What Specification Should My Camer Have In Order To..

[KILLBILL1806]

Hey Everybody, I Have A Question..

What Specifications Should My Camera Have In Order To Get A Good DoF.. To Make Nice Photos With A Blurry Background?? Will The Canon PowerShot S5 IS Do It?

Thanks For The Help.

 

[JerryPH]

Do a search for bokeh. You need what is commonly called a fast lens or a lens that has the ability to do F/2.8 or numerically less.

I do not have an S5, so have no idea if a P&S can do it.

 

[Big Mike]

What you are looking for is a shallow DOF. The Depth of Field is a result of several things. Firstly is the aperture of the lens, the larger the aperture, the narrower the DOF. So you want a lens with a large maximum aperture (Low F number). That's the biggest factor.
Also, the focal length has an effect on DOF. The longer the focal length, the narrower the DOF.
Another thing that affects the DOF, is the size of the sensor. A larger sensor will give you a narrower DOF. Unfortunately, most digital cameras have very small sensors...which would make it hard to get a shallow DOF. You should probably consider a Digital SLR camera.

Lastly, the degree to which the background is blurry...is related to how far away the camera is from the subject and how far the background is from the subject.

 

[RebelTasha]

Hi again,
I dont' think it will unless you are right on top of your subject or do a search because some people say if you zoom right in on the subject you can achieve it.
I remember you said money is an issue for you.
What I would recommend if the shallow depth of field is important and you will be further than a few inches from your subject would be an SLR with a 50mm 1.8 lens.
If you just get the kit lens again you may run into not getting the DOF you are after.
Have a look at the Canon XT and then the Canon 1:8 50mm lens and see if you can afford that.
Would you consider getting a 35mm SLR to save your self money or is it digital you really want?
The lens I mentioned runs about $100 or slightly under and the camera depends on where you are buying it from and the prices in your country.

 

[Dao]

Hey Everybody, I Have A Question..

What Specifications Should My Camera Have In Order To Get A Good DoF.. To Make Nice Photos With A Blurry Background?? Will The Canon PowerShot S5 IS Do It?

Thanks For The Help.

I am sure your camera should be able to do it. According to a sample picture from dpreview.com

http://www.dpreview.com/gallery/photo.aspx?gallery=canons5is_samples&photo=27


This is the description of the photo

"Canon PowerShot S5 IS Review Samples (27 of 41), 432 mm equiv, ISO 200, 1/200 sec, F3.5, +0.0 EV"

Try to see if you can adjust the aperture to at least F3.5 or lower. Of course, as other people said, the distance between the camera and the object as well as the background are important.