Shot with the Mamiya RB67 on Ilford Delta 100 Film with a 90mm lens, scanned using a Flextight x5 scanner at 3000ppi Thanks again Kate for sitting through the portrait sessions!
Tag Archives: Photography tips
Bokeh
First off. What is Bokeh?
Bokeh is the quality of the part of a picture that is out of focus when a photographer uses a shallow depth of field to capture their subject. Many people, including myself, tend to focus on the part of the picture that is in focus. This is a big mistake. There are ways to control the bokeh’s aesthetic appearance. By adjusting the depth of field, choosing the correct lens, and choosing the correct bokeh to coincide with the foreground subject, you too can create pictures that have that “wow effect”.
Bokeh is directly controlled by depth of field. If you increase the aperture size, the smaller the depth of field will be, and if you decrease the aperture size, the depth of field will increase. Choosing proper depth of field is more important than always choosing the blurriest backgrounds you can find.
Most pro photographers like the look of circular bokeh compared to the normal octagonal bokeh that we see in many photos. However finding a lens that has more aperture blades or uses curved aperture blades, to create the circular effect, is hard and they are expensive.
Relating the background bokeh to the foreground subject creates a picture that the viewer did not anticipate. Such as in wedding photography when you see the bride in the foreground and the groom in the back out of focus. Another technique is to have the foreground interact with the bokeh.
Using these techniques can help to improve your photography dramatically! Good luck!
Rule of Thirds
The most important rule of taking any good shot is the “Rule of Thirds”. As I found out the hard way. Taking pictures this way and that not knowing what I was doing. My dad who also has a hobby in photography helped to teach me the “Rule of Thirds”.
The basic principle is that you divide your image into 3 sections both vertically and horizontally so that you end up with 9 parts. Obviously you cant draw onto your view screen or viewfinder. Instead you do this with your minds eye as you get ready to snap that perfect shot.
The idea behind this is that the intersections of the lines is where it is best to place points of interest. This usually makes the picture look more well balanced and visually appealing to the viewer.
When you begin to take a picture ask yourselves these questions:
What are the interesting points in this picture?
Where am I intentionally placing them?
As usual rules are meant to be broken and once you become proficient in using the “Rule of Thirds” try breaking the rules. See what kind of striking photos you can take once you start thinking about where the points of interest are and where you want your viewers eyes to be drawn to!!!
Photographers Dream 