Photography,  photos & notes

Photo Diary Creating blurred background

Last Updated on 13/02/2021

Today’s photo diary is about achieving a beautifully blurred background in photos. 

Recently I participated in another photo contest at viewbug.com. The contest’s theme was Wet Surfaces and my photo “Rosa canina” had been ranked in the top 10% most voted. And, in this photo, the background has its own importance and surely it can define the quality of it. For example, if it is a snapshot or not. In this photo, if the depth of field was large and all the background was clearly seen no one could appreciate the beauty of these wild rose hips with the raindrops on them. 


The basic key steps to creating this blurred background are four:

  • Stay close to your subject. Your subject should fill most of your photo frame.
  • Check the distance between your subject and the background. It must be bigger than the distance between you and your subject.
  • Zoom in and focus on your subject in order to narrow the depth of field. 
  • Adjust your camera’s f-stop in low numbers under f/8 (8, 7.1, 6.3, 5.6, etc.)

In close-ups and portraits, these steps usually give a beautifully blurred background. And, the more blurry background we succeed, the better our photos look as we manage to isolate our subject. 

Of course, there are other aspects to take care of, like the angle you choose and the light you have, etc. And, you have to experiment with all these factors in order to succeed in creating the image of your desire. As the Hungarian artist, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy wrote, “The enemy of photography is the convention, the fixed rules of ‘how to do.’ The salvation of photography comes from the experiment“.



One Comment

  • Vasso D

    Great tips Joanna!
    I am still trying to achieve this blurrity!
    Thank god it's Friday and I can do some extra practice!
    Have a great weekend!

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