sharpness & blur
sharpness & blur 97
There are many factors that influence our
response to a photograph. a picture will mean
different things to different people, but for me the
key element of an image is its emotional impact.
Of course technical excellence is important
too, but as a photographer you shouldn’t let
technical concerns restrict your creativity. One of
the ways that we judge the quality of an image is
its sharpness. but does every
picture need to be sharp? I
don’t think so. Just look at the
work of the pictorialists in the
history chapter—they were
actively searching for
techniques to avoid
sharpness. portrait
photographers often use soft
focus to mask imperfections
or to create romantic effects.
sharpness, unsharpness, or partial sharpness
is a technical choice. but a technical choice has
no value unless there’s an idea behind it, you
have to have a concept, to know the why as well
as the how, or the image will lack authenticity.
You might choose to make your image
completely unsharp, to create mystery or to
abstract the subject. This can be achieved
through movement of the model, the camera,
or both, or by simply defocusing. partial
sharpness, where the subject is sharp and the
setting blurred, is achieved by using a wide
aperture to reduce depth of field. This draws
attention to a specific area of the image and
is an effective way of creating a connection
with the viewer. The technique is often used in
portraiture, with the focus on the eye closest to
the camera. another type of partial sharpness,
where the setting is sharp
but the subject is blurred,
is created when the subject
is moving. The degree of
unsharpness depends on
whether you keep your
camera still, or follow the
movement of your subject.
This effect can suggest
dynamism, energy, or
restlessness. sometimes,
the sharpness of the image is determined by
circumstance; for example, when you lack light.
On these occasions, understanding the effects
of unsharpness and what it can add to an image
will enable you to turn a disadvantage into an
opportunity. however you use unsharpness you
should always ask yourself: what is this going to
add to my image, is this the best way to create
this effect, and will it create the emotional impact
that I’m aiming for?
A technical
choice has no
value unless
there’s an idea
behind it