Have you ever come across some rare but common images which have a blurry background?
You’ve kept on wondering what they are called and how one can achieve this silky look. Anyway, without questioning a lot this sweet photograph background looks, and a well-known photographer is asked what this is he/she will surely tell you in a simple manner that is bokeh effect or bokeh background.
Bokeh effect and bokeh background are frequently interchangeably used. Bokeh originated from the Japanese word "boke" meaning haze or blur. Therefore, bokeh does not have a precise English translation but can be defined as the effect of an incredible out-of-focus background keeping more attention to the subject. Now, bokeh effect when put in simple term also refers to the pleasing or aesthetic quality of the out-of-focus blur in a photograph.
Bokeh is created by using a wide aperture to render a busy background into a soft expanse of color, turning small points of light into soft circles. his establishes a shallow depth of field which causes the background to blur. But, there is such a thing as "good" bokeh and "bad" bokeh— so what’s the difference and how do you get that blurry background effect? Here’s what you need to know to shoot a bokeh background just as artistic as the main focal point.
Then, how do you get free and good bokeh effect?
Well, in this post, I will introduce you 2 ways to create a bokeh effect video: using your camera or using a powerful software with multiple bokeh effects to create a cool film with bokeh background.
What Does Bokeh Mean?
Bokeh comes from the Japanese word boke (ボケ), which means "blur" or "haze", or boke-aji, the "blur quality." Bokeh is pronounced BOH-Kə or BOH-kay.
Visit any photography website or forum and you’ll find plenty of folks debating the pleasing bokeh that their favorite fast lenses allow. Adjectives that describe bokeh include: smooth, incredible, superb, good, beautiful, sweet, silky, and excellent… but what exactly is it?
What is Bokeh?
Bokeh is defined as “the effect of a soft out-of-focus background that you get when shooting a subject, using a fast lens, at the widest aperture, such as f/2.8 or wider.” Simply put, bokeh is the pleasing or aesthetic quality of out-of-focus blur in a photograph.
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Best Aperture for Bokeh
To achieve bokeh in an image, you need to use a fast lens—the faster the better. You’ll want to use a lens with at least an f/2.8 aperture, with faster apertures of f/2, f/1.8 or f/1.4 being ideal. Many photographers like to use fast prime lenses when shooting photographs that they want visible bokeh in.
Best Lens for Bokeh
Although bokeh is actually a characteristic of a photograph, the lens used determines the shape and size of the visible bokeh. Usually seen more in highlights, bokeh is affected by the shape of the diaphragm blades (the aperture) of the lens. A lens with more circular shaped blades will have rounder, softer orbs of out-of-focus highlights, whereas a lens with an aperture that is more hexagonal in shape will reflect that shape in the highlights.
Don't worry if you don't own a very fast lens. By increasing the distance between the background and your subject, you can see bokeh in images that are shot at smaller apertures like f/8.
How to Achieve Bokeh
To increase the likelihood of creating visible bokeh in your photographs, increase the distance between your subject and the background. You can do this by decreasing the distance between the camera and subject. The more shallow the depth-of-field, or further the background is, the more out-of-focus it will be. Highlights hitting the background will show more visible bokeh too, so if you’re using a backlight, side light or a hair light, the bokeh may be more pleasing to the eye.
Bokeh Camera Settings
You’ll want to shoot with the lens wide open, so you’ll want to use a shooting mode of Aperture Priority or Manual. Manual gives you the ability to choose both your aperture and shutter speed, whereas Aperture Priority allows you to choose the f/stop while the camera chooses the appropriate shutter speed for the exposure. You could also use the Flexible Program mode, choosing the widest possible aperture/shutter speed combination.
Bokeh in Portraits
The most photographed subjects showing nice examples of bokeh are portraits. Close-up portraits show bokeh very well. Close-up and macro images of flowers and other objects in nature are also popular subjects to photograph that shows off bokeh in the image. An often-photographed subject that is an extreme example of bokeh is photographing a grouping of holiday lights or other highly reflective objects. When purposely photographed out-of-focus, these normally harsh or bright objects become soft, pastel, diffused orbs of glowing light.
Bokeh can add softness to an otherwise brightly lit photograph. Using this technique to separate your subject from the background can also allow you to utilize a not-so-photogenic background in your image—but because of its diffused blur, it helps to “highlight” the subject, not detract from it.
How to Create a Bokeh Background for a Video with Camera
After understanding what bokeh and bokeh effect refers to, the second most important part is to know what you need to have and how you can manipulate them to get a bokeh background. There is no magic involved in bokeh maneuvers. Before we show you how to create a bokeh background for a video assemble a camera which exhibits a fast lens and a source of light. This is the major requirements to shoot a video with bokeh effect.
There are several options you can use and integrate with the appropriate lighting to get the bokeh effect from the natural video capture. They include using the right lens, setting the camera to AV mode, choosing a good background and considering a good foreground, creating some distance between the subject and the background, focusing on the subject, and playing around with colors. We cannot exhaustively write down how you can have a bokeh background because it involves the engagement of an artistic and creative mind. Nevertheless, we are elaborating 2 techniques you can employ to have a bokeh effect on the image in this article.
1. Shoot with a Wide Aperture
If you are wondering what is aperture, get close to your camera and check the front of its lens. Perhaps, you will see some integers that are displayed in the following manner; 1:3.5-5.6, or 1:2.8, or f/4. These numeric figures show the size of the aperture in the lens and how big the opening can get. Note that the smaller the number of the aperture the bigger the opening i.e., a lens that’s indicated 1:2.8 lets in much more light than a lens indicated by 1:4 or f/4.
With the lens properties, they imply that smaller numbers have a wider aperture prompting you to have less light to take a properly exposed photo.
Furthermore, wide apertures tell you that your photos will have a shallower depth of field and anything found on the back of your subject will start to take an excellently, more pleasing blur- bokeh background.
2. Station Subject far away from the Background
The distance between the camera and the background is so crucial when you are planning to capture a video with the bokeh effect. Having the subject far away from the background goes a long way towards creating a bokeh background you have always dreamed about. You can do so by shifting your subjects to the site where there is a great deal of space behind them or you can just reposition yourself so that you are capturing your subjects at a different angle that puts more distance in between them and the background.
For example, the photo below which focuses the lovely couples was captured in a space of 50 meters away from a fountain bringing about a smooth and nice blurry out-of-focus appearance that complements them well. Also, the same photo could have been captured with the couple sitting on a bench closer to the fountain. However, there is a possibility that the same amount of bokeh as seen in the photo could have been missed.
bokeh background
We can justify that it is possible to create a bokeh background with the mere camera by playing around with the camera lens and the subject distance. Although this is possible it has clearly come out and proven to be a matter of trial and error for the beginners.
Coupled with this fact is that most videos are now recorded using smartphones which is really hard to get bokeh background with them. Apart from all the challenges you might be going through for Bokeh effects, there is a panacea for all this.
Bokeh Photography Tips
· Fast aperture is best (at least f/2.8).
· Use fast prime lenses.
· Long focal length creates more extreme bokeh.
· Shoot lenses wide open.
· Increase distance between subject and background.
· Move closer to your subject.
· Take close-up portraits and macro images in nature.
· Use a backlight, side light, or hair light.