Bokeh ???

Hi,

Please excuse my ignorance :confused: , when reading reviews for lenses I keep seeing the expresion BOKEH being used.
Can someone please enlighten me as to what this means. I have not come accross it before.

Many thanks

Chris

Basically it refers to what the out of focus highlights look like. If you're working in low light, you'll probably be using a wide aperture - which means a small depth of field. Sometimes lights or reflections in the background can make hard-edged circles that look unnatural (as in bad bokeh) or smooth edged highlights (good bokeh).

Seriously, AV did a good job of explaining this lens term...

Now that you know what it is, I wouldn't get too hung up over on it. Any major brand of camera will have a very good line of lenses, with perfectly acceptable bokeh.

If you're set on off-brands or budget lenses, perhaps it would be worth comparing test results. In that sense, you get what you pay for.

I was a pro for twenty years before I ever even heard the term... ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by chriskett

Hi,

Please excuse my ignorance :confused: , when reading reviews for lenses I keep seeing the expresion BOKEH being used.
Can someone please enlighten me as to what this means. I have not come accross it before.

Many thanks

Chris

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by Asylum Steve

Seriously, AV did a good job of explaining this lens term...

Now that you know what it is, I wouldn't get too hung up over on it. Any major brand of camera will have a very good line of lenses, with perfectly acceptable bokeh.

If you're set on off-brands or budget lenses, perhaps it would be worth comparing test results. In that sense, you get what you pay for.

I was a pro for twenty years before I ever even heard the term... ;)

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"I thought it was a city in Florida... :-))"... You mean it really isn't?
:D

Can anyone provide us with photo examples of "good" and "bad" bokeh? That way we'd really get it! ;) Thanks!

Some sources with examples:
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/bokeh.htm
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/bokeh.shtml
http://www.photo.net/equipment/canon/ef50/

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Originally Posted by Lemming51

Some sources with examples:
http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/bokeh.htm
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/essays/bokeh.shtml
http://www.photo.net/equipment/canon/ef50/

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Thanks Lemming, I found the third link to be especially helpful... (loved those comparisons!) although I'm sure it will be a very long time before I can distinguish between good and bad bokeh! All the "little things" I learn about photography continue to amaze me.... :)

I'd like to take a stab at guessing that this is "bad" bokeh? :D

FS 200
SS 125
F/2.8

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kkraczek

I'd like to take a stab at guessing that this is "bad" bokeh? :D

FS 200
SS 125
F/2.8

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Hmm... Yeah, kind of. Not that fairly harsh bokeh destroys an image - it's just one of those little characteristics of lenses to be aware of. Not sure what "FS 200" means, but I know my Nikon 80-200 f2.8 (two-touch, non-AFS version) is fairly harsh - looks alot like this wide open.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by another view

Hmm... Yeah, kind of. Not that fairly harsh bokeh destroys an image - it's just one of those little characteristics of lenses to be aware of. Not sure what "FS 200" means, but I know my Nikon 80-200 f2.8 (two-touch, non-AFS version) is fairly harsh - looks alot like this wide open.

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Oops, sorry... FS is film speed. The lens I was using is a Canon 50mm 1.8 Mark I. Thanks for the help!