DOF and bokeh

Dont know if this is the right forum.. but I have a question about DOF. Ive tried everything but I cant get the blurred background look Im going for here. Obviously Im a newbie, so go easy

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Your Aperture seems to be too small for desired bokeh. Also the farther you are from the focused subject, the more background blur. I'm not sure what lens you used but try getting farther back, and bring down the f/stop.

trcsbrian wrote in post #5748683
Your Aperture seems to be too small for desired bokeh. Also the farther you are from the focused subject, the more background blur. I'm not sure what lens you used but try getting farther back, and bring down the f/stop.

Unless I'm mis-reading what you are trying to say, your first sentence is correct, but your others are not.

The closer you are to your in-focus subject, the more your background will be blurred. The farther you move back from an in-focus subject, more of the backgound becomes more in focus, leaving less bokeh. Think of a macro lens----the closer you are, the more you have out of focus----move further away, more becomes more in-focus.

Apollo11 wrote in post #5748800
Unless I'm mis-reading what you are trying to say, your first sentence is correct, but your others are not.

The closer you are to your in-focus subject, the more your background will be blurred. The farther you move back from an in-focus subject, more of the backgound becomes more in focus, leaving less bokeh.

Then I must've misunderstood. Someone told me (because he was getting very creamy bokeh from a tele lens) that if your subject is farther from the background, the more bokeh. So i understood that as (because he was using the tele) the farther you are, and the subject is, from the background, the more bokeh. Can anyone clarify this for me?

Here's what you need to figure it out.... http://www.dofmaster.c​om/dofjs.html

It's a combination of f-stop, focal length, and distance to the subject.

Oh yeah, and sensor size.

Okay so correct me if Im wrong.. I need a longer focal length.
Using that calculator on the link provided, at 6mm for my camera the dof is infinite?
If I use it at 72mm, the depth of field is between 9.73 and 10.3 feet
Is this correct?
I thought that wider angles kept more in focus in both the foreground and background?

Just a quick question-what lens and camera are you using that goes from 6mm to 72mm and has ISO 80?

I have a canon powershot S5, Im very new to this so maybe Im not giving the correct numbers?
On the lens (kit lens) it says 6.0-72.0mm 1:2.7-2.5 USM

A powershot has a really small sensor. As such you're not likely to get any decent depth of field out of it unless you fake it in post-processing.

A good way of getting bokeh out of a P&S like this is to go into macro mode and really get in close to your subject and make sure the background is a long way back. Even then, you'll struggle.

This is one of the advantages to having a dSLR camera.

Saving up for one, but not quite there yet

For what its worth your numbers are correct. The specs for the Canon Powershot S5 state a focal length of 6.0 - 72.0 mm and maximum aperture of f/2.7 at the wide end and f/3.5 at the telephoto end.

But here's the problem.... 6.0 - 72.0 mm translates to 36 - 432.0 mm on a 35mm camera. More importantly, the maximum aperture on a point and shoot camera is not the same as the maximum aperture on a dSLR camera, and the quoted numbers are not really transferable without doing some complex math.

F/2.7 on your camera is more like f/8 - f/11 on a dSLR which is the reason you're unable to get the background to blur.

stthomas2004 wrote in post #5751087
I have a canon powershot S5, Im very new to this so maybe Im not giving the correct numbers?
On the lens (kit lens) it says 6.0-72.0mm 1:2.7-2.5 USM

Great answer, you guys really know your stuff!
Going to go to work now, get some overtime so I can afford that dslr!

In that case start saving! And may I recommend the Canon 40D. For the price, i truly believe it's the best you can get as a striving amateur. Ta!

The 40d was the one I was looking into.. Lots of money though. Is it true you need a special card for the 40d?? (not an SD)

stthomas2004 wrote in post #5755915
The 40d was the one I was looking into.. Lots of money though. Is it true you need a special card for the 40d?? (not an SD)

Yes we need compact flash, preferably high speed (means more $ :rolleyes