Bokeh: The Most Overrated Technique/Look/Quality... An Amateur's Crutch?

Tom Reichner wrote in post #17439168
I have actually found that beginners do not even know that there is such a thing as depth of field.

There are many who have had dslr's for years and do not understand DOF. I am currently on a family holiday in Turkey in a family holiday village. Without exaggeration I must of had 8 people see me with my camera and ask me to take a couple of photo'S of their family and have handed me their dslr's or bridge cameras. I was surprised to see that every camera was on AUTO setting, Out of interest I questioned a few as to trying the other settings such as aperture setting or manual setting, one guy with a canon 650d said he does not understand what they do and why bother when he is happy with the results he gets in auto mode. This was also the response I got with a gentleman with a Fuji bridge camera.
I know also many in my home town including my brother with decent cameras and who have owned them for some time who are quiet happy to leave the camera in auto. How would you start or where would you start to tell them the benefits of changing their style or give them a little knowledge to improve their photography.????

PCousins wrote in post #17441881
How would you start or where would you start to tell them the benefits of changing their style or give them a little knowledge to improve their photography.????

I wouldn't start to give them any advice or help......unless they asked for it. Others on this forum have given advice that was not asked for, and the people who they were trying to help got insulted.........those who feel insulted can get pretty angry!

PCousins wrote in post #17441881
How would you start or where would you start to tell them the benefits of changing their style or give them a little knowledge to improve their photography.????

Quite frankly, I wouldn't start at all. If they are happy shooting that way then they don't see photography as a hobby, just as a means of recording memories and snapshots. They aren't interested in making more artistic images by controlling apertures and shutter speeds, they just want nice piccies to remember vacations and family events etc.

For us it is all about creating an image, for them it is simply capturing the subject to remind them of the moment in years to come.

If they start showing an interest in learning more, then fine. If they ask about a problem they are having, then fine. Otherwise just leave them to shoot in full auto and use the images straight out of the camera with no editing. That is all they want and trying to push them to become serious photographers is like pushing them to take up motor racing simply because they drive a car.

PCousins wrote in post #17441881
I know also many in my home town including my brother with decent cameras and who have owned them for some time who are quiet happy to leave the camera in auto. How would you start or where would you start to tell them the benefits of changing their style or give them a little knowledge to improve their photography.????

So giving direct advice or unsolicited criticism can result in negative responses as Tom noted. But if you're looking for a more prudent way of approaching this, well, I think imitation is the greatest form of flattery... I'd show examples to whoever you're talking about, and instead of saying "do it more like this," you say, "oh check this out--I like how the light glances off his hair from behind... I'm gonna try taking more photos like that..." and your friend will get the idea without ever realizing you were criticizing him in the first place.

..... but... unless if your taste is the same as your friend's your advice would be lost on him.

sandpiper wrote in post #17441894

PCousins wrote in post #17441881
How would you start or where would you start to tell them the benefits of changing their style or give them a little knowledge to improve their photography.????

Quite frankly, I wouldn't start at all. If they are happy shooting that way then they don't see photography as a hobby, just as a means of recording memories and snapshots. They aren't interested in making more artistic images by controlling apertures and shutter speeds, they just want nice piccies to remember vacations and family events etc.

A personality difference is involved, one that can create a gulf of understanding between individuals. Something I posted in an unrelated POTN thread is relevant enough to repeat here. I've realized, embarrassingly late in life, that most people's main interest is people. The traditional categories for classifying jobs, for the purpose of fitting a person's abilities and priorities to a kind of work, are "things, people, ideas." I don't know where esthetics fits in, maybe within "ideas," but in any case the person who centers Aunt Minnie in the frame at the Grand Canyon just to prove she was there, with no regard for composition or white balance, is engaging with the "people" element at that moment--and most pictures taken are of the Aunt Minnie type.

A camera user who is most comfortable dealing with things would, I suppose, be a gearhead.

sjones wrote in post #17441341
On this site and perhaps other photography oriented forums, the value of bokeh, as in the subjective quality of the out-of-focus area, draws attention disproportionate to its overall role in photography. I’m witness to this dynamic, so it’s verified as far as I’m concerned, but that’s just me.

I mostly agree with this, especially with lenses ranging from middling to great. I realize that the bokeh characteristics of the 85L II are nicer than those of the 85/1.8 (for example) but that difference is really probably only of interest to people that are actively looking for it.

The only caveat I offer is on the other end of the scale. Some lenses seem to have deliberately weird bokeh (Helios) or some lenses have just awful bokeh (the Canon 50/1.8 and 50/1.4). In the right kind of shot, these exceptionally different lenses will render the blur in such a way that it steals the show and distracts from the subject. I realize some people do this on purpose with lenses like the Helios, but it sucks if you are using the 50/1.8 and it happens to you on a shot where you don't want a busy background.