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Just can't seem to get everything in focus :(
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Jun 24, 2016 15:17:33   #
jimmya Loc: Phoenix
 
mill_A wrote:
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pictures. Seems like they're in focus when I'm in the DMF mode(magnifying the picture and using the manual focus) and when I look at the picture after it's taken but I upload it to the computer and...nope...more often than not the whole picture is not in focus...I read that I shouldn't be using anything in the focus mode but the flexible spot but just for kicks I've been experimenting trying "wide or zone" it's still hit or miss...

What am I missing? Oh and in the case of one shot here I tried to aim in the middle so I could get it all in focus. Seemed to get the flower and SOME of the leaf but not all. I was using a 55mm lens in AP and SP with ISO on auto

The last one was better but it just looks like the stem and a little of the petals are blurry...
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pict... (show quote)


Everything in focus requires high f/stop as in f/16 and up. That also means you need more light. In full sun you should be able to get everything in focus. Besides what you've got there is what most people want, a short DOF... they look good.

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Jun 24, 2016 18:36:05   #
Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States
 
robertjerl wrote:
Ah, I never said it was a quantity, I just called it "bokeh" and said it was the out of focus area. You introduced the quantity and since then it has been about definition and how different people use different ones and they can change over time in a living language. You want something that never changes try Latin.



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Jun 24, 2016 18:38:04   #
Longshadow Loc: Audubon, PA, United States
 
Back before we learned Japanese we used to call the background "soft".

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Jul 8, 2016 20:27:33   #
bdk Loc: Sanibel Fl.
 
when I started and had problems, I would take a pic at every F stop and many different shutter speeds, I found what worked and what didnt work for my camera.
It helped me understand what was happening and how Fstop changed what parts of the flower were in and out of focus.
worked for me.

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Jul 10, 2016 18:59:39   #
CaptainC Loc: Colorado, south of Denver
 
Apaflo wrote:
Get over it. Bokeh is a quality, not a quantity. That was true, that is true, and no matter how we look at it the meaning is not changing.


People just refuse to be corrected. Do you remember about a year ago when I tried to explain everyone that a "steep" learning curve means you learn it quickly and a "shallow" curve is one in which the learning is slow? Even after people looked it up and agreed that is true, people still wanted to argue otherwise. Well...they are free to wallow in their ignorance.

Photoshop has a VERY shallow learning curve and bokeh refers to the QUALITY of the out-of-focus area.

Saying language changes because "I" don't use a word correctly is silly.

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Jul 12, 2016 11:15:31   #
Don Fischer Loc: Antelope, Ore
 
Ya want a real pro's opinion? Ask your mother! lol

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Jul 16, 2016 14:50:49   #
Bill Munny Loc: Aurora, Colorado
 
In photography, bokeh is the aesthetic quality of the blur produced in the out-of-
focus parts of ... The term bokashi (暈かし) is related, meaning intentional blurring
or gradation. The English spelling bokeh was popularized in 1997 in Photo ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokeh

you are correct.

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Jul 16, 2016 20:45:01   #
TucsonCoyote Loc: Tucson AZ
 
CaptainC wrote:
People just refuse to be corrected. Do you remember about a year ago when I tried to explain everyone that a "steep" learning curve means you learn it quickly and a "shallow" curve is one in which the learning is slow? Even after people looked it up and agreed that is true, people still wanted to argue otherwise. Well...they are free to wallow in their ignorance.

Photoshop has a VERY shallow learning curve and bokeh refers to the QUALITY of the out-of-focus area.

Saying language changes because "I" don't use a word correctly is silly.
People just refuse to be corrected. Do you remembe... (show quote)

Love the world you live in CaptainC, semantics makes you look smart and knowledgeable among your following here and no doubt you know your shit .....no need to be snob about it though!(reminding people of your past arguments proves my point here.)
To begin with this thread was not about Bokeh but about lack of "wanted" DOF by the OP.......I know it is hard for you and some others to comprehend that everything is Not Always about you and these followers ....
Anyway, I know you are not going to change your spots or stripes because of what this cute Cat says !

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Jul 16, 2016 21:00:40   #
CaptainC Loc: Colorado, south of Denver
 
TucsonCoyote wrote:
Love the world you live in CaptainC, semantics makes you look smart and knowledgeable among your following here and no doubt you know your shit .....no need to be snob about it though!(reminding people of your past arguments proves my point here.)
To begin with this thread was not about Bokeh but about lack of "wanted" DOF by the OP.......I know it is hard for you and some others to comprehend that everything is Not Always about you and these followers ....
Anyway, I know you are not going to change your spots or stripes because of what this cute Cat says !
Love the world you live in CaptainC, semantics mak... (show quote)


I just think the words we use have a proper meaning and it is important to use them correctly. It is not "semantics," it is about accuracy. Anyone who wishes to do so can remain ignorant and think a steep learning curve means difficult.

The cat IS cute.

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Jul 24, 2016 07:13:02   #
boberic Loc: Quiet Corner, Connecticut. Ex long Islander
 
Just my opinion. As above-you have a DOF "problem" not a focus problem. Two things to check out. First Peterson, Understanding Exposure. Best book on the subject. The DOF calculator on the net. Hope this helps. Another problem with flowers is either camera shake or motion blur due to slight breezes. A tripod with a cable release can help here. Again Just my opinion.

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Jul 27, 2016 08:01:08   #
P7049 Loc: Madison, WI
 
If you don't have the right lens with the right depth of field it's a matter of composition. Don't have anything in the frame that is prominent if it is out of focus.

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Aug 9, 2016 13:33:55   #
via the lens Loc: Northern California, near Yosemite NP
 
Annie B wrote:
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pictures. Seems like they're in focus when I'm in the DMF mode(magnifying the picture and using the manual focus) and when I look at the picture after it's taken but I upload it to the computer and...nope...more often than not the whole picture is not in focus...I read that I shouldn't be using anything in the focus mode but the flexible spot but just for kicks I've been experimenting trying "wide or zone" it's still hit or miss...

What am I missing? Oh and in the case of one shot here I tried to aim in the middle so I could get it all in focus. Seemed to get the flower and SOME of the leaf but not all. I was using a 55mm lens in AP and SP with ISO on auto

The last one was better but it just looks like the stem and a little of the petals are blurry...
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pict... (show quote)


Annie,

Shooting flowers, like everything else, means experiencing a learning curve. Remember as you shoot a flower that there are several to many focal planes on it, it's not flat across, thus each focal plane will have a different focus. Find your flower, compose your shot, put your focal point right on that flower where you want it to be in good focus, use a wider aperture if you want to defocus the remainder of the shot or a smaller aperture if you want the entire photo in focus. With flowers I generally use a wider aperture because I want just that flower or a portion of the flowers to be the focal point, not the whole shot. Remember as you use a wider aperture that it works across and up and down the photo as far as focus goes, so the main focal point will be sharp and the focus will decrease in a sort of radial pattern around the photo from there. You control your "look" with the lens you choose, the distance you are away from the subject, your composition, even your angle when you shoot. Study the flower before you shoot it, look for focal planes and patterns that form interesting shots. The samples below were shot with a 105mm (fixed) macro lens, a wonderful lens for flowers. They were shot at f16 on a tripod. Determine what you want then set your camera accordingly.The first one is sharp all around the flower and the second one is not, since the flowers in the background were not on the same focal plane.





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Aug 14, 2016 01:07:54   #
alycat Loc: Canton OH
 
Annie B wrote:
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pictures. Seems like they're in focus when I'm in the DMF mode(magnifying the picture and using the manual focus) and when I look at the picture after it's taken but I upload it to the computer and...nope...more often than not the whole picture is not in focus...I read that I shouldn't be using anything in the focus mode but the flexible spot but just for kicks I've been experimenting trying "wide or zone" it's still hit or miss...

What am I missing? Oh and in the case of one shot here I tried to aim in the middle so I could get it all in focus. Seemed to get the flower and SOME of the leaf but not all. I was using a 55mm lens in AP and SP with ISO on auto

The last one was better but it just looks like the stem and a little of the petals are blurry...
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pict... (show quote)


People who get into photography and love the great images they can get with their DSLRs set on auto, still need to learn the relationship to exposure, f stops and shutter speeds. Depth of field. I started when I was 10 with a Kodaguide exposure aid, and went from there. You had to in those days because nothing was automatic. She should set her camera on" Manual" and start with the "Sunny f 16 rule".

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Aug 14, 2016 20:49:23   #
jeep_daddy Loc: Prescott AZ
 
When taking pictures of flowers you want somewhat shallow depth of field. In other words, both of the flower pictures are nice the way they are and if you had everything in focus, the image would look flat. There are times when you want more DOF (depth of field). The lesson - the smaller the f/number, the less DOF; the larger the f/number the more DOF your image will have. Both of your images were taken at f/4 which is going to be a shallow DOF when this close to your subject. To get less DOF and more 'in focus', go to a higher f/number like f/22.

Annie B wrote:
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pictures. Seems like they're in focus when I'm in the DMF mode(magnifying the picture and using the manual focus) and when I look at the picture after it's taken but I upload it to the computer and...nope...more often than not the whole picture is not in focus...I read that I shouldn't be using anything in the focus mode but the flexible spot but just for kicks I've been experimenting trying "wide or zone" it's still hit or miss...

What am I missing? Oh and in the case of one shot here I tried to aim in the middle so I could get it all in focus. Seemed to get the flower and SOME of the leaf but not all. I was using a 55mm lens in AP and SP with ISO on auto

The last one was better but it just looks like the stem and a little of the petals are blurry...
It seems like hit or miss when I'm taking the pict... (show quote)

Reply
Sep 13, 2016 17:37:49   #
Photocraig
 
Annie,
Your post brings back memories of my Photo 1 professor. He was a local Pro and Stock Shooter. He constantly asked, "What's your subject." "What's your subject?"
In your case here, in your mind, as I read it, you identify your subject as the entire scene of flower(s) and leaves and stems. Great. Then you should select a small aperture (higher number like f 8, 11 or 16). That would have rendered the scene almost entirely "in focus" or not (too) blurry. BUT, if you identified your subject to be the flower, choosing an aperture closer to f 1.8 or 2.0 or 2.8 or even 4 would have yielded the lovely results you show. And the third image shows just a portion of the center of the flower emphasized the detail of the Stamens, if I remember my biology, in focus and in the context of the whole flower in the field.

What the point here is that focus, while quite a technical concept, is also an artistic and conceptual choice. Selective focus, as I've described, is a powerful way to isolate your intended subject from a distracting background or foreground. The scene is still overall identifiable. But the viewer's eye is drawn to the item (Subject) that is in focus and appears sharp.

While there are many beautiful photographs of just a flower against a sky or green grass background, isolating a flower in its found planted environment gives the photographer the chance to say "Look at this beautiful yellow flower I found." And, if you're trying to isolate the beauty and pattern of the Stamens--as I called them, in the context of the whole flower and the found planting environment, then you last photo would be a success. Just like in writing, the subject of a sentence provides the context of the composition of the sentence. It tells the reader what to "focus" on. Visually an artist--painters do it too--usually show our subject in focus.

It is natural to get a little dizzy from out of focus portions of photographs. The eye registered and recognized the information but seeks comfort in the in focus parts. Selectively focusing on where you, the photographer wants the viewer to look is the primary objective of photographic and artistic composition. That same professor gave the class the assignment to use selective focus to emphasize our chosen subject within a frame. Later we used positioning, angle of view, texture, leading lines, shadows, highlights and more to clarify for our viewers (HIM!!!) just what in the heck we really WERE intending him to look at.

In many ways this question you pose reveals the difference between a descriptive picture and a purposeful photograph.

Keep shooting and keep posting.
C

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