Frustrated with LACK of Bokeh. T2i Owners??

[KmH]

Depth-of-field is affected by 4 factors:

1. subject to image sensor distance
2. subject to background distance
3. apparent lens focal length (which is where the difference between P&S, APS-C, and full size image sensors comes into play)
4. lens aperture

See Online Depth of Field Calculator and/or http://www.tawbaware.com/maxlyons/calc.htm

 

[Sachphotography]

LOL I opened this thread and chuckled a little.....

 

[Infidel]

Sensor size has nothing to do with max aperture of the lens. Max aperture of the 50mm 1.8 lens is still 1.8 regardless of whether it is on a FF or a crop body.

But a FF camera with the same aperture will give less DOF...

how do you figure that?

Depth of field - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Josh66]

I think they explain it pretty good here:
Depth of Field and the Small-Sensor Digital Cameras - photo.net

 

[Infidel]

I think they explain it pretty good here:
Depth of Field and the Small-Sensor Digital Cameras - photo.net

Yes, I like the phrase "depth of field is inversely proportional to format size".

It's not that hard to follow/understand for the mathematically shy.

All this talk reminds me of when I learned about the f/64 group.

 

[AprilEye]

Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS Lens will give you your best Bokah. compose your picture at max zoom 250mm and F5.6 this will give you the best bokah with what you have. The longer the telephoto and lower the number o the Fstop the shallower the Depth of field so the more out of focus your back ground

Excellent... I will try this, especially with all the Christmas lights around. Thanks :thumbup:

 

[AprilEye]

All depends on your lense, not camera your lense Only goes as low as 4. Prime lenses (non zoom) go as low as 1.2 or commonly 1.4 or 1.8

Hmmm... ok. THIS is why I am in the "Beginners" Forum.

Wow. What's with the 'tude? He didn't say ANYTHING coming down on you... he answered your question.

SO my Canon (listed in my signature) are probably the reason why then. Wow. I could have saved myself a lot of frustration. :scratch: Thanks!

And yes... as a T2i owner... it's not your camera, it's your lens. I started out with the 18-55mm f/3.5-f/5.6 lens... and I got virtually no background blur.

My next lens was the 50mm f/1.4 and I can get more blur than I need sometimes with that.

That being said, it's not JUST the f-stop... it's the f-stop AND the focal length.

Because I can get more blur with my 50mm at f/3.5 than with my 18mm-55mm at f/3.5, because I can only open that lens to f/3.5 when the focal length is at 18mm.

Ah there is no attitude here... just a "duh" moment for myself. And thanks for the tip on the 50mm. Makes perfect sense.

 

[AprilEye]

I think they explain it pretty good here:
Depth of Field and the Small-Sensor Digital Cameras - photo.net

You're right... a perfect explaination. Thanks!

 

[RosarioX]

I am trying to attempt it but I can only adjust my aperture on my camera to f/4.0. I cant adjust it any lower (in numbers) no matter what setting I am on. I have only had my camera a few months so maybe that is as far as it goes and I dont know it. Does any one know any different? The poor poor example is below.

Yeah i have the 550D which is the British equivalent to the rebel t2i (I think)
Anyways i'm PRETTY satisfied with the Bokeh i'm getting, i just started a C&C thread for some of my pics one of them might be of interest to you (Bokeh)
If you're looking for bokeh i suggest you buy the EF 50mm f/1.8 II lens, i got it for around $728 HKD which is around 99$ US?
(although i'm pretty sure all of this was mentioned above, just wanted to provide a visual example )

Heres the thread http://www.thephotoforum.com/forum/photography-beginners-forum-photo-gallery/226868-my-first-3-shots-c-c.html

 

[enzodm]

Yeah i have the 550D which is the British equivalent to the rebel t2i (I think)
Anyways i'm PRETTY satisfied with the Bokeh i'm getting, i just started a C&C thread for some of my pics one of them might be of interest to you (Bokeh)

again, is the lens that makes the difference. I saw your pictures (nice) and I suppose they are taken with 50/1.8. Camera could have been a 400D, 450D, 550D, and so; not much difference, in particular after resizing. (this note just not to perpetuate the initial mistake ).

 

[RosarioX]

Yeah i have the 550D which is the British equivalent to the rebel t2i (I think)
Anyways i'm PRETTY satisfied with the Bokeh i'm getting, i just started a C&C thread for some of my pics one of them might be of interest to you (Bokeh)

again, is the lens that makes the difference. I saw your pictures (nice) and I suppose they are taken with 50/1.8. Camera could have been a 400D, 450D, 550D, and so; not much difference, in particular after resizing. (this note just not to perpetuate the initial mistake ).

Do you (or anyone) know if getting to 50 / f1.4 will make a huge difference?
I'm considering the 50/1.4 atm.

 

[Josh66]

Yeah i have the 550D which is the British equivalent to the rebel t2i (I think)
Anyways i'm PRETTY satisfied with the Bokeh i'm getting, i just started a C&C thread for some of my pics one of them might be of interest to you (Bokeh)

again, is the lens that makes the difference. I saw your pictures (nice) and I suppose they are taken with 50/1.8. Camera could have been a 400D, 450D, 550D, and so; not much difference, in particular after resizing. (this note just not to perpetuate the initial mistake ).

Do you (or anyone) know if getting to 50 / f1.4 will make a huge difference?
I'm considering the 50/1.4 atm.

The 1.4 has more aperture blades (8 vs. the 5 of the 1.8), and the edges of the blades are curved (they might be on the 1.8 too - I don't know).

That will generally give you smoother and more pleasant bokeh.

The overall build quality of the lens is better too. Not to mention better AF.

There's more to it than just the extra 2/3 of a stop.

 

[RosarioX]

again, is the lens that makes the difference. I saw your pictures (nice) and I suppose they are taken with 50/1.8. Camera could have been a 400D, 450D, 550D, and so; not much difference, in particular after resizing. (this note just not to perpetuate the initial mistake ).

Do you (or anyone) know if getting to 50 / f1.4 will make a huge difference?
I'm considering the 50/1.4 atm.

The 1.4 has more aperture blades (8 vs. the 5 of the 1.8), and the edges of the blades are curved (they might be on the 1.8 too - I don't know).

That will generally give you smoother and more pleasant bokeh.

The overall build quality of the lens is better too. Not to mention better AF.

There's more to it than just the extra 2/3 of a stop.

Ok thanks, I appreciate the help as always

 

[mjhoward]

What about sensor size (physical dimensions)?

Sensor size has nothing to do with max aperture of the lens. Max aperture of the 50mm 1.8 lens is still 1.8 regardless of whether it is on a FF or a crop body.

But a FF camera with the same aperture will give less DOF...

So? You quoted 'Geaux' as saying "All depends on your lense, not camera"...

If you read the full original post and not just the title of the thread, then you would know that the OP asked why his CAMERA couldnt adjust the aperature to larger than f/4.0. Geaux's,and my, response that it "All depends on your lense, not camera" is correct. And to quote myself and re-iterate:

Sensor size has nothing to do with max aperture of the lens. Max aperture of the 50mm 1.8 lens is still 1.8 regardless of whether it is on a FF or a crop body.

The depth of field of the same lens on different bodies is a different issue.

 

[KmH]

Bokeh and DOF are not the same thing, and are only loosely related.

Bokeh - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and to measure of Bokeh → http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circle_of_confusion

The shape of the aperture has a great influence on the subjective quality of bokeh. For conventional lens designs (with bladed apertures), when a lens is stopped down smaller than its maximum aperture size (minimum f-number), out-of-focus points are blurred into the polygonal shape formed by the aperture blades. This is most apparent when a lens produces hard-edged bokeh. For this reason, some lenses have many aperture blades and/or blades with curved edges to make the aperture more closely approximate a circle rather than polygonal. Traditional "Portrait" lenses, such as the "fast" 85mm focal length models for 35mm cameras often feature almost circular aperture diaphragms, as is the case with Canon's EF 85mm f/1.2L II lens and Nikon's 85mm f/1.4D, and are generally considered exceptional performers. In contrast, a catadioptric telephoto lens displays bokehs resembling doughnuts, because its secondary mirror blocks the central part of the aperture opening. Recently, photographers have exploited the shape of the bokeh by creating a simple mask out of card with shapes such as hearts or stars, that the photographer wishes the bokeh to be, and placing it over the lens