How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background
by Angus Ashton
on
Jul 22, 2008 at 12:49:50 pm
Hi guys im just wondering if anyone knows whether i can achieve a shallow depth of field and blur the background behind the subjects on my camera: a Sony HC-9 HDV camcorder
Re: How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background by Tim Wilson on Jul 22, 2008 at 6:30:13 pm
[Todd Terry]"all part of Tim's very subtle but quitely-strongarmed attempt to get me to get off my butt"
Naw, just a subtle but quietly strongarmed reminder to the class that we have a truly outstanding magazine, and that it's free, and that people should follow the "Magazine" link above, to subscribe in print or PDF flavors.
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Re: How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background by Rick McKinney on Jul 22, 2008 at 7:30:20 pm
How much iris and focal length control do you have with this camera? The three things that control the DoF are light entering the lens, focal length and distance to subject. The subject distance you have total control over. Now what about the other two?
Re: How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background by Alex Elkins on Jul 23, 2008 at 4:11:07 pm
- Stand far away from the subject and zoom in. The further away the softer the background.
- Open the iris as wide as possible. Use ND filters if it gets too bright.
I often use diffusing filters as well (only very subtly though, too much can ruin the shot) and it gives the whole image a slightly softer look which is nice if that's what you want.
Re: How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background by Rick Wise on Jul 23, 2008 at 8:33:53 pm
There's at least one other method: place a clean (seam-free, no repairs) 6x6 or 8x8 or 12x12 single or double scrim behind the talent. It will blur the background. A double blurs a lot more than a single. These also reduce light intensity, which may or may not be a good thing for the scene. You can further blur background by lighting the surface of the scrim. The trick is to have the scrim far enough back so that the tiny squares do not read as anything but a blur. Usually a single works best, without or without being lit.
Rick Wise
director of photography
Oakland, CA
www.RickWiseDP.com
email: Rick@RickWiseDP.com
Re: How to achieve Shallow Depth of Field Blurred Background by Randy Lee on Jul 24, 2008 at 1:58:55 pm
Well, while we're waiting on the article on DoF adaptors... can I laugh while suggesting Rotoscoping? Its been done before... but it is very, very sub-optimal. Other than that, I think your options have pretty well been laid out here. Cameras with larger chips, a better piece of glass, open the iris all the way, DoF adaptors, being farther away, and the scrim, which was a new one to me.
Let us know if you need more details or explanations on any, or a quick search of the COW or a Google search should give you the rest of what you need.
i should be able to easily fit one onto my Sony HC-9
anyway, i just want to know when you guys say to open up the iris all the way would this be the same as maxing out the exposure on my camera? i cant find any f stop controls on it but it has a manual focus.
