How can i do portrait shot with my cam in AV mode

[glyzkie]

Hi!

I am quite new with photography so consider me as super amateur. I am still in the process of even knowing photography jargons. So please bear with me here

I've read today about the use of aperture mode for portrait shots. However, i seem to be unsuccessful since even if i use it with f3.5 (thats the largest aperture my cam can have though sometimes it gets as large as f2.7 - dunno why and it happens) the background still isnt blurry.

Is there a way i can do it wiht my camera? is it because of my lenses? Is it because my dslr just wont support it? To tell u about the specs of my dslr it is Canon S3is. IT is 6MP, 12x optical zoom, the lens in front say it is 6.0-72.0 mm and aperture on the lens says it is 1:2-7.3.5.

Can someone help me with this one. I am aching to have successful portrait shots. Some tips please =)


Thanks in advance.

Glyzkie

[SaraJane]

Hmm....try moving the subject further away from the background maybe?
And I think the max aperture changes depending on the focal length, I noticed that with mine when I was wondering the same thing.

[oldwolf]

Originally Posted by SaraJane

Hmm....try moving the subject further away from the background maybe?
And I think the max aperture changes depending on the focal length, I noticed that with mine when I was wondering the same thing.

Sara hit it on the nose.

[PhotoNewt]

Using the largest aperture possible (the smallest f-number, the 2.7 you see on your lens - see below) will yield the smallest depth-of-field (DoF) possible - DoF is the area of acceptable sharpness in front and behind the focus plane, anything outside of the DoF will be progressively blurred (that is why increasing the distance between subject and background helps).

Since your camera has a smaller sensor, the blurring you can get at maximum aperture will always be less than a camera with a larger sensor - this is an optical property of the lens sensor combination and there is nothing you can do to alter this. This is bad for portraits because it limits your ability to blurr the background, however is great for landscapes since you can get a sharper image (front to back) with lower apertures.

APERTURE:
This term describes the size of the hole created by the diaphragm that alows light to pass to the sensor. Changing the size of the aperture modifies the behavior of your lens to change the way the image is captured, such as blurring a background.

The number that you dial in Av mode is what is known in photography as an f-number, like 2.7 or 3.5; on your camera it may go up to 11 (the smallest aperture).

The relationship between aperture and f-number is inversely proportional:

f-number = focal length (mm) / aperture (mm)

so for a 50mm lens with a diphragm aperture of 25 mm...

f-number = 50mm (focal length) / 25mm (diaphragm opening) = 2

From the above equation you can deduct the the larger the f-number, the smaller the diaphragm aperture, the converse is also true.

Hope this helps you start understanding this basic photographic concept.

[glyzkie]

Since your camera has a smaller sensor, the blurring you can get at maximum aperture will always be less than a camera with a larger sensor - this is an optical property of the lens sensor combination and there is nothing you can do to alter this. This is bad for portraits because it limits your ability to blurr the background, however is great for landscapes since you can get a sharper image (front to back) with lower apertures.


**
So there's no way for me to get a nice portrait shot in my cam? no possible technique?

Thanks =)

[private]

Do you have photo processing software?

[glyzkie]

Originally Posted by patjesten

Do you have photo processing software?

does photoshop counts?

another follow up question..how do you know the focal length u r using when u take a shot? can that be manually determined or is it just automatic depending on ur distance? where do u look at to know the focal length?

Thanks =)

[private]

Yup - photoshop counts - you can select the background and apply a glacian blur

[glyzkie]

Originally Posted by patjesten

Yup - photoshop counts - you can select the background and apply a glacian blur

care to answer my follow up question on focal length? =)

[SJH Foto]

Hi. I think I can help. Firstly, the Canon s3is is a great camera, but it's not a DSLR. Hence, the sensor is smaller and the DOF (depth of field) will not be as pronounced. The focal length can be discovered in the info of the shot in camera as well as properties of the jpeg (digital image file) on your computer. However the 6mm-72mm is not in 35mm equivalent (the focal standard most of us go by). Actually 6mm=36mm and 72mm=432mm So take the focal length and multiply by 6 to get the 35mm equiv.

With those cameras to get a blurred background, you really need to shoot in 6mm (wide mode) at f/2.7 of a person close, against a landscape background far away.

I hope this helps.