Posts Tagged ‘Soft focus’

Why image sharpness isn’t as important as you may think

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It's generally accepted as fact that image sharpness is important in photography. When looking at purchasing a new camera or lens, people spend a long time evaluating how sharp the images the camera / lens produces before deciding whether to purchase or not.

Photographers may gravitate towards fast lenses, or those with image stabilization, to help them get sharp shots in low light. And we have supports such as tripods and monopods, to help keep the camera steady for a sharp photo.

But I think sometimes we pay more attention to sharpness than we really need too. In this article I'll look at why sharpness isn't as important as some make it out to be.

Why image sharpness isn't as important as you may think

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Written by Discover Digital Photography

April 12th, 2015 at 1:19 pm

How to achieve a soft-focus dreamy look

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Soft focus filters are used for reducing the local contrast in an image, and sometimes also for adding a kind of dreamy glow. The main use for this is in portrait photography - the filter reduces the appearance of fine detail such as skin pores, giving a smoothing effect.

The effect is not the same as just blurring an image. A good quality soft focus filter reduces the contrast of fine detail rather than blurring it away.

How to achieve a soft-focus dreamy look

Soft focus effects were often used in Hollywood films in the 1950s for scenes with the leading actress. If you look closely when watching these films you can clearly see how the look of the image changes when a scene alternates between showing the male lead and the female lead.

Because of their heavy use in Hollywood, the look given by a soft focus filter is sometimes referred to as the 'Hollywood look'. In this article we'll look at several ways you can produce the same effect in your own photography.

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Written by Discover Digital Photography

July 27th, 2014 at 3:01 pm