Are Blured backgrounds possible on G3?

I am considering getting a G3/G5, but was dissapointed when reading a review of the G3 at www.photo.net saying that it wasn't possible to get a good DOF to create a blured background for portraits.

If anyone has a G3, can you please let me know your comments on this, and if possible give either some examples, or a link with some ?

Cheers,
Darren.

The review is at: http://www.photo.net/e​quipment/canon/g3/
It says:
"Av" (Aperture Priority): the opposite of "Tv" mode, you pick the f-stop and the camera picks the shutter speed. I never use this setting on the G3, or on any non-SLR digital camera. Its main use is to create or reduce depth of field, to make a background blurry for a portrait, for example. But with the HUGE depth of field that fixed lens digital cameras have, you can't really do it very well, and the G3 is no different in this regard.

It is certainly possible.
I don't have a good example other than these:
http://www.pbase.com/i​mage/18036486
http://www.pbase.com/i​mage/18036626

But I'm sure others will chime in with plenty of examples.

dnadalin: Would you please share what settings you used? Thanks

I have seen this topic around, and everytime that someone wants a example picutre of a portrait picture I see a picture of a flower, which I don't think are portrait pictures.

By using the marco function I have found it easy to get good DOF. So when one is taking a flower shot just set the camera to macro and the end result will be good DOF.

Now lets say that one wonts to keep DOF but needs to take a photo of a person. One is not going to use the marco function to take a photo of someones tophalf are they.

So the question I have is, has anyone got a good example of a portrait photo with good DOF.

I know this is possible with a DSLR camera, but then the camera types are completey different.

I seem to have trouble getting a shallow DoF on my G3 if the object I want in focus is more than 1 meter away.

I get no problem achieving blurred background if I do macro shots of objects close to me (2 feet or less). But like the person above me posting, you don't really zoom in close when you do portrait photography.

I haven't personally used it but the G3 has a portrait mode for the purpose of making portraits with shallow DOF. See pg 63 of the manual.

"Portrait Mode - Use this mode when you want the object to appear sharp and the background to blur."

Sheri

Here's an example everyone should recognize..

MIME changed to 'text/html' | Content warning: script

I have had no problem getting blurred backgrounds for portraits. Here is an example at F/3. This was just an experiment when I first got my camera. You have to zoom all the way in to really make the blur, but this is true with most any camera.

http://www.twopeasinab​ucket.com …ayout_images/14​6553-5.jpg

Here is another example also at F/3 but with the telephone lens.

http://www.twopeasinab​ucket.com …/layout_images/​162197.jpg

Here's another.

http://www.twopeasinab​ucket.com …ayout_images/16​2920-5.jpg Sorry these aren't people, but these are just a few that I could come up with right now, but you'll get the idea. Ann

I have a few examples of blurred background photos on my little web page...

http://homepage.mac.co​m/leemoon/

Look at the pix of mom and dad. These were taken with the G3's Portrait mode. I'm still learning to use the camera and love using it.

Lee

Asked and answered:

https://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthre​ad.php?t=11942

My example:

http://www.pbase.com/d​trayers/daughters

Here are two taken from in a rickety old boat so it was a bit wobbly. Both are taken one after the other, on AV, one was high the other low.

http://www.pbase.com/i​mage/18034591
http://www.pbase.com/i​mage/18034577

nothing else has been dont to them apart from reducing with windows xp.

Sue

Sue, I'm confused . . . the image I saw did not have a blurred background.

no? did you look at both images? one was blurred and one wasnt.

Sorry about that . . . I only looked at the first one!
Donna J

Thats ok Donna, I thought I would give a comparison with the high and low apeture on AV setting. I was worried the whole time the boat would tip and me and my camera would end up in the drink!

Sue