3 MORE Tips for Beautiful Bokeh

I really LOVE bokeh – particularly in portraits, it can pretty much make or break a portrait.

As I take so many portraits, bokeh is important… knowing how to use it to flatter my model, and create a gorgeous photograph is key for me.

So here are 3 examples of how I’ve used bokeh recently. Give these tips a go, and see what you can do!

Tip 1 for Bokeh

Position your model in front of trees – preferably ones which have different coloured leaves.

Here I was bending down, and tilting my lens up, so the bokeh was behind her, instead of just the tree trunk.

When you do this, it’s important to help your model pose correctly, so you don’t cause her to look unattractive.

And don’t forget, use a WIDE aperture (low in number, like f/1.8, f/2.0, f/2.8 etc) to create nice bokeh like this.

Tip 2 for Bokeh

Although sun is lovely, you don’t actually NEED sun to make bokeh – just light coming through trees, or a space in dark areas will create it, so long as your subject is in front of it, and you use a wide aperture.

You may not get the seriously crazy bokeh like in the first photograph, but it’s still very much there.

Tip 3 for Bokeh

Buy a 50mm f/1.8 lens – they sometimes come with your DSLR as a kit lens, but if not, they are pretty cheap compared to many other lenses.

When you use the 50mm with a wide aperture (f/1.8) and then photograph something in the foreground (portrait for example), the background gets a lot of bokeh.

I love the bokeh shape the 50mm f/1.8 creates – and it’s a cheap lens which has a wide aperture, so definitely something I would recommend adding to your wish list!

So next time you go out with your DSLR, look for dark areas with bits of light, then put your model in front of the dark area, use a wide aperture and you’ll get this type of result!

More Photography Advice

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