Bokeh is one of the key pieces that people notice in a photo that makes it stand out and look like it’s a really high quality photograph! But, people often refer to it as “How do you make the background blurry!” Well, I’m here to tell you how to do that today WITHOUT needing any fancy gear at all!
A lot of times, people will think that they can’t produce bokeh in an image if they don’t have a lens with the capability of shooting “wide aperture” which is when you can shoot at numbers like f/2.8, f/2.2/ f/1.8 and so on. (Don’t know what the heck aperture means?! I’ve got a free guide for you! Grab it here!) However, this is one little trick that you can use with any lens and camera that can help produce that blurry background that so many people like, and all you need is two feet! Well, and a camera, of course!
Okay, so BOTH of these photos were taken with a 50mm lens, at 1/250 sec and f/2.2. Do you notice how much different the backgrounds look between the two of them?! They both technically have bokeh, since the one on the left has a slight blurriness to it, but the one on the right obviously has REALLY nice bokeh because it’s super blurred out and the focus is on my handsome husband and that smile I love so much!
How did I achieve that blurry background using the SAME exact settings?
I moved my feet.
Plain and simple! The difference between the photo on the left and the photo on the right is that I moved closer to Steven in the photo on the right, and that immediately changes the depth of field in the photo! If I wanted to keep the same distance between me and Steven but still wanted to achieve higher bokeh in the photo on the left, I would’ve moved him further away from the wall!
So, to recap, there are two ways to achieve bokeh without changing your settings at all:
- Move closer to your subject.
- Keep the same distance between you and your subject, but move your subject further away from the background. The closer you are to something, the less bokeh you’ll have in the background!
There you have it! I hope this super quick tip will help you start achieving that dreamy bokeh (blurry background) in your photos!!
Linda is a Boston-based photographer specializing in weddings and creating family legacies. You can see more of her work online at lindabarryphotography.com, on Instagram, or on Facebook. If you want to reach out directly: linda@lindabarryphotography.com. To sign up for the monthly newsletter full of encouragement and real life, click here!
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