Bokeh - Learn an easy manual camera setting

Bokeh is that wonderful haze or blur you can create in the out of focus background of a picture.  It helps you to focus on the object and at the same time makes the background more visually appealing. In the past, I thought it could only be achieved with my photo editing software. But, thanks to Tracy at Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures, I now know that this effect can be achieved right on my camera. Let me show you the difference -

Auto setting

AV mode on my Canon Rebel XS Aperture 4.0 (smallest number, largest aperture)

It takes just seconds and the roll of a knob on my camera to change the aperture. On the standard lens that my camera came with the lowest number (largest aperature, most blurry background) is 4.00. I could upgrade my lens to improve this feature as well as shutter speed. Tracy has some examples on her site with some even larger aperture settings. Take a look here. If you are wondering why I chose to shoot a photo of lichen and moss...everything pretty has died here in Florida after three or four hard freezes in the last month. Crazy weather here too.

I can't wait to play with this new setting more. Thanks for teaching me a bit more about my camera, Tracy. I'm looking forward to joining you at your Bokeh Party on Tuesday, February 15th.

Going to a Macro Party

 

I'm joining Tracy at Tracy's Trinkets and Treasures for her Macro Party.  Macro is a setting on your camera (look for the flower) used for up close and personal photography.  I am no expert but do love playing with my new camera. The best macro shots are going to be outside in natural light. I didn't have that luxury tonight but was not going to let that stop me.  I used my standard flash and Picnik editing software.  I cropped the image to remove some of the shadows in the picture from the flash. The standard camera flash will always bounce off of just one area of your picture. It usually overexposes that area and leaves shadows elsewhere. I also sharpened the image in Picnik to show the detail in this photo. Wondering what the heck this is?

It is the spongy green moss in my studio centerpiece.  I thought this would be a fun texture to shoot plus I could actually use the jar as my tripod. I just balanced the camera on the lid!  There's some improvising for you. If you are wondering why the flash is not reflecting in the jar....I am borrowing my sister in law's speedlite flash attachment. I did not use it for the macro shot since I was aiming straight into the jar. I did use it here. The speedlite allows you to point the flash at various angles. So, you can get the light you need but aim it upward, in this case, to avoid the flash bouncing off the glass. A standard flash on your camera, pops up and aims straight towards the subject. That is why you get that large white circle on standard flash shots. I have so much to learn but getting better at pointing out my own flaws. That is progress! I know all bloggers would like to improve their photos and learn new tricks. I'd love to hear your comments and suggestions on anything discussed here. I hope you will stop by Tracy's party for more tips and sample photos.

Feeling Rebellious

 

Yup! I woke up and decided today was the day. Forget being patient. Forget waiting for my b-day in April. I couldn't wait another moment.  I skipped out of work at lunch and bought myself a new camera!  It's a Canon Rebel XS.  It was on sale through January 15th, and the decision to wait or buy now on sale has been eating at me.  I'd done my research and was sure this was a good starter DSLR for me.  I'm super happy with it.  Here's a new photo of the studio on auto pilot mode-

This was taken in the same low lighting conditions that I complained about previously. The picture is much sharper, especially when you leave the focus area and explore the edges of the photo. You might need to double click to truly notice. I had begun to explore ISO and aperture with my point and shoot, especially in low light situations. It was not a huge success since the camera had limitations.  Now, I will really be able to see the differences the settings create and learn to manually compose my pictures...slowly but surely.

I'm surprised by the picture quality even when I'm using the built in flash and way too close to the subject! Thank you, Canon, for dumbing things down for me!  lol   Looking forward to sharing beautiful pictures with you. I know so many of you appreciate the art of photography. I'm looking forward to learning as much as I can.  Hope you are having a good week.  I've got projects started and will share this weekend.  Thank you all so much for your comments and follows. Take care my friends! I'm linking this post to the party at Southern in my Heart!