Understanding the Bokeh Effect in Photography
El bokeh effect It is a photography technique that creates a softly blurred background, giving a professional touch to our images. The main goal is to highlight the subject in the foreground by blurring everything behind or around it. This effect is especially useful in portraits, nature or product photography.
To achieve this in the shot, it is essential to manage the diaphragm aperture, the distance between the subject and the background and the distance between the camera and the subject. But don't worry – if you didn't capture it on camera, there are editing tools that allow us to achieve this effect in post-processing.
Using Adobe Photoshop to Create a Blurred Background
Adobe Photoshop It is one of the most powerful and popular tools for photo editing. One of the options it offers is the creation of a blurred background. To achieve this, follow the following steps:
- Subject selection: You can do this manually or with the “Select Subject” tool.
- Creating a Layer Mask: This will isolate the subject from the background.
- Blur Filtering: Under the “Filter” option, select “Lens Blur” or “Gaussian Blur.”
By playing with the parameters of these tools you can obtain a bokeh effect completely customized.
Mobile Options: Snapseed and Instagram
If you are looking for a quick method from your mobile, two of the best-known applications to create this effect are Snapseed and Instagram. In both apps, you can select the intensity of the blur and the area you want to keep in focus.
Snapseed offers an option called "Bokeh Effect" that allows you to adjust the level of blur and its location. While Instagram, through its “Sharpen” option, allows you to selectively blur the image.
Using Free Editing Software: GIMP
In terms of free software, GIMP It is a popular and very complete option for editing photos. To achieve the bokeh effect follow the following steps:
- Select the subject with the free selection tool.
- Invert the selection to highlight the background.
- Go to the “Filters” option, then “Blur” and finally choose “Gaussian Blur”.
Thanks to the layer editing capability offered by GIMP, you can adjust and edit the blur to your liking.
Final Tips for a Professional Bokeh Effect
For a bokeh effect convincing you must take into account certain aspects:
- The blurring should be gradual. The change between the object in focus and the background should not be excessively noticeable.
- Make sure your subject is well focused and sharp.
- Play with the blur parameters and experiment with the size and shape of the blur to achieve unique results.
Remember that image editing is a skill that improves with practice, so don't hesitate to experiment and create your own techniques.
