed diaphragm, as the out of focus point source lights would be more like small circles rather than small octagons.

Bokeh is commonly mistaken for the OOF blur but this is incorrect.
 
What lens are you using? I just got a 50mm 1.8 and was able to get my first bokehs
 
You need a fast lens anything from f1.0 - F2 upto 135mm , f2.0 - f2.8 from 135mm to 200mm and f2.8 - f4 from 300mm.

Big issue, apart from the nifty 50s all off these lenses cost from reasonable to serious money. My Canon 85mm f1.2 cost £900 secondhand.

If you want to try to find a lens with good bokeh, take some images with some Christmas tree type lights in the background, set your widest aperture and longest focal length, focus on your model which should be closer to you than they are to the backround and take your shot. When you enlarge the image on your computer, you will see how good the Bokeh is by the look of the point sources (christmas tree type lights, can be leds) of light. If you have a kit lens you may find that the small dots of light have straight edges, whereas a lens with good bokeh will give soft round points of light (almost dreamlike).
 
Ok guys will just tell you what lens I am using so you can tell me if these are any good.

Sigma DG 70-300 mm macro
Nikon 18-35 mm
Nikon 70-300 mm
 
photographerdxb said:
Ok guys will just tell you what lens I am using so you can tell me if these are any good.

Sigma DG 70-300 mm macro
Nikon 18-35 mm
Nikon 70-300 mm
Click to expand...

They are all a bit slow really.

fast = lower f number
slow = higher f number

You get a shallower dof (depth of field) with a SMALLER f number which is what you are looking for.

Your lenses are likely to be f3.5-5.6 (I am sure the 18-55 is and the others being longer lenses will be higher f numbers)

My advice would be get a nifty fifty or something like that. I have a 85mm f2 which gives good effect and is not much more expensive (but manual). There are others too.
 
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photographerdxb said:
Ok guys will just tell you what lens I am using so you can tell me if these are any good.

Sigma DG 70-300 mm macro
Nikon 18-35 mm
Nikon 70-300 mm
Click to expand...

I doubt you will get the sort of effect you are looking for with the 18-35mm at any aperture, due to the focal length of the lens and the maximum aperture your perceived DOF will be quite high even at the wider apertures.

You may get something like the effect you are looking for at maximum aperture with either of the 70-300s outdoors with the lens set to 300mm.

1st image of my Daughter was taken at f1.2 with my 85L and the second was at f2.8

Kirsty85L.jpg


Kirsty85L56-1.jpg
 
EdBray said:
1st image of my Daughter was taken at f1.2 with my 85L and the second was at f2.8
Click to expand...

.... and the reason that you would pay what you did for a second hand lens. Nice example and that is one lens I am envious of not being able to get ;) I want the Nikon 85mm 1.4 but again it is not cheap.
 
The opposite of plural, nothing to do with photography.
i.e. it's not "a" bokeh, it's just bokeh.
 
SuperAP I have visited wiki site millions of times but I am not getting whether I am getting bokeh in my shots or not.

Cyclone so meaning that in that flower photo I have more than one bokeh at the same time?
 
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