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Photography with Kristen Duke~Capturing that beautiful Christmas bokeh

Kristen Duke Photography· Photography Tips

*The term bokeh comes from the Japense word boke, which means “blur” or “haze” –wikipedia

ISO 1000 SS 1/250 f 1.8

I love to see holiday photography with a little bokeh in the background.  The lights all a-blur and sparkling up the image.  Here are a few tips for capturing that beauty…

1. Low aperture–I shot on 1.8 with my 85mm lens
2. Place a subject in front of the lights…focus in on that subject while throwing the background out of focus
3.  The further away that object is from the lights, the better bokeh you will get.  Bigger and rounder.

Here are some shots I took…(all with my 85mm lens)

My son is about 10 feet away from the tree, ISO 1000 SS 1/250 f 1.8

 

 ISO 1000 SS 1/400 f 1.8

Then I went to my colorful lights for a night shot.  ISO 1250 ss 1/100 f1.8

Here it is during the day time.  The daylight coming through drowns out the colorful lights a bit.
ISO 1250 ss1/400 f1.8
You can do it!  Get creative, during the day is easier because you have some natural light from the windows, but this is a fun way to get artistic images at Christmas time.  I’ve been so excited to decorate and take pictures this holiday season.  Feel free to stop by my blog to check it all out!  Merry Christmas…have fun with your families and cherish them this holiday season;)

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About Amy

Amy Huntley is the owner/author of The Idea Room. A mother of five, who enjoys sharing her love of all things creative in hopes of inspiring other women and families. Never miss a creative idea that she shares by connecting with her here, or read more of her posts.

Comments

  3. Kerryanne English says

    At least now I know what bokeh is. I'll be trying this over the weekend. I heard a whisper that Santa has a new camera in his sack for me this Chrismtas (yay).
    Thanks again for helping me out this week.
    Hugs ~ Kerryanne

    Reply

  6. Sara @ Our Best Bites says

    I love it! I was just taking pictures like these today. If only I could get my 3 little boys to sit down long enough and smile at the same time, lol. Have you seen the trick where you can make the glowing lights appear in all kinds of different shapes? Hearts, stars, snowflakes, etc? I just read a tutorial on another blog about it and I'm dying to try it! Do you know what I'm talking about or do I sound like a crazy person? lol

    Reply

  8. orkaloca says

    Hi Kristen, thank you very much for this post! yesterday, after reading, I've tried and had very nice pictures. thank you and merry xmas!

    Reply

  10. Carolyn says

    Thanks, Kristen. I was looking for something really simple to explain this topic. Shared on Pinterest.

    Reply

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