Bokeh Enhancement Test!

[deslim27]

must be careful
different fungus got different colour
might affect the wb

also different pattern of fungus
can cause the bokeh shape to change
best is grow those like snowflake design

Where to buy snowflake fungus? Can do MO? :bsmilie:

 

[ratboy]

cannot MO lah
must custom grow and fitted to the lens one leh

 

[Drudkh]

We do have a fungus expert in CS, but he seldom surfs here already.

 

[kahheng]

I paid quite abit for the lens, and an otherwise exemplary lens shouldn't exhibit such ugly bokeh problems.

So. I set out to solve the problem by making a "filter" to mimic the apodization filter of the 135mm f/2.8 STF lens. My materials used are very crude as I don't have the means of manipulating glass.

Materials used:
Inkjet printer
Printable transparency
Double sided tape

Bokeh was MUCH improved. See cat's front paw. Even at 10cm away from point of focus the paw is nicely blurred out. The orange/blue background is about 1m away. The green and brown stuff are piles of leaves, nicely out of focus here. Creamy xD

Conclusion:
The apodization filter effect really works. Out of focus areas have that smooth look to them.
I shall try to use this for a portrait session tmrw.

Suggestions for improvement:
Use glass. That should reduce flare.
Use a laser printer and print on normal transparency. The coated side for inkjet transparencies has a mild grid pattern which causes more flare (diffraction) and lines on some parts of out of focus areas (not evident in this photo)

Cheers!
QX

Please suggest improvements and comment!
Thanks!

I think this is an incredibly neat hack. Very very cool.

Glass will be too clean I suspect. It wouldn't have the same ethereal quality.

Try printing the same dotted pattern on a larger scale and stick it in front of the lens. The effect will be different but also interesting.

Have you also tried using tulle?

 

[Timber Wolf]

Hello there. What i'm looking for is not a "ethereal" quality, or soft focus effect. I'm just looking to blur the background nicely while the foreground is tack sharp.

I think glass might be a better bet cos it allows me to print a graded circle, without the optical distortion provided by the plastic transparency.

Cheers
QX

 

[wire]

Hiee Bro...

One possible way is to actually take use the lens blurr function by selective section and repeat the lens blurring gradually and merge the layers...in PS.

I saw your sigma bokeh and that looks like a aperture blade edge artifacts that give that non clean bokeh. Dirt on lens may cause that too. The dot looks wierd... maybe one fo these outings you can bring along and we can have a look..

Rgds,
Sulhan

Hehe... sounds like the D7's STF function ;p

 

[hoe]

Hello there. What i'm looking for is not a "ethereal" quality, or soft focus effect. I'm just looking to blur the background nicely while the foreground is tack sharp.

I think glass might be a better bet cos it allows me to print a graded circle, without the optical distortion provided by the plastic transparency.

Cheers
QX

Cut out the middle of the transparency. Helps retain a certain level of sharpness while "distorting" peripheral light exiting rear element.

Suggest using a normal hole-puncher to start, considering the fact that the exit pupil of a typical standard zoom, even a f2.8 one, is not more than an inch across.

 

[kahheng]

Cut out the middle of the transparency. Helps retain a certain level of sharpness while "distorting" peripheral light exiting rear element.

Suggest using a normal hole-puncher to start, considering the fact that the exit pupil of a typical standard zoom, even a f2.8 one, is not more than an inch across.

Very excellent suggestion.

I like the ethereal look though - clear lens, often money can buy, ethereal lens, money may not be able to........

 

[Timber Wolf]

Hi there. I tried that. Ended up getting major "cat-eye" vignetting, with a dim full circle, and a bright "cat-eye- pupil slit. Very yucky >_<

Ah well. Further experimentation going on.
QX

 

[slaam]

another trick is to use a cokin filter square one mounted away from lens.. so that you can..
apply vaseline in the manner u want the bokeh to be..
put in front of lens. easy to visualise effect that you are getting also..