Hi everyone and happy holidays! I’m Leanne (@leanneg829 on IG) and I’m so excited to be here! I live in the suburbs of Atlanta with my husband, 3 yo son and 2 rescue shih tzus. I’m a family and newborn photographer who loves nothing more than capturing real life. Thankfully this time of year there are lots of decorations that make things a little prettier and photography a lot more fun!
Since the theme this month is bokeh, I thought I’d demonstrate how lens choice and distance between subject/background can yield different results when shooting for bokeh. I chose to use a non-moving object for this demonstration because…..3 year olds.
35mm
First up is the image I took with my 35mm. This is the widest lens I shot with and you can see how it includes quite a bit of our tree.
1/100, f1.4, ISO 6400
50mm
Next is my 50mm. I really like how this gave me some lovely bokeh. I think this would be a great choice if you wanted the bokeh to be a significant part of your image.
1/125, f1.4, ISO 6400
200mm
My 200mm lens was my next choice. I thought this offered some great compression and bokeh but it is very limiting indoors. You have to back up quite a bit with this lens and it’s often not realistic in my house.
1/60, f2.8, ISO 10000
Lensbaby Velvet56
Lastly I wanted to show you a creative effect that can be achieved with a Lensbaby Velvet 56. This lens offers almost a glowing effect when shot wide open. I think this would be a great choice to play around for still life images. It is solely manual focus which makes it tricky when shooting moving subjects.
1/125, f1.6, ISO 6400
Close To Background
Something else that can effect your bokeh pictures is the distance between your subject and your source of bokeh. In this first image, my son was within a few inches of the tree. It de-emphasizes the bokeh, but I like it because you can see some of our ornaments, which have so much meaning to us.
1/160, f1.4, ISO 6400
Away From Background
When he stepped away from the tree (about 10 feet), this resulted in more blur from the lights.
1/160, f1.4, ISO 6400
I can’t wait to see what you all shoot this week! As with any photography technique, it’s important to ask yourself what story you’re trying to tell with your image. This will help guide your lens choice and subject placement. Feel free to email (leannehymesphotography@gmail.com) me with any questions!