Tips for Photographing Christmas Ornaments & Lights

[WDWFigment]

I have a question for you guys about Christmas light bokeh. I've been doing some test shots with some ornaments and other stuff (don't laugh), and thus far have not had much luck. I assume the best bet for getting pleasing circular bokeh is using a higher focal length (I've tried 50mm @ f/1.8 and 200mm @ f/5.6), wide open aperture, and placing the lights as far from the ornament as possible.

I want the bokeh to look like this (see below), or as close to that as possible, except with ornaments, or whatever, in the foreground:


Any advice, article links, or suggestions would be appreciated. I'm really hoping the suggestion is not that I need to get a 105mm f/2.8 macro lens or something like that. If that is the suggestion, any ideas for extremely cheap (old manual focus lenses) options?

 

[GoofyontheHiSeas]

Tom, why stop at circular bokeh? I can't find the thread from last Christmas where Jeff showed us how to make Mickey head bokeh but it is along the same idea as this: DIY Bokeh designs or another DIY Bokeh Template. You could just make a circular template and shoot at whatever aperture that you wanted and they would be round. I plan on doing some designs when it gets closer.

 

[WDWFigment]

Tom, why stop at circular bokeh? I can't find the thread from last Christmas where Jeff showed us how to make Mickey head bokeh but it is along the same idea as this: DIY Bokeh designs or another DIY Bokeh Template. You could just make a circular template and shoot at whatever aperture that you wanted and they would be round. I plan on doing some designs when it gets closer.

I've done that as well (it's gone from my Flickr account as it only displays my 200 most recent images--otherwise I'd post it here). The shot I have in my head is different, though.

In any case, I figured it out myself. I would still love to hear suggestions to fine tune things, but I think I have it figured out! Thanks!

 

[Gdad]

The 35mm f1/4 AI-S renders very pleasing round out of focus elements like that. There are a couple bargain ones on KEH for about $450- hardly a bargain in my opinion- the lens was a lot cheaper a year or so ago.

Here are some examples though- http://www.nikoncafe.com/vforums/showthread.php?t=247587

 

[WDWFigment]

The 35mm f1/4 AI-S renders very pleasing round out of focus elements like that. There are a couple bargain ones on KEH for about $450- hardly a bargain in my opinion- the lens was a lot cheaper a year or so ago.

Here are some examples though- http://www.nikoncafe.com/vforums/showthread.php?t=247587

Thanks for the link--some really cool shots there. I've actually never checked out Nikon Cafe. I am not good enough, nor do I care enough, to buy a lens for something like that (quality of the out of focus elements). I think that makes Sarah and my wallet happy, otherwise I might really push for a 17-55 f/2.8 and 70-200 f/2.8 to replace my 18-200.

When I said 'extremely cheap' old lenses, I was hoping for something in the $25-50 range. I don't even know if there are decent lenses in that price range; maybe I'm delusional!

 

[Gdad]

When I said 'extremely cheap' old lenses, I was hoping for something in the $25-50 range. I don't even know if there are decent lenses in that price range; maybe I'm delusional!

These use to be all over Ebay for half that price or less if you were patient- no more. Nikon made about 125,000 of them though- so they are around. Never know what you might find on CL or at a garage sale.

 

[Michele]

I know these are nowhere near as clear on the bokeh as the example you posted, but here's a couple I got last year.

If I remember correctly, the dog (who wouldn't sit up in front of the tree, so I had to lay on the floor to get any lights in the background ) was about 2' in front of the tree, and I was about another 1' in front of her. I shot it with my Canon 40D, 50mm 1.8 lens, exif: f1.8, 1/8, ISO 800

This one shot with the same camera and lens exif: f1.8, 1/25, ISO 400

This one was much closer, the ornament was hanging right on the tree and I was about 1' from it. It looks like the flash was used, exif says it wasn't. IIRC I had DH hold a lamp without the shade close(~ 2') to give me additional light. And this ornament was on a tree with white lights so not very colorful bokeh.

 

[WDWFigment]

These use to be all over Ebay for half that price or less if you were patient- no more. Nikon made about 125,000 of them though- so they are around. Never know what you might find on CL or at a garage sale.

I love garage sales and flea markets, so I really should learn more about older glass. As of right now, the only older glass I know anything about is antique pottery and glassware (thanks for the useless knowledge, mom and dad).

 

[kap0w]

Hey all - thanks for the link to my site (aribrownest.com) above. In any case, the "right" way to make smooth round bokeh is to use a lens with a circular aperture opening (the aperture is composed of blades - making it circular means using a lens with many blades, possibly smoothed out to form a circle instead of a hexagon, etc.) Like you noted above, this is pretty expensive. I know the Canon 50mm 1.2 L is good for this, but it's also over $1000. An easy way to get this effect is to use the tutorial I posed above, but instead of making a heart or star (or Mickey) shape, just use a round hole punch. Should be pretty simple and you can do it with a $100 lens, as long as it has a wide enough aperture like the Canon 50mm 1.8. I think something in the range of 50mm 2.8 is about the smallest aperture/focal length combo that you're going to be able to pull something like this off with.

 

[islac]

thanks for all the tips. this thread has been very helpful. and just in time for the holidays.