A Load of Bokeh

[johngpt]

That f/1.2 slices pretty fine doesn't it?

 

[johngpt]

 

[GregR]

 

[icassell]

Is that Bokeh or Bark-eh?

 

[GregR]

Is that Bokeh or Bark-eh?

LOL :lmao:

 

[usayit]

This was posted in another thread.. but hey.. its a theme thread so I'll post it here too.

What lens did you use? That is an awesome shot.

Thanks! Believe it or not, its from my budget macro setup. I purchased the lens a little while back enjoyed it as a portrait lens then lost interest... sadly it sat on my shelf for a time. It's well known for its optics and smooth bokeh. Later, digital kinda brought a new curiosity in macro but I didn't want to dedicate money to something that might not capture my interest. So I pulled the lens off the shelf....

Here's the setup:

Samsung GX-1L
Tamron 90mm f/2.5 SP Adaptall Macro
Vivitar 6000 Macro ring flash
Old Novoflex macro focusing rails.

The camera is from a pawn shop (I collect Kmount and M42). Lens and flash from a camera swaps of different times. I think the whole thing cost me about $300 total and the lens was in pristine condition too. I later purchased the 1:1 teleconverter specifically designed for it but it is a challenge to use.

When the camera first arrived, I took this test photo with it (first time it was mounted to a digital camera). When I saw the resulting image, I knew it would be fun

At some point in time, I might buy something more modern.... but heck, its enjoyable to use as is.

 

[epp_b]

I think a lot of you are missing the point of this thread. "Bokeh" is defined as the appearance and character of out-of-focus points of light as rendered by a lens. I'm seeing a lot of pictures in this thread that are just shallow depth of field, but not "bokeh". For example...

Bokeh:


(points of light are reflecting off of the tuning pegs from the stage lighting)


Just a shallow DoF:


(no points of light in the background or foreground)

 

[Fedaykin]

I think a lot of you are missing the point of this thread. "Bokeh" is defined as the appearance and character of out-of-focus points of light as rendered by a lens. I'm seeing a lot of pictures in this thread that are just shallow depth of field, but not "bokeh".

This man speaks truth.

 

[bobnr32]

A couple of quotes from wikipedia:
In photography, bokeh is the blur,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh#cite_note-davis-0http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh#cite_note-johnston-1 or the aesthetic quality of the blur,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh#cite_note-2http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh#cite_note-3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh#cite_note-4in out-of-focus areas of an image, or "the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light."
The term comes from the Japanese word boke (暈け or ボ&#12465, which means "blur" or "haze",

 

[usayit]

I think a lot of you are missing the point of this thread. "Bokeh" is defined as the appearance and character of out-of-focus points of light as rendered by a lens. I'm seeing a lot of pictures in this thread that are just shallow depth of field, but not "bokeh".

This man speaks truth.

Don't think so..

Bokeh | Define Bokeh at Dictionary.com

a Japanese term for the subjective aesthetic quality of out-of-focus areas of a photographic image

 

[Fedaykin]

Huh, always thought of it referring to blurred highlights and the shape they take. Oh well.

 

[epp_b]

Whenever you read a review of a lens and they speak of "bokeh", it always refers to how points of light are rendered because it best demonstrates how it renders areas of focus.

 

[GregR]

So I guess that is the real question here... how do we define "Bokeh". Which of these do and do not demonstrate the right thing?

I have seen other shots (not here) that had many points of light that were fuzzed / blurred, and other that were different items that made the same type of blur... which is right?

 

[usayit]

how do we define "Bokeh".

The answer is as defined by the Dictionary. More specifically to your question: Both.. blur of both specular highlights as well as other items in the background.

From Wiki:

In photography, bokeh is the blur,[1][2] or the aesthetic quality of the blur,[3][4][5] in out-of-focus areas of an image, or "the way the lens renders out-of-focus points of light."
... snip ..
Bokeh is often most visible around small background highlights, such as specular reflections and light sources, which is why it is often associated with such areas.[1] However, bokeh is not limited to highlights, as blur occurs in all out-of-focus regions of the image.

 

[javier]

a lousy squirrel