im1dermike
TPF Noob!
I recently wanted to get into photography, mainly to take pictures of my 3 year old daughter and the baby we're expecting in March. I did some research and ended up purchasing a Nikon D3400 as it seemed like a great camera for a beginner. I've watched some photography tutorial videos to learn the basics. I'm currently trying to fully understand "blurry background" pictures and had some questions.
I understand depth of field and aperture at a basic level. I have typically been shooting in aperture priority mode on my D3400 which I'm using the stock NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G lens. I've found that the only times I truly have success with getting a "blurry background" is when I'm 3-4' from the image and have the aperture set at the lowest setting (4-5). Obviously only being able to take blurry background images when the image is very close (and necessarily small) has its limitations. I'm wondering how I can take pictures with the minimal depth of field where the background and foreground are blurry when the subject is 10' or so away.
Another question I have is the impact of metering on aperture priority pictures. There are three metering options on the D3400: matrix (default), center-weighted, and spot. It seems like spot metering would be the best choice for "blurry background" images since you want to focus on the subject within the depth of field. Is this correct?
Thanks!
Mike
I understand depth of field and aperture at a basic level. I have typically been shooting in aperture priority mode on my D3400 which I'm using the stock NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G lens. I've found that the only times I truly have success with getting a "blurry background" is when I'm 3-4' from the image and have the aperture set at the lowest setting (4-5). Obviously only being able to take blurry background images when the image is very close (and necessarily small) has its limitations. I'm wondering how I can take pictures with the minimal depth of field where the background and foreground are blurry when the subject is 10' or so away.
Another question I have is the impact of metering on aperture priority pictures. There are three metering options on the D3400: matrix (default), center-weighted, and spot. It seems like spot metering would be the best choice for "blurry background" images since you want to focus on the subject within the depth of field. Is this correct?
Thanks!
Mike