#AdoramaU: All About Bokeh

By Frank Walker

February 11, 2015

^{Make 2015 your BEST photography year yet with #AdoramaU! This week #AdoramaU is all about Bokeh.}

Creating Bokeh
One phenomenon caused in the background of images with shallow depth of field is known as bokeh. Pronounced “bo” as in bow and “keh” as in kettle, this term refers to the circles that form in the out of focus areas and can vary in quality from lens to lens. These often appear in night images when points of light in the background turn to soft, pleasing, out of focus, illuminated circles. Higher quality lenses with rounded aperture blades will produce softer, rounder and more pleasing bokeh than entry-level lenses with fewer and straight aperture blades. Producing this effect is much easier with lenses that offer smaller f/stops and longer focal lengths, such as a 50mm f/1.4 or a 70-200mm f/2.8 lens.

For this week’s #AdoramaU challenge, set your camera to the lowest aperture setting to create beautiful bokeh. Share your photos here or on Twitter & Instagram using #AdoramaU.

Here are some gorgeous bokeh examples to get you inspired for this week’s challenge: