How do I remove Bokeh???!!

iHateBokeh · Dec 31, 2012

I can't find any info online on how to REMOVE bokeh. Everyone seems to love it and all the results are about how to increase the blurry background effect, but I wish to eliminate it. I hate to have to keep refocusing and would like to have the whole shot in focus. So my question is , how do I film close objects (ie, things 1-2 ft away) and have the whole thing be in focus? It seems that bokeh is even more apparent with closeups (ie, video of skyline has no bokeh etc for obvious math reasons), so how does one record video of close up objects and have the whole scene in focus? I'm trying to record skits using toys (ie, gi. Joes, roomboxes, etc). I have a t3i and a 50mm 1.4 lens. I hate bokeh.

480sparky · Dec 31, 2012

Use wider-angle lenses and smaller apertures.

Learn how to calculate Hyperfocal Distance.

Bitter Jeweler · Dec 31, 2012

Use the smallest aperture possible.

Demers18 · Dec 31, 2012

Stop shooting wide open.

iHateBokeh · Dec 31, 2012

I recorded with a 22 fstop and it is still super bokehd (ie anything one centimeter closer or further than the object starts blurring).

480sparky · Dec 31, 2012

f/22 is only part of the equation. What distance was the lens focused at?

Demers18 · Dec 31, 2012

How are you focusing?
At f22 everything should be quite sharp.

Overread · Dec 31, 2012

Sparky has already suggested a few ideas, here are some more:

1) Use a camera with a smaller sized sensor/film size. The bigger the recording area the more pronounced the blurring effect becomes, so similarly the smaller the recording area the less blurring effect you will get (This is why many phone cameras can often show almost no background blurring at all even when they are using a very wide aperture*

2) Learn focus stacking - sometimes the only way to get even more depth of field is to take a series of photos focused at different points and then stitch the photos together (software or manually - software is faster most times for a complex scene) so that you can an artificially increased depth of field. This can be used for any type of photo though its more commonly used with macro photography.

*remember:
Wide aperture = small f number
Small aperture = bigger f number

invisible · Dec 31, 2012

If you're shooting with a professional camera (except Canon), go to the settings and select "Remove Bokeh".

Light Guru · Dec 31, 2012

Learn how to get bokeh and the to the opposite.

iHateBokeh · Dec 31, 2012

I focus manually. I simply turn the focus ring until the object is in focus, but anything in font or farther than it is still blurred. I guess an option would be to film with digital zoom so that I can stand farther away than 1 foot

amolitor · Dec 31, 2012

Is it blurred in the final image, or just through the viewfinder?

The aperture is wide open all the time when focusing, closing down to the setting value when you take the shot. For most cameras, anyways. So setting the aperture will have no effect on what you see through the finder.

Derrel · Dec 31, 2012

invisible said:
If you're shooting with a professional camera (except Canon), go to the settings and select "Remove Bokeh".

Telling a beginner a trade secret like this is almost as bad as sharing the secret of rotating the air in one's car tires!!! Ssssshhhush,dude!!!!

iHateBokeh · Dec 31, 2012

invisible said:
If you're shooting with a professional camera (except Canon), go to the settings and select "Remove Bokeh".

I went ahead and checked my Canon (t3i) anyway, and lo and behold, it had that setting. Bokeh is gone. Thanks

SCraig · Dec 31, 2012

First off, the actual blurring of the background isn't "Bokeh" it's just a function of depth of field. So now, what is it you really want to get rid of? Bokeh or depth of field? Or do you not really understand the difference between the two?